A brand new day! I heard on KLove yesterday that Easter reminds us of the new life we have in Jesus. God continues to heal Seth’s body one cell at a time. 2200 One of his drs stopped by and the nurses talked to him outside the room. They updated him that his BP’s are a little higher (>160). At the time he was maxed out on his Esmolol. Order received to call the doctor through the night if unable to go down on this, if Hydrolozine was given (on top of other 2 BP meds he’s on) and BP was still >160. This morning he is on Esmolol 100mg instead of 300mg. Nurses said that the Neuro team would like to get him off his drip, so they may play around with his BP meds today. 2230 Last night one of the trauma nurses stopped by to check on Seth. She told him, “Seth, the trauma nurses came to check on you. Glad you got your bolt out!” 2335 Some of his electrolytes were low, so they gave him supplemental Magnesium, Phosphorus, and Potassium. Sodium levels were all good, at 148, 146, and 148. Neuro wise, he is still trying to bite on the suction when they put it in his mouth. This morning, his gaze would go to the right and to the left (as before). At 0520, he opened and closed his eyes. Nurse asked him to squeeze her hand. He didn’t respond, but she said he’s been here for a while, so he may just be too weak as well. Temp was up in the eve to 37.8, but is normal this morning. WBC count is 28, so just barely changed from the 27 yesterday. 0145 I woke up to 4 people standing around his bed. Turns out this doctor was just doing rounds. Nothing else dramatic like last night. 0525 Tidal volumes down on the ventilator (from 50-60’s to teens and 20’s) meaning Seth is taking less deep of breaths. They had to go up on the ECMO sweeps from 6 to 7. So currently, it is doing more work for him. Nurses called the doctor and she came in, who changed the chest xray to stat. Could be that they may just be mobilizing some of the fluid in his lungs from repositioning etc. Nurse checked that his chest tubes were draining, and they are. SPO2 stats still good 92%. 0610 Doctor that rounded in the middle of the night came back and said his xray looked more “whited out.” Want to do another broncoscopy now to help clear some of that fluid out of his lungs. 0635 Nurse came and got me and said they were done with the procedure. They did get some fluid and mucous plugs out. Gave him a little Propofol for sedation during for comfort (will not stay in his system long).
Prayers for today:Improved tidal volumes of lungs More signs that Seth is waking up Stable BPs Lung infection to clear
-Aunt Kerry
PS, Kerry has been so amazing with helping with night shifts, day shifts, taking detailed notes and explaining all these medical issues in layman’s terms. When doctors and nurses ask if we have any questions, we all turn our heads towards Kerry because she always knows what to ask. Kerry is my younger sister by 2 years and is a NICU night nurse, which is why she can stay up all night and keep good watch. We all love you, Kerry, and thank you from the depths of our hearts for supporting us during this time.
-Darcy
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