And So We Wait

Evidently, the only thing that will get Mike out of this hospital and back in our home will be for his white cells and neutrophils to start rising. As yet, they are still zilch.
Fevers are still a regular part of the day, preceded by shaking chills. Overnight last night Mike's temperature peaked at 103. With every fever within a 24-hour period, the nurse has to draw blood cultures. It takes a couple days to get those results -- some show bacteria, others don't. The doctors are still on the hunt for a source of these fevers, especially since Mike is on a variety of broad-spectrum antibiotics that should cover each bacteria they have found. Today they did an ultrasound of Mike's legs and abdomen. They were checking the legs for clots, and checking the liver for any blockages. Mike's bilirubin numbers are now elevated, and though they think it's because of all the meds he's on, they had to rule out bigger things. The ultrasound was clear.
Last evening, we had another "incident," though on a much smaller scale than the ordeal of a week ago. As most other days, Mike had received a variety of sedatives to control the nausea and chills, and the last drug given -- Dilaudid -- proved to be too much. He almost immediately became knocked out, which I guess is the point, but he also started breathing a bit funny and had a blood pressure reading of around 155/100. His oxygen level was around 90 or less (should be mid to high 90s). Mike's nurse, Annie, even thought his pupils looked uneven. She paged the house officer, who came in and started examining Mike and asking him questions to try to see how coherent he was. She asked him where he was, to which he answered the name of our hometown instead of the city of the hospital. She asked him what month it was an he said it was February. He was clearly not with it. They started him on the oxygen, did an EKG and then gave him an injection of something used to reverse some of the effects of the sedatives. Shortly thereafter, he was a bit more alert and the doctor was confident that what happened was just a result of too many meds. The doc then discontinued the administration of Ativan for the time being.
Today they had Mike stay on the oxygen for almost the entire day. He did a lot of sleeping, as usual, but he also spent the second part of the day sitting in the recliner instead of lying in bed. With the football games on TV, it was almost like having a tiny taste of being home. I made known to both the doctor and the nurses my concern for all the meds he's being given. I told them that I obviously don't want Mike to be uncomfortable, but let them know he spends way too much of the day and night in a sedated and confused state. To be fair, Mike is also asking for these meds just about as often as he's allowed to get them, but I don't think he realizes how strung out they make him. And it doesn't help that all this hinders Mike from getting up and moving or walking, as he needs to do. It doesn't help that all this has caused him to lose strength and clarity of mind.
Tomorrow the docs may want to do a repeat bronchoscopy to check on what's still brewing in the lungs. They may also check the heart again with an echocardiogram. I don't think there are many more places they can poke, prod, scan or x-ray him.
Please continue to pray for Mike's swift recovery from this ordeal. Please pray against the fevers and infections, and for Mike's marrow to begin making normal, healthy cells. And please stand with us in believing God's promises of health, healing and new beginnings.