Hubs in the hospital...

1Timothy115 · February 19, 2019

I'm continuing to pray for Randy and you.

HappyChristian · February 20, 2019

Last night after I visited Randy, they put him back on blood thinner - Heparin, via IV. They had measured his leg and it was apparently smaller. That, coupled with the doctor finding that his leg had more give to it must indicate that the bleeding stopped.

He told me this morning that the doctor told him yesterday that MAYBE he will be able to come home Saturday. They are thinking about putting him back on the warfarin. They'll keep him on the heparin as long as he's in the hospital, though , as a bridge to going completely to the warfarin.

I don't know what we'll do about the DVT - if the thinners are dissolving it, there won't be need for surgery.

Nothing definite about him coming home Saturday, and I am not getting my hopes up (well, trying not to, LOL). But this is definitely a good step.

Yesterday his CK level was down a bit more, but they are still 16x too high. Specific prayer regarding that would be appreciated.

HappyChristian · February 22, 2019

I got my hopes up a bit thinking he might be able to come home Saturday. But the doctor wasn't really keen on that, and Randy agreed that he is not ready to come home.Well, physically, anyway. LOL

So he is staying there for now. His birthday is Monday, so it would be nice if he could come home that day. But we will see.

His hematoma is shrinking, but it is still pretty large and he still has a good bit of pain when he walks, bends his knees. His red blood cell count is up a bit, which means the anemia is righting itself. His CK count is WAY better - it was over 5000 yesterday, but it is down to just over 2000 today (still too high - should be in the 300s). Praise the Lord it's coming down.

We don't now about the DVT yet. They are giving him Warfarin orally, and he's still on the Heparin via IV. Both the hematoma and the DVT should be dissolving with that.

We have another guest speaker for Sunday lined up. But I'm missing his preaching/teaching.

HappyChristian · February 22, 2019

I just spoke with my hubby. He had just finished a walk, and was getting ready to snooze a bit before doing some reading. He still has to use a walker, and it's still hard, but he can feel himself getting a bit stronger. Yay!

The doc told him his INR is up to 1.3. He needs it to be between 2.5 and 3, but it's on its way. The INR testing shows the speed of his blood clotting. A 1.3 means that it's clotting too quickly. But that's to be expected because he was off his Warfarin for a few days, and they were giving him Vit. K via IV. Vitamin K is the antidote to Warfarin - it is the vitamin that helps our blood clot, so is one which Randy has to limit on a daily basis. But they had to give it to him to clear the Warfarin from his system so the hematoma could quit bleeding.

Now they are waiting on the K to get out of his system. The Warfarin and the Heparin are aiding in that, but it will still take some time. Once his INR is up to 2.5-3, dissolving should definitely take place.

When he first was put on Warfarin, the goal for the INR was between 2 and 3. But the docs and hematologists agreed that, due to the speed with which the DVT developed, he needs to maintain it at 2.5-3 on a regular basis.

He's been busy planning Sunday night for our church. Since he won't be there, and we won't have a guest speaker, he is going to be utilizing our men. We'll be reading 1 John as a group (dividing the verses up for individuals to read), and answering questions he's written.

We had to cancel our first Sunday of the month nursing home services. Even if he comes home this next week, he won't be up to such a long day. We'll sure miss being there.

I don't want to sound mercenary, but if you could also pray for our finances, I would appreciate it. He is bi-vocational since the church is too small yet to support him 100%. Needless to say (I always laugh when I write/say that, because it's always a pre-cursor to something being said anyway ), not working means no pay. I know God will take care of us. But prayer for that issue is appreciated.

I cannot stress how thankful we are for each and every one of you who is praying. It is appreciated greatly.

Jim_Alaska · February 23, 2019

Thanks for the update LuAnne. I am sure that our Lord can and will work on Randy's condition. I have been prying diligently for his healing and your consolation comfort. I'll also pray about your finances. God will provide, as you know. But sometimes it is hard to just wait on Him, that's why the Christian life is a life of faith.

HappyChristian · February 25, 2019

Randy is having a pretty good day today. He had another rough night, but his day seems to be going well. His leg has a little more flexibility in it, although he still cannot maneuver like he needs to. There is progress, though, praise the Lord!

His INR today is up to 1.5. It jumped 2/10 of a point since yesterday. That's a good thing! He needs it to be between 2.5 and 3 in order for his blood not to clot too quickly. The Vitamin K treatment they had to do to get the hematoma to stop bleeding takes a while to get out of the system, but it's going. Hopefully his INR will jump up a bit more by tomorrow!

I don't know about his other counts, but will be checking on them tomorrow when I go spend the morning with him. It's his birthday tomorrow, so I'll be riding in with our son (who is graciously spending the night here tonight after church so that I can go in earlier and spend some more time with him). Opening his birthday gift in the hospital has never been on his bucket list, and now he won't need to add it!

We missed him at church this morning, and will miss him again tonight. But God gave us a good man to fill the pulpit this morning, and tonight our church men will take care of things.

We appreciate your continued prayer for Randy. It's all good news, but our journey isn't over yet.

Jim_Alaska · February 25, 2019

Wonderful update LuAnne, thank you for it. It is really encouraging when we can see the results of our earnest prayers.

1Timothy115 · February 25, 2019

Great News! Still praying for Randy's continuing recovery.

HappyChristian · February 25, 2019

I am at the hospital with him now. I was able to take a walk with him. He is determined to get his strength back and get to the point where he can care for himself completely so he can come home.

His red blood cell count is up a bit, which is good. Not high enough yet to go off the iron, but moving up.

We just had a visit with the hospital chaplain. He is a born again believer, and has visited Randy often. Randy has enjoyed visiting with him.

There is a man named Chris whom my hubs believes God is working on. Please pray for him and for my hubs to be able to speak with him again. I think he is a nurse.

HappyChristian · February 26, 2019

I got home a bit ago and called Randy to let him know. He told me that his INR has gone up to 1.6. Still not high enough, but it's on the rise. He still struggles with walking, getting out of bed, etc., so is not ready to come home yet because of that. But the INR is the biggie. It has got to get up to 2.5 - 3 so that they can take him off the Heparin. He can't come home until they can take him off the Heparin.

He went on another walk after I left, the same distance as this morning plus just a bit more. The man is determined.

I probably won't be able to go up and see him tomorrow, so I'm extra glad I got to spend so much time with him today.

HappyChristian · February 26, 2019

Randy called this morning to wish me happy birthday. We were hoping that he might be able to come home on one of our birthdays, but as I said in my last post, he can't until his INR is up. The doctor told him last night that he wants his INR to be at a 2 for two days before he'll consider sending him home. He said maybe, and emphasized the maybe, this Thurs. or Fri. But when Randy called me this morning, he told me his INR is still at 1.6.

He was a bit down about that, because it threatens the possibility of his coming home soon. And I was already a little weepy when I woke up this morning. I think I might be trying to come down with something. Ugh.

Randy said he won't be eating salad at night now - he's been ordering a small salad with his dinner. But lettuce does have Vit. K in it. So he's going to stop that in the hopes that it might help a bit to get his INR up. No dissolving can be done unless his INR comes up.

He is improving in many ways, but this DVT and the hematoma are still life threatening. That thought still niggles at my brain...

HappyChristian · February 28, 2019

Randy's INR moved up to 1.7. He was disappointed, but at least it's moving up and not staying still.

Jim_Alaska · February 28, 2019

Thanks again for the update LuAnne. I am not familiar with the acronyms you are using. What is INR?

Still praying multiple times per day, not only for Randy, but for you also.

HappyChristian · February 28, 2019

I'm sorry, Jim - I should have explained what INR means. It is International Normalized Ratio. Usually a PT is attached to it for lab purposes. PT stands for Prothrombin Time. Simply put, it is a test that measures the speed at which one's blood coagulates. The lower the number, the more quickly the blood clots. If the number goes too high (3 is usually the highest hematologists want the count to go), the blood won't clot quickly enough and a brain bleed is very possible. So the testing shows the docs where a person who is on anti-coagulants (most call them blood thinners, although the blood isn't actually thinned) sits on the INR.

In my husband's case, he inherited Factor V Leiden's. It is a genetic mutation of the Factor V gene. The FV gene is one of the genes that control the clotting process in the body, basically. Someone with Leiden's has blood that clots too quickly. Many people with Leiden's go through life and don't know they have it at all. If someone who has it does not develop blood clots, there is no need to treat. But once blood clots begin to develop, treatment for life is necessary.

A number of years ago, while in college, my husband broke his foot. That resulted in a blood clot in his right leg. To my knowledge, nobody tested him for FV Leiden, so once the clot dissolved, they did not continue the anti-coagulant treatment. But with his DVT (deep vein thrombosis - blood clots in the veins that are deep in the body) 2 years ago being so major, they did the testing. And they found that he has not just one, but two Leiden genes. People with one FV have a 7x increased chance of blood clots. Since he has two, his increases to 30x. Yay, him! LOL

So he has to remain on blood thinners. There are many, and 2 of his brothers swear by the particular ones they use (both on different ones). But Randy's hematologist, main doctor, and another blood doc are in agreement that Warfarin (Coumadin) is the best for him. So that's what he'll remain on once he's out of the hospital.

Currently they have him on Warfarin orally and Heparin in the IV. Even with both of those, his INR is moving up very slowly. But slowly is most likely better than a really big, fast jump. He told me this morning that it is now at 1.8. YAY! Only 2/10ths to go and he's good after two days! He's looking at possibly coming home Sunday if it continues moving up 1/10th a day.

I wasn't able to visit him the last couple of days, but will be heading up in about 45 minutes. Can't wait to see him.

HappyChristian · March 1, 2019

I stand corrected - PT is not attached to the INR for lab purposes. It is actually a separate test to see how quickly the blood clots. But it is used for heparin. Randy is on both while in hospital. While I was there, the nurse came in to shut off his heparin for 30 minutes. Apparently the PT test showed numbers that indicated they needed to shut the heparin off and allow the body to adjust to it. When they turned it back on, they lowered the amount of heparin he was getting. That can only mean that the thinners are doing their job. =D So maybe tomorrow we will see 1.9 or even 2!

We have a guest speaker lined up for this Sunday, but Randy would be so thrilled to be back in the services.