The Young and the Restless at Home
January 31, 2007

Well, Deya made it home safe and sound. She is having some trouble adjusting since our bed doesn't move like the hospital bed. Now, when she gets uncomfortable with however she is laying, it takes a group effort to move pillows and readjust the earths gravitational pull to make sure she is comfy. I will miss that hospital bed. a new position at the touch of a button. But that's ok, I would rather have her home. The food is definitely better at home, due mainly to the cafeteria chef at Casa Graham. Deya's mom has been doing a remarkable job of keeping everyone's bellies mostly full, (including the dog). Most importantly Deya's appetite is coming back to normal (I think the menu has a lot to do with it). Deya has been making great strides with her breathing. The little contraption they gave her to exercise her breathing has been put to good use and now she is even surprising herself with how much she can fill up her lungs with air. It still hurts mind you, but it's WAY better than before. She is still doing her daily walks. Today it was very sunny and about 70 degrees so she went for her first walk outside in a long time (yay Florida). The biggest trouble she is having is with her coughing. She still has fluid in her lungs which needs to come out by coughing and well, it hurts. She has been taking maximum doses of Ibuprofen and Tylenol, which really isn't much. The biggest downfall to the coughing is it costs her a lot of sleep. When she lays down is the worst so we prop her up but it is about as comfortable as sleeping on a plane. But we are keeping things in perspective, she is home, she is getting better, and she has a great support group. We go to the doc on Friday for a blood test and we will see if her blood thinner medicine is doing its job, so we'll hope for the best.

Thanks everyone for everything. We truly are blessed to have so many supportive people in our life.

February 2, 2007

Today I come with good news and bad news. Then some more good news, and some more bad news. So let's get right to it. The good news is, the tornadoes that touched down in Orlando today missed us by a good 15 miles. While we did get a whole lot of rain, and pretty decent lightning and thunder show at 5 am, the wicked witch decided we needed to stay here in Kansas a little longer. The bad news is.....Deya got a really bad migraine and fell down today. We went to the lab this morning so they could draw blood and send the results to the doctor and on the way home Deya got a pretty intense migraine. Then, when we got home, she had her eyes closed because she gets very light sensitive when she has migraines, and she went to sit down on the bed and, well...... she missed. Needless to say, it gave us all a pretty good scare, but after some semi-deep breathing, she regained her composure and carried on into bed. The down side, of course, was that now her head hurt and her chest really hurt. The other good news is, Deya's appetite and range of motion is improving more and more everyday. In fact she is able to laugh a little bit and sit up on her own without nearly as much help. So good job Deya! The other bad news is, we got the result of her blood work from this morning and her blood is WAY too thick. Right now she is on 1mg doses of blood thinner and the doc said she needs to take 5 of those pills a day for the next 2 days and then she will go back to the hospital on Sunday for another blood draw. Now, the doctors did warn us when she was discharged that it would take some time to get the correct dosage, but being off by 4mg is pretty big. But we are grateful the tornadoes went away so we could make it to lab this morning and hopefully we will get things straightened out.

Thank You everyone who has been so kind in sending Deya the wonderful cards and flowers. Our place smells so much nicer!!

And a big thank you goes out to Bethanne Freeland who went to Good Morning America on Thursday and held up a sign that said, "Get Well Soon Deya Love" for all to see. We all got a big kick out it.

February 5, 2007

Ok, so I just read all the (as Erica so wonderfully worded it) "Episodes of Deya". I was a little skeptical but it seems Chris did a really good job in informing all of "my peeps". Your responses were touching, appreciated, and hilarious. I am so comforted to know that people out there worry about their "Poor Pink Princess" and that they love my "stictched up little guts" :) See what I mean? Laughter truly is the best medicine. Chris has not allowed me (or I wouldn't allow him) to read these until now as laughter was more painful that curing until now. I have been so overwhelmed with everyone's support and love and prayers. I am once again living proof that prayers are answered so thank all of you for getting me home!

I guess you are now hungry for an update? Don't drool too much as it is not nearly as exciting as moose guts (for the record I did not nor have I ever come into contact with any actual moose guts eventhough I am married to a Cannuck). We went to the doctor today. My blood is still thicker than they would like so we continue to manipulate my home pharmacy. Tonight we are back to 5 pills. Please don't feel sorry for me as these pills are PINK! I am in no danger unless you count (I do) the needles from the blood draws. If any of you have ever accompanied me to a flu shot, you will be happy to know that I can indeed control myself and no longer hide under the chair when I see a needle coming straight for me. The fluid around my lungs has finally cleared (YAY) although there is a little fluid under my heart. Again, do not be alarmed. It is normal for post-op as my heart was enlarged and is now returning to a smaller size, (and this time I'll keep it off!) something has to fill up the space in my chest. Fluid would be the easiest thing for my body to put there so it does. But we are talking a very small amount. For those at the Village, similar in amount to a Jenna-sized sip. :) I am on a really fun pill that drains fluid from my body and gives me a first hand feel of what every woman whines about during pregnancy. So that pill will continue to help drain the fluid. As far as all my wounds, we are doing well. I can't remember if Chris mentioned this or not, but the Surgeon's PA (and my new best friend) cut out my old scar during surgery so now all I have is this skinny pink line about the size of a string of yarn. The bruising is starting to go away (No Touchy!) and I am healing. I have one chest tube hole (it really is that, a hole. There are two next to each other and they are above my belly button so I worry I might be confused with a bowling ball at some point) that is "oozing". I was afraid they would make me have stitches but the doctor seemed very unconcerned and loaded us up with more gauze and tape. Unfortunately during all the tape and other adhesive they have used on me, no one has opted to use my pink duct tape. I have offered and continue to do so but my home nurse is even less amused. I love you Mom! So I am going back for a blood draw on Wednesday and then a check-up on Monday. Woo Hoo!

I have been flagged to be reintroduced into society, so if you call first and I haven't tripped or fallen on my behind today, I just might be up for a visit. Feel free to give me a call and of course you can email. Chris finally broke down and we have internet at home now! YAY!!!!!!

Anyway, I love you all, I appreciate your thoughts and prayers and entertainment you have sent my way.

xoxo,

Your Little Trooper

February 12, 2007
So, I apologize for the large gap in informative emails, but you have to give me time to gather up my new material. We had another doctor's appointment today so here is the update:
Blood levels: We are slowly getting up to the levels that the doctor would like, but we just aren't there yet. In the words of a wise little blue train, "I think I can, I think I can." I am beginning to be on a first name basis with the phlebotomist ( I love all these medical terms, although "organizing" is my current favorite). We have made an agreement that if they try to be gentle and let Chris hold my hand, I will not kick or bite them. Sadly, this is not a joke, apparently adults really do kick the poor employees. They finally prescribed me higher mg pills so I no longer have to take 5 at a time. I have my little rainbow pill menagerie of pink, purple, peach, and white.
Fluid: Last week they found a little fluid under my heart. This week they found it is not increasing, but it is not going away either. the good news is that the fluid is "organizing." (Apparently, this does not mean that the fluid is forming into alphabetical lines and making picket signs preparing for the rally). I said this to Lake and he wanted to know if they were demanding higher wages or benefits. He also asked if the cells "organizing" was my twin and did that mean he would have a new brother or sister. All jokes aside, "organizing" in this sense actually means that it is getting ready to be reabsorbed into my body. This is a good thing.
My incision is doing very well. The scabbing is gone and it is a pretty pink and lavender combination that seems to coordinate well with most of my wardrobe. This isn't hard as my current wardrobe consists of 15 different pairs of pink pajamas! One more shout out...thanks Mom! The little bowling ball holes have finally quit bleeding. We have graduated to oozing other things which I will spare you. If you really want my graphic description, feel free to ask and I will send it to you. If you do ask, you were warned. :)

My valve is doing fantastic and my pacemaker ("pacer" is the slang term I have learned) will be "interrogated" in two weeks. I will leave you guessing and we can learn that vocab word next week. It's okay, If I want to keep your interest I must use some sort of suspense, right? The pacer is on my right side so that arm is a little sore. I can wash the left-side of my hair though! Mom was very excited to have half of her duties relieved. :) So we just pop a few more of my extremely un-potent IBProfen. I am a tough cookie (a pink chocolate cookie that is). I was told that I cannot return to work for 3 more weeks. Mom and Chris are very excited about entertaining me for 3 more weeks. Between games, coloring, crafts, puzzles, magazines, books, and movies, I just might make it. Thank heavens for the internet! I am sad to wait longer to return to the Village, as I feel mentally ready. If only my body would keep up. That is something I have always struggled with (you remember being mentally ready for a cookie but your body wasn't tall enough to reach one for you?) so it's not a problem.
I did want to say thank you again to everyone. I love all the emails, cards, packages, and phone calls. None are necessary but I really like the emails. This could be in part that I hadn't had access to email in so long that I might have experienced a few withdrawal symptoms. :) But we all have been so overwhelmed with feelings of love and support and I thank you. Most of all, thanks for all the prayers. That is all anyone can do to help me at this point so it is much appreciated.

February 19, 2007
****SPOILER****
I wrote "spoiler" on top just in case you were taping tonight's episode and didn't want me to ruin it for you. This is a suggestion from my brother as apparently that is what happened to him last week. Sooooo sorry.
I have enjoyed reading all your email responses and try to respond in a timely matter. Due to the fact that we have 2 computers and 3 humans deeply in need of cabin fever treatment, this is not always possible. Technically there are 3 computers, but "Chris' work computer is not to play on." Somehow that reminds me of something my dad used to say...
Anyhoo, I am doing well this week. I was even able to go to part of church on Sunday. I have had no more doctor's appointments which can only be good. There are two explanations to be fair: 1) I am improving and need less monitoring, or 2) They have finally had enough of me and are tired of my constant questions. I'm going to keep telling myself the answer was #1.
My blood levels have finally reached the goal, (I knew I could do it!). If I can keep it level for 10 days, I will not have to mess with it as often. If not, back to the drawing board. Hey, Rome wasn't built in a day and it takes time to become perfect, right? The problem was my blood was too thick. Apparently, that is not something you can just water down. I have some friends that always tell me I have thick skin (if you knew me growing up, you can stop laughing now), but I am wondering if it was just the thick blood underneath. I guess we'll find out.
All this thinning out of my blood has started a new phenomenon, though. I have a funny black spot that is in the middle of my new scar. Slightly alarmed I called the doctor. Now, I must warn you, here is proof we are truly in the technology age when I tell you his response. Here is the conversation:
"Deya, from what you are saying I have to see it. How hard would it be for you to come down here?"
"Not too hard, I guess."
"Well, would you rather just take a picture and email it to me?"
"I can do that?"
"Sure, here's my address. Take a good one and call me when you send it."
He then sat there and talked to me while he looked at it. Since the picture is not great, it does look like a small beetle sitting under my skin. Chris has affectionately named it, Buzz. It turns out Buzz is nothing more than a small capillary leaking due to my blood levels finally being thin enough. The blood is just pooling there and will eventually go away on its own. Crisis averted! That was the big crisis of our week so I consider myself very lucky.
I have however managed to catch myself a cold. I know, I know, my doctor laughed at me too. Nothing a little Benadryl can't cure. So overall, we are doing pretty good here. I hope ya'll are all doing well and I know this is getting redundant, but I really do appreciate all the support, love, and prayers I receive every day. I could not have done this without any of you behind me.