As of this morning Kim is sans the worst of the pesky plastic tubes (ventilator and feeding), and was able to get out of bed and move to a chair to hang out for awhile.
Dr. T and Dr. S (who assisted Dr. C with the surgery) came by to inspect Kim. Both were happy with what they found. There is more improvement in the shoulder, still no signs of anything odd with the facial nerve, and a healing incision.
Dr. T said that the head MRI looks great. Also, the neck MRI revealed the source of the shoulder issue (in short, swelling around the 5th and 6th vertebrates pinching a nerve, which will resolve itself with time).
Kim is going stay in critical care the rest of the day, and will hopefully be moving to her room tomorrow morning. We'll try to post tomorrow.
-pz
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
The Day After (Vol. 2)
This afternoon Dr. C and his crew stopped by to visit Kim and I. He was pleased with how Kim looked and responded. They reaffirmed that Kim was breathing on her own power (she was pronounced "the Olympic champion of breathing"), and that the ventilator was now in place only to ensure that an airway is open. Dr. C was very pleased and happy (and I think a little surprised) with how Kim's facial muscles were responding (perfectly). He posed an alternate theory to what may be going on with Kim's left shoulder, saying that the eleventh nerve, which is in proximity to the area they worked in, may have be disturbed by swelling etc. In any case, he also noticed improvement and is expecting the issue to resolve.
Kim was (finally) taken for her MRIs at 6:30, and was not back when I left at 8:30. However, I just spoke with Kim's nurse who said that Kim's back and that the scans look good. The current plan is to remove the ventilator tomorrow morning.
Kim is doing well... responding and writing with no problems, and seemingly in ok spirits. Obviously the breathing/feeding tubes are not very comfortable, and I can tell Kim will be hugely excited to have them removed tomorrow morning.
More tomorrow evening.
-pz
Kim was (finally) taken for her MRIs at 6:30, and was not back when I left at 8:30. However, I just spoke with Kim's nurse who said that Kim's back and that the scans look good. The current plan is to remove the ventilator tomorrow morning.
Kim is doing well... responding and writing with no problems, and seemingly in ok spirits. Obviously the breathing/feeding tubes are not very comfortable, and I can tell Kim will be hugely excited to have them removed tomorrow morning.
More tomorrow evening.
-pz
The Day After (Vol. 1)
Early this morning Kim was put on a ventilator as a precautionary measure because she was having some difficulty breathing probably due to swelling around her throat. They're going to run head and neck MRIs this afternoon to confirm that nothing is out of the ordinary. It's possible that both the breathing and shoulder issues stem from a pinched nerve, which the MRIs will also help to rule in/out.
Kim is awake and able to write. Dr. T spoke with both of us at length this morning about the outcome of the procedure. Overall, he sees the surgery as very successful. Kim is responding well, showing no effects of facial weakness (though this may change temporarily depending on swelling), and regaining strength in the left shoulder at a noticeable rate. He thinks it's most likely that the breathing issues are simply a result of swelling, and imagines they will be able to remove the ventilator shortly after the MRIs. The only long-term issue will be the loss of hearing in the left ear. The hearing nerve is in tact, but he said it was fairly damaged (it's "just a wisp"), so hopes are not high on that front.
Being able to talk to the doctor with Kim was definitely helpful as we could both see that he is optimistic and expects that (aside from these relatively small and odd issues) Kim will be progressing as expected. For now she's going to stay in the critical care unit until we have the MRI results and subsequent plan.
I'll post more after visiting hours tonight. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and support.
-pz
Kim is awake and able to write. Dr. T spoke with both of us at length this morning about the outcome of the procedure. Overall, he sees the surgery as very successful. Kim is responding well, showing no effects of facial weakness (though this may change temporarily depending on swelling), and regaining strength in the left shoulder at a noticeable rate. He thinks it's most likely that the breathing issues are simply a result of swelling, and imagines they will be able to remove the ventilator shortly after the MRIs. The only long-term issue will be the loss of hearing in the left ear. The hearing nerve is in tact, but he said it was fairly damaged (it's "just a wisp"), so hopes are not high on that front.
Being able to talk to the doctor with Kim was definitely helpful as we could both see that he is optimistic and expects that (aside from these relatively small and odd issues) Kim will be progressing as expected. For now she's going to stay in the critical care unit until we have the MRI results and subsequent plan.
I'll post more after visiting hours tonight. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and support.
-pz
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Big Day
Hello all,
Kim asked me to update the blog today to let everyone know how her surgery went. So, here goes...
We arrived at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore ~5 this morning (a huge thanks to Chris for driving us from D.C.). Kim was in pre-op until ~7:30, and was (for good reason) extremely nervous. Both of the primary surgeons and the assisting surgeon stopped by to talk with her, and her anesthesiologist did gave an excellent overview of how he would be monitoring and managing Kim throughout the surgery. Because Kim was pretty nervous, he gave her something to help take the edge off, and then they moved her into surgery. We were told to expect everything to wrap up around 4 or 5pm.
From there...
* We were told that the first incision was made at 9:20.
* At 11 the nurse checked it and said that Dr. T was progressing smoothly and that Kim was doing well.
* At 12:20 we were told that Dr. C was now in the OR handling his portion of the surgery, and that so far everything had gone well.
* At 2:20 we heard that Dr. C was still working and Dr. T was scrubbing back in.
* At 4 Dr. C came out and let us know that he was finished with his portion of the work, and that Dr. T was continuing. The procedure would likely take two more hours as they work on removing the tumor and closing. They said that Kim had a fairly small space to work in (anatomically), and while the tumor wasn't any larger than expected this lack of room would cause it to take a bit longer than expected. Also, the tumor was stuck to the facial nerve more than hoped and there will likely be some temporary facial paralysis. However, she was doing fine otherwise.
* At 6:30 Dr. T came out to let us know that they had finished the procedure. Kim was now awake and on her way to the ICU where we would eventually be able to see her. While he could not be sure, his feeling was that hearing was likely lost in the ear (this lack of optimism was later expressed by Dr. C as well).
* While we were waiting in the ICU, Dr. C and Dr. T came out to let us know that the facial weaknesses seemed to be fairly minimal. However, there was some (unusual) weakness in Kim's shoulder, and they took her for a cat scan to make sure that nothing was out of the ordinary. The doctors felt the cat scan looked good, and are assuming that the shoulder weakness is a temporary side-effect of the position her arm had been in for the duration of the surgery (possibly furthered by diabetes). They said that it seemed to be improving and that they would watch it over the coming days.
* We were able to see Kim at 8. She was in a bit of pain and was worried about the shoulder, but was half-awake and able to whisper.
That's where things were left. Overall, both surgeons seemed to feel fairly pleased with how things went. While hearing was likely lost, and there may be some temporary facial weakness, these were both things that we expected. I'll continue updates tomorrow as Kim makes the switch from the ICU to her room.
-pz
Kim asked me to update the blog today to let everyone know how her surgery went. So, here goes...
We arrived at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore ~5 this morning (a huge thanks to Chris for driving us from D.C.). Kim was in pre-op until ~7:30, and was (for good reason) extremely nervous. Both of the primary surgeons and the assisting surgeon stopped by to talk with her, and her anesthesiologist did gave an excellent overview of how he would be monitoring and managing Kim throughout the surgery. Because Kim was pretty nervous, he gave her something to help take the edge off, and then they moved her into surgery. We were told to expect everything to wrap up around 4 or 5pm.
From there...
* We were told that the first incision was made at 9:20.
* At 11 the nurse checked it and said that Dr. T was progressing smoothly and that Kim was doing well.
* At 12:20 we were told that Dr. C was now in the OR handling his portion of the surgery, and that so far everything had gone well.
* At 2:20 we heard that Dr. C was still working and Dr. T was scrubbing back in.
* At 4 Dr. C came out and let us know that he was finished with his portion of the work, and that Dr. T was continuing. The procedure would likely take two more hours as they work on removing the tumor and closing. They said that Kim had a fairly small space to work in (anatomically), and while the tumor wasn't any larger than expected this lack of room would cause it to take a bit longer than expected. Also, the tumor was stuck to the facial nerve more than hoped and there will likely be some temporary facial paralysis. However, she was doing fine otherwise.
* At 6:30 Dr. T came out to let us know that they had finished the procedure. Kim was now awake and on her way to the ICU where we would eventually be able to see her. While he could not be sure, his feeling was that hearing was likely lost in the ear (this lack of optimism was later expressed by Dr. C as well).
* While we were waiting in the ICU, Dr. C and Dr. T came out to let us know that the facial weaknesses seemed to be fairly minimal. However, there was some (unusual) weakness in Kim's shoulder, and they took her for a cat scan to make sure that nothing was out of the ordinary. The doctors felt the cat scan looked good, and are assuming that the shoulder weakness is a temporary side-effect of the position her arm had been in for the duration of the surgery (possibly furthered by diabetes). They said that it seemed to be improving and that they would watch it over the coming days.
* We were able to see Kim at 8. She was in a bit of pain and was worried about the shoulder, but was half-awake and able to whisper.
That's where things were left. Overall, both surgeons seemed to feel fairly pleased with how things went. While hearing was likely lost, and there may be some temporary facial weakness, these were both things that we expected. I'll continue updates tomorrow as Kim makes the switch from the ICU to her room.
-pz
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Day before surgery
My brother came to hang out for the weekend to distract me from the events on Monday. Unfortunately, he had to go back to school today, so now I'm back to worrying a little. We went to Whole Foods and picked up some snacks for the hospital, since I've heard that the food is somewhat lackluster and not very attractive when you don't have much of an appetite. I'm working on packing a bag for Phil to bring once I get to a regular room, and we're going to discuss the updates list later today.
It's so weird that this is actually happening. What seemed like so far away in December is here now. I guess we'll just see how it goes...
It's so weird that this is actually happening. What seemed like so far away in December is here now. I guess we'll just see how it goes...
Friday, February 6, 2009
Last day at work for awhile
Today was my last day at work for six weeks. My coworkers surprised me with a breakfast, which was nice. I told them that I'd be back before they know it! See ya soon, cubicle :)
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Waiting
I'm at work today - I have 2 1/2 days left until I'm out for six weeks. Seems pretty surreal. It's just so strange to go from regular-do-everything Kim to had-brain-surgery Kim. I really only get freaked out when I imagine waking up after surgery and having a bunch of tubes and IVs and stuff on me.
I had a dream about everything last night. I was staying on the 94th floor of a hotel the night before surgery. I had to be there at 5:30 am, but I woke up at 6 am. I rushed to the hospital and they took me in and put a gown on me. Then I was on a gurney being wheeled around the hospital but I wasn't going to surgery. The details are fuzzy now, but basically I was just going to different places and being left there with no explanation. Eventually, I found my family and they didn't know what was going on either. Then we were told that it was a fake hospital and they never intended to do any surgery, so the whole day was a waste of time. Not sure what that means...
I had a dream about everything last night. I was staying on the 94th floor of a hotel the night before surgery. I had to be there at 5:30 am, but I woke up at 6 am. I rushed to the hospital and they took me in and put a gown on me. Then I was on a gurney being wheeled around the hospital but I wasn't going to surgery. The details are fuzzy now, but basically I was just going to different places and being left there with no explanation. Eventually, I found my family and they didn't know what was going on either. Then we were told that it was a fake hospital and they never intended to do any surgery, so the whole day was a waste of time. Not sure what that means...
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