ICU Day 11

11th Day in the ICU.

As many of you observed, we did not post last night.  This was mainly due to a day that started fairly rough, and yet, we're happy to say it ended on a great note.

The Bible says in Ephesians 5:18, "Do not get drunk with wine...but, be filled with the Holy Spirit."  This verse came to mind as we started the night before, and woke yesterday as Princess was battling through the heavy effects of the sedatives.  Though having been completely off the sedatives for nearly two full days, we could still see the lasting and consuming effects that these toxic drugs can have.  Witnessing the effects firsthand, I was reminded that we are not to get drunk with wine. Why?  Because its effects take over and we can lose control of ourselves.  Just these sedatives, they were controlling Princess and affecting everything she did.  Literally, she was seeing and experiencing things that weren't there.  Her world and environment that she was living in did not match what she was experiencing.  

The second half of the verse then tells us to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  So while the author Paul was just a moment ago talking about being drunk with wine, he made the comparison to be "drunk" with the Holy Spirit.  Amazingly, whether it is wine or the Holy Spirit, both can enter into our reality and give us a completely different experience.

Anyway, just a little moment that came to mind while this was going on.  But thankfully, although we started out rough, the day in fact ended on a good note.  During the day Princess was able to work with PT and get out of bed for the first time and sit in chair for nearly an hour.  We have another great nurse that was so proactive in getting Princess care. Not only did she order PT, she actually even spent an hour or two coming Princess' hair, trying desperately to get the glue out, caused by the EEG.  And YES, the EEG was removed on the same day as the ventilator.

As you also might know, pneumonia did set in from being on the vent for some time and so Princess did spend much of the day on a BiPAP machine.  This is essentially a machine that is used just one step prior to a ventilator.  Due to the pneumonia, and being on a ventilator for 9 days, the lungs still needed some assistance for Princess to fully breathe.  By evening time she was considerably better and was using just a nasal canula.

Our night thereafter was somewhat short with again, very little rest.

Today was exciting as we got to see more progress from Princess.  She was up in bed more often and truly, more like herself.  Unfortunately, she did not pass her swallow test and therefore is still not able to consume liquids or even resort to a normal diet.  While this experiences was somewhat of a setback,  it did bring to reality that what Princess just went through and endured, we might be matched with an uphill battle.

While that battle might be tough, the great news for the day was that Princess was  transferred out of the ICU this evening!  This is great progress and even surprised us and others that we were going to the floor already.  While her progress is seemingly fast now, the advice from many have been to just rest and take things very slowly.

So, off to bed for this tired couple!