Thursday Update(sorry it's late but it's good)

Ok so it's been a very long day. First I called. He had, had a very bad night. No sleep whatsoever even after 2 ambien. Later I went over to the hospital at around 9 this morning. There was a Dr. in with him when I got there. Asking questions and talking to him about how he felt etc. etc. He just kept telling him how tired he was and he didn't understand why he couldn't sleep etc. And he has a lot of pain in his back and legs today which they think is just from laying down for so long. Then the Dr. said the magic words. "I think you should be able to go home today"! Woo hoo Dave got considerably more excited about that in his own broken way. So he really wasn't going to to take a nap or anything since he might miss his open window to get out of the hospital. He asked right away if he would be able to shower before he left since he couldn't go upstairs here and we don't have a shower or bathtub downstairs. They promised they would arrange that and began working on his release! He got his vitamins and had a little breakfast. We need a walker so he can get around the house so the Dr. will have to put in an order for that before we can leave as well.

10ish I call his Mom and tell her not to come out since we don't know where he will be and we keep encouraging him to sleep so hopefully he will. He's still alone in the room so I have it as dark as I can and I'm trying to stay away so as not to be a distraction that keeps him awake. He's still to excited to sleep.

Around 11 it dawns on me we have no clothes for him since I took them home over the weekend and I need to get the house ready for him so since we're still waiting on the shower I head out to pack a bag and get him some necessities to come home to. I also get the little one lunch and to school and head back to the hospital. I saw his ER doc on the floor he did all the release stuff for Dave he needed to do and let me know if we needed any other help to let him know.

1pm no progress. The Dr. that told him he could go home on Tuesday is now on vacation and is not answering his pages so we can finish getting the release. They do start preparing him for the shower by removing the IV's and all the heart monitor pads etc. Finally around 1:30 they set up the washroom with his clothes I brought and then begin the process of moving him into the bathroom. This takes forever since everything has to be done in slow motion so has not to joggle is head. They get a shower chair etc. etc. and then the PCT(nurses assistant) discovers the shower head is all wrong for her to attempt to help him with the shower. So back to bed now they are going to get the shower head changed out in the bathroom so that the shower can take place.

2 the maintenance men have been notified twice to come up. And "just switch that shower head from one in another one of the many washrooms up there". The dr. has been paged 3 times and while he's on vacation his messages are getting to him but in a specific order so we should hear from him soon. Dave is now beside himself he'll just take a shower with the shower head that is there he says. Of course he believes the reason he is not going home is because he wants a shower. I try to explain that it doesn't matter we can't leave without the walker or the Dr. calling with his final orders before release. He calms down.

2:30 we now have a new roommate. His name is Mike and he's being transferred downtown for a 3rd attempt at a liver transplant. His family is very nervous. Anyway the walker shows up the guy that brings it sets to the right height etc. and then shows us how to use it and explains the warranty and what to do if we have problems etc.

3pm The maintenance man also comes by and looks at the shower head. Then he says he will have to go find the other type and he will be back.

4pm No word from the dr. and the maintenance man doesn't seem to be coming back again ever. Dave is trying really hard not to be mad but he's seething quietly over the whole thing. Keep in mind he's never been in the hospital before. He broke his ankle once before.

4:30 the maintenance man returns with the needed parts. He tells me there will have to be some drilling then promptly takes the drill and the hammer into the bathroom and begins doing minor construction to the room for what seemed like forever. (here's where my phone battery dies for all those that tried to call me around then sorry)

5 No the Dr. has not contacted anyone as yet. I head home to get another charged battery for my phone and get the girls ready for their evening activities. As I leave I let them know the shower is now fixed and he's very ready.

6 Both girls are off to their respective activities and have already been very disappointed not to find Daddy home yet then I head back over there hoping to find him sitting on the edge of the bed holding his bag and flowers and such ready to go. Mad of course that I was gone for so long and I left him there. HA I walk into the room now filled with paramedics and he points at me and tells me that I should just go out of the room now. Literally he said that. I did notice before being kicked out that he was showered and dressed in his own clothes. I was going to go to the waiting room but decided to talk to the nurses instead. NO THE DR. HAS NOT CALLED(they didn't yell it but that is what I heard in my head). They did tell me though that they were going to go ahead and send him home and his care was pretty standard from here on out. So they would be in in a bit with those instructions. At this point Mike and his paramedics head out he's being transported to the city and hopefully this time he will really get his transplant. Dave had a terrible headache and when we told the nurse she realized he wasn't getting any pain meds to go home with(YIKES). So that required calls to Dr.s that I suppose would respond to them to get prescriptions called in and to just get him one to go home on.

6:30 we get the lowdown on stuff he has to do at home. Move very slowly, don't lift anything heavier than a pencil, don't drive, don't go upstairs, don't fall down etc. etc. Then she went to find out about something for his head before he left. Finally painkillers arrive and the wheelchair is called. His parents arrive right after the wheel chair thank goodness I couldn't carry everything. So we get him into the car and drive very slowly making no sudden stops or sharp turns by 7pm he is home and on his new makeshift bed in our family room. the kids still won't be home for about an hour so he has a minute of peace after his parents head out and I get everything arranged. We made it before the rain started and the kids had to be home I'm totally amazed. He had a wonderful sign on the door welcoming him home which Dianne made that ws very cool!

So that's it, now we have dr.'s appointments to schedule and prescriptions to get etc. I've threatened him if he doesn't drink all of the things I give him I'll wake him every 5 min since I'm not taking him back to the hospital for dehydration. He's in extreme pain all over his body now so it seems all of the shock has now worn off and he is now feeling the extreme pain of his injuries. Which sucks but I suppose that's part of the healing process. The hamsters have taken up residence in the Living room for now but may have to go upstairs if the noise gets to be too much for Dave to handle. He can't hear them right now since his hearing is still not that good.

I have printed out the emails that were sent last night and this morning but he's been pretty much sleeping since he got home except when I made him drink. He's totally exhausted from all our waiting and waiting though I let him know they were there. So tomorrow I'll give those to him! He'll be thrilled to have them and it will give him something to look forward to.