Sunday, February 20, 2011

Keep Praying!

Dad was released from rehab last Thursday afternoon. By 8:30 p.m. on Thursday we were back at Tomball Hospital in the ER because he was extremely short of breath. We learned that his body was holding too much fluid and some was in his lungs.
They wanted to admit him to the hospital that night but the hospital was completely full. (Go figure!)
The next day we saw his primary care Dr. - Rusty Bacak who admitted him to St. Joseph Hospital in Bryan. We have since learned that his heart isn't pumping efficiently.
Dad was discharged from St. Joseph Hospital today and tomorrow we hope to be able to see his cardiologist in the Medical Center.
Please pray as we move forward to diagnose and treat these new issues.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Progress!

Dad is recovering well from the past week. We are all thanking God for the miracle we saw last week. We stand amazed!
Dad has moved from St. Joseph Hospital to Rehab where he will be able to get his strength back and work on getting back to normal!!! We look forward to that day!
Please continue to pray for his complete healing, his strength and most especially, please pray for healing from the shingles pain. This pain is devastating and debilitating. We know God is able and we trust Him to touch Dad's body. We have already seen HIM do it and know HE will do it again.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support.
Please note that while Dad is in rehab, visitors are asked to come after 4 p.m. It appears that they plan to work him hard all day.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

A Rough Few Days

Dad has been in the hospital since Thursday afternoon. Since Friday, Dad slowly started going downhill. On Monday morning he had a seizure that was quite serious. For 24 hours after that he did not know us and had a very hard day. Yesterday morning his blood pressure and respirations were dangerously abnormal. They moved him quickly to the Critical Care Unit - got him on a ventilator so he could breathe and began to treat the issues with blood pressure and heart. They did a spinal tap to determine if he had an infection in his brain.
Thankfully, the results were clear. We were told that we would just wait and see when his brain wakes up.
Well, his brain woke up this morning. Praise God! He has been taken off the ventilator and will stay in the CCU until they are sure that all systems are working well.
Please continue to pray for his complete healing and recovery. God has a plan and purpose for him and will do some awesome things through all of this.
Please also pray for his doctor (and my son-in-law), Rusty Bacak as he cares for Dad and seeks the Lord's guidance to help him know what he needs. We are very thankful for Rusty!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Back to the Hospital

Yesterday my Dad was admitted to the hospital again.
Chemo has caused him to be extremely weak making it very hard for him to get around.
Add to this, pain from shingles and ow blood counts and it's not a very pretty picture.
Dad received a blood transfusion last night and will remain in the hospital for a couple of days for antibiotics and fluids.
We would appreciate your prayers as we face a couple of decisions about treatment and ways to help him get his strength back.
We are so blessed to know that the cancer has responded to the chemotherapy. Now we just need to get him back on his feet and feeling well.
Only God can take away the pain left from Shingles and restore his strength.
Also pray for my mom as she is very tired. We need her to stay well.
Thank you all for your prayers and support and love.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Update on my Dad

I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update the blog. It has been a busy couple of weeks.
Dad had Chemo Cycle #5 last Tuesday. Since his last PET Scan showed that the mass was gone, the Dr. decided to stop the strongest of the chemo drugs, Adriamycin, due to his harsh side effects. She believes that this is the drug that has put him in the hospital the last 2 cycles. We are praying that his blood counts will not drop as severely this week.
His greatest challenge at this moment is the Shingles pain. He is trying a few different drugs but there has been no relief.
PLEASE PRAY for God's healing of the Shingles. This pain is exhausting and miserable.
Pray also for his strength. The cumulative effect of chemo has caused him to be extremely weak.
The Good News: We saw his cardiologist yesterday to see if the chemo drugs had damaged his heart and we learned that his heart is as strong as ever. No damage to the heart muscle. His heart is still pumping as hard as it should be. Praise God!
We were so relieved to hear this news. He was having some symptoms that caused us concern.
Dad will have his LAST Chemo treatment on Tuesday, Feb. 15.
Please continue to lift him to our Jehovah Rapha asking him to remove the shingles pain, strengthen his body, mind and spirit, protect him from chemo side effects and return his body to health.
Your prayers have meant more to us than you can know.
P.S. Thanks also to the many people who have brought food during the past few months. It has been a true gift!