Hello Again.
Max is on a plane right now - back to Scotland and his studies. He helped us so much - in so many ways. What a good son. Beau is here now again, much to our relief, after a week of mid-terms. He is such a good son. Today the guys prepped more materials for our bedroom - we are trying so hard to get it done as soon as we can. We have our wonderful friends coming tomorrow to put up the ceiling and prep the drywall to finish and paint. Wulfgar painted today too and then helped clean all the tools and debris out of the bedroom in preparation for tomorrow's work. What a good son. We are so lucky.
Lots of people coming tomorrow - I intend to cook and bake my brains out. Heart healthy food of course. Low salt and low fat are the name of the game - but it is a bit intimidating - hope I'm doing it right.
Cord is adjusting to the meds - it is a tricky business. They fine tune them as you go so it is good to report changes as we go along. Before, Cord couldn't sleep because his lungs would get fluid in them at night and when he laid down it was very difficult to breathe, which kept him up. The Lasix which is draining out all of the edema has worked and now his lungs are clear and he can breathe better a night. We were hopeful he'd be able to sleep after they solved that.
One of the heart drugs he is on has a side effect of coughing. The problem is - it happens at night and is a rip roarin' cough which keeps him awake for hours. He sleeps late because many hours into the night, his throat and lungs are too tired to cough anymore and he finally sleeps for a few hours. He called the heart doc a few days ago because this symptom was listed as one to call in for. We called and they didn't respond. Lesson: Why didn't we call again? Next time we will.
So we finally called today and the heart doc on call decided to switch him to another option that might not have that side effect. From what the cardiologist originally said, we will be fine tuning the drugs and increasing them gradually as we go. Everyone reacts differently so we go along each day as best we can.
But he is very tired. He wants to sleep so badly. We have been trying things like Melatonin and our main doc prescribed him some 'for adults only' cough medicine. We shall continue to try these things. Even though the on-call heart doc has changed the medicine that is causing the cough, it will stay in his system for some days. We will get the new meds tomorrow. Along with all the things we forgot at the hardware store.
I am sleeping on an air-mattress on the floor next to him so he can have all the freedom he needs to get comfortable. I'm still pretty sore from 9 days on a hospital fold-out bed with big ol' springs. Last week Max spent the night one night so I could sleep in my bed and it helped so much. Tonight Beau will do that for me too. It feels like the right thing to do to have one of us there every night. Once we are home - I'm sure we will relax into a routine. Our lovely neighbors are upstairs, but we don't want to leave them with the responsibility of the Life Vest or a middle of the night issue. So far - it's all working out and progress is happening at home.
It's been a hard couple of days because he hasn't slept well. I'm sure it will get better as they continue to respond and make adjustments. I am making adjustments with meals of course. I'm trying to be on time with three heart healthy meals a day - I need to get into my cooking chi - I always feel behind. I'm blessed with a family that cooks so we are used to taking care of ourselves - but this is different, and crucial to his recovery. Luckily it is the perfect time of year to stock the coffers with gorgeous, locally grown fruits and vegetables. I better get cookin' for tomorrow's work-day!
Until next time, thank you all - the wind is wonderful - and full of love.
Penn
Max is on a plane right now - back to Scotland and his studies. He helped us so much - in so many ways. What a good son. Beau is here now again, much to our relief, after a week of mid-terms. He is such a good son. Today the guys prepped more materials for our bedroom - we are trying so hard to get it done as soon as we can. We have our wonderful friends coming tomorrow to put up the ceiling and prep the drywall to finish and paint. Wulfgar painted today too and then helped clean all the tools and debris out of the bedroom in preparation for tomorrow's work. What a good son. We are so lucky.
Lots of people coming tomorrow - I intend to cook and bake my brains out. Heart healthy food of course. Low salt and low fat are the name of the game - but it is a bit intimidating - hope I'm doing it right.
Cord is adjusting to the meds - it is a tricky business. They fine tune them as you go so it is good to report changes as we go along. Before, Cord couldn't sleep because his lungs would get fluid in them at night and when he laid down it was very difficult to breathe, which kept him up. The Lasix which is draining out all of the edema has worked and now his lungs are clear and he can breathe better a night. We were hopeful he'd be able to sleep after they solved that.
One of the heart drugs he is on has a side effect of coughing. The problem is - it happens at night and is a rip roarin' cough which keeps him awake for hours. He sleeps late because many hours into the night, his throat and lungs are too tired to cough anymore and he finally sleeps for a few hours. He called the heart doc a few days ago because this symptom was listed as one to call in for. We called and they didn't respond. Lesson: Why didn't we call again? Next time we will.
So we finally called today and the heart doc on call decided to switch him to another option that might not have that side effect. From what the cardiologist originally said, we will be fine tuning the drugs and increasing them gradually as we go. Everyone reacts differently so we go along each day as best we can.
But he is very tired. He wants to sleep so badly. We have been trying things like Melatonin and our main doc prescribed him some 'for adults only' cough medicine. We shall continue to try these things. Even though the on-call heart doc has changed the medicine that is causing the cough, it will stay in his system for some days. We will get the new meds tomorrow. Along with all the things we forgot at the hardware store.
I am sleeping on an air-mattress on the floor next to him so he can have all the freedom he needs to get comfortable. I'm still pretty sore from 9 days on a hospital fold-out bed with big ol' springs. Last week Max spent the night one night so I could sleep in my bed and it helped so much. Tonight Beau will do that for me too. It feels like the right thing to do to have one of us there every night. Once we are home - I'm sure we will relax into a routine. Our lovely neighbors are upstairs, but we don't want to leave them with the responsibility of the Life Vest or a middle of the night issue. So far - it's all working out and progress is happening at home.
It's been a hard couple of days because he hasn't slept well. I'm sure it will get better as they continue to respond and make adjustments. I am making adjustments with meals of course. I'm trying to be on time with three heart healthy meals a day - I need to get into my cooking chi - I always feel behind. I'm blessed with a family that cooks so we are used to taking care of ourselves - but this is different, and crucial to his recovery. Luckily it is the perfect time of year to stock the coffers with gorgeous, locally grown fruits and vegetables. I better get cookin' for tomorrow's work-day!
Until next time, thank you all - the wind is wonderful - and full of love.
Penn
Beau, Wulfgar and CJ clear coating in the afternoon sun - what a beautiful day!
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