Hello, So we had a 6 month check up this week. The trip to Seattle went pretty good this time. My brother has lost 20 lbs since his last visit 6 months ago. His Albumin is up to 3.2 (normal is 3.5),...
I just talked with my brother a little while ago, a short conversation as he is very tired and a little groggy, he keeps trying to get rest and keeps getting visitors and phone calls. We just love...
First off, I want to say again, my condolences to Connie's family and friends. She fought a good fight, and did much worthwhile during her time of illness. Such an inspiration....
Connie was a great inspiration and was selfless in giving of her time and knowledge. She will be greatly missed. My prayers and condolences are with her family and friends. Harpazo me up...
Hello, My brother is out of surgery and back in his room. My sister and dad were there. He was in surgery for about 1 1/2 hours, the surgeon said he believes the strangulation was taken care of fast...
And Mama Lama, I don't recall what the limit on the MELD score is at UWMC I just remember that they raised it in the 30's. My brother score has been staying around 9-10 and last time we were there it...
And Connie, I will be praying for you!...
Rick, SO nice to hear from you. Miss ya! I am happy to hear you are holding out. NEWS UPDATE: My brother is going into emergency surgery in 1/2 hour for a strangulated hernia. They transported him to...
Rick, if your still on here, how have you been faring with your TIPS and weight? What meds are you on now? Doing well with all I hope! Take care, Phyllis...
Hello to all, Up until last month it was an uneventful year. After talking with the Social Worker at the hospital about the the repeated problems and questioning during 6 mo appts about my brother...
Thanks so much for the support on the AA. I will pass it on to my brother, I am sure just knowing that others have gone through this will be encouragement for him to go through it until he can get...
My brother said they have a different kind of meeting through the hospital that he felt he learned more from. He tried to explain this to the Dr.s. He said the AA meeting he is in (small resort town...
Hello to all! My apologies I have not been more consistent with keeping up here. Been busy being a grammy of an energizer monkey : ) Rickster, everything you said in your last post is about the same...
Thank you all for your kind words. Rickster what have you been up to? Tell me how you are doing. What is your diet like? Are you still on any meds? Can you build muscle, and how are you maintaining...
Connie, You are in my thoughts and in my prayers. Just want you to know I am grateful for your encouragement and help concerning my brother. Trust in the Lord with all you heart, He will bring you...
Hello, I see time has gone by faster than I realized. My brother has been doing pretty good. Hernia surgery was successful. We just got back from Seattle yesterday. They said his TIPS looks very...
Ok, my brother's surgery was a success and completed about 3:00am. He is SOOO happy that the hernia is gone. It was about the size of 2 softballs. My sister told me after 2 weeks they drained 2...
I apologize for my misspellings. Just a little tired....
Hello to all, So, my brother was rushed to the hospital several hours ago. His drainings are less often now, but after draining him completely today his intestines pushed through the abdominal wall....
Ok, have a quick update already. When my brother went in today for his tests, mind you it has been one week since surgery, he gained 2 lbs of fluid where he would have gained almost 20 lbs of fluid....
Answered prayers to you all....
Well, that was probably the most trying time yet to Seattle. Besides on the verge of tears of frustration for my sister and I concerning lack of communication of medical personnel, the surgery was a...
So, my brother has decided to go with the TIPS. UNOS agreed to raise his score but it was not enough to take the chance to wait it out in his current condition. We leave for UWMC tomorrow morning,...
Ok couple of things, Connie, the UWMC will not repair the hernia until the transplant is done, they are too concerned with internal infection and "re tearing" due to Ascites. They said if he got the...
Hi Connie, He has an umbilical hernia. If you were to take two softballs and make it into one it is almost that size when filled with fluid. It was only one day after he was drained and still was...
Ok, here's the scoop. We were scheduled to go to Seattle over Jan 17 and 18th. I made all the reservations and then a week later got a call that they couldn't do the 17th because no one realized it...
Wow, I can't believe it has been 3 months since I posted last. I thought I had written around Thanksgiving, but apparently not, based on my last thread. For the first time in 28+ years our whole...
Welcome Dany, glad to have you on board!...
Hello Everyone, Well, this was not one of the best trips to Seattle we had. We almost missed our flight out, not because we were late but we had a not very nice ticket agent checking us in....
Hello all, forgot to post update from last Seattle trip. My sister and brother and I are heading back to Seattle tomorrow night. They want to check out a concern with my brother's heart. (His name is...
Thanks so much for your responses, it helps hearing what others have gone through also. Concerning the TIPS, the doctors at UWMC do not think my brother is a candidate for the TIPS. I think because...
Thanks for the tip I will pass it along to my brother. Also, Here is an update for all concerning our last trip to Seattle. Sorry it took so long, alot going on here. We spent 2 days from morning...
I meant Memorial Day, and colonoscopy. Must be from my spelling bee days. ;-)...
Hello all, well my sister, brother and I leave Memormial Day for Seattle again. So far my brother did his Colonscopy, Endoscopy, immunizations, first of his Hep B series, TB skin test, and is...
Thank you for your kind words, though I have to extend thanks to all of my family. We just help in the areas that God has given us the abilities too, whether it be finances, transportation, moral...
Hello, .ExternalClass .ecxhmmessage P {padding:0px;} .ExternalClass body.ecxhmmessage {font-size:10pt;font-family:Verdana;} An update on my brother and our trip to Seattle. He had a couple different...
Ok we leave tomorrow for Seattle. My brother decided to keep the itinerary as we had originally planned and drive over with my sister to my house and then onto Southwest Air. He is going to take a...
Donna, thank you for sharing your story. I am glad that your dad was able to be at home with a family that loved (and still does) love him. Yes, I know we cannot change others, but the fact that you...
Sue, I am sorry for your loss. My grandpa waited for my mom to fly across the United States to be with him and he passed shortly after her arriving. I am so happy you were able to be there with him,...
Connie, we fly into Seattle in the evening, stay at the Hospitality house same night and get up the next morning to be at medical center by 9:15 am then fly out at 6 pm that same evening. One of our...
1:15 pm. By the way have you ever heard of anything like an abdominal sling for a hernia? It is like a stretchy wrap around the abdomen to help hold in the weakened stomach wall. Thanks again, I'll...
Hello all. My brother got a call from University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle. They have scheduled him an appointment for April 20th for an evaluation for a liver transplant. Montana...
Hello, well I saw my brother and mother last weekend. He was at the store!, so I guess he is on an upswing again. His mental clarity seemed pretty good also. We both went to turn in his paperwork for...
Hello to all, Yes Connie, the Seattle trip is to see a Hepatologist. I am going to meet one of my sisters up at my mom's this Thursday to spend some time with my brother and my mom. From what I was...
Hello all, I want to wish everyone a Happy Valentines Day! Many personal trials this last month, but just wanted to give a short update on my brother. He got together Calcium, B complex, and...
Happy New Year! Yes Connie I did get the info on Angel flight and my sister and I read everything on their site. That is too cool. Thank you! Sue, I love a challenge, and I am going to talk to my...
Not sure what happened here, but I went back to see if my short post showed up, and then there was my post with Rick and Connies post afterwards.......Whew! glad I don't have to try and recall all...
Uuuggghhh! I wrote a long post earlier to get everyone caught up and it is not on here. As soon as I get some more time I will rewrite it. Blessings, Harp...
Whooo!! Finally made it to the computer. I have been taking care of my 10 mo old adorable grandson for the past month and things have been quite busy. (that is another story) Sue, the 3 ring binder...
Connie, You are in my prayers. Even so, you are still in my prayers. Harp....