March.... Please Spring hurry up!

Hello friends,

I have not blogged in a month because 

I started a new job and there simply is 

not enough time in the day.

Here is an update:

Chad is having LOTS of very bad headaches.

They make it difficult to function like a normal person.

To add to his difficulties he has been having lots of chest pain.

So we had to add a new doctor... a Cardiologist

This brings our health care professional count to 15.

Chad's chest pain is due to 

Pleurisy: Here is the WEBMD definition of what Pleurisy is:

Pleurisy is swelling (inflammation) of the thin layers of tissue (pleura)

 covering the lungs and the chest wall.

Prescription strength Aleve for 10 days.

No new info on the ABI we have not heard from them in 2 months.

We are changing his neurologist to one in our area

so we can figure out how to have less headaches.

Blake is good. Eric is good, I am crazy busy learning my new job.

Hope you are well... I am ready for sunshine and SPRING!

 

February update...

 

Well It's Valentines week.

We have been busy around here.

 

Chad is doing pretty good this week.

We have not heard from the ABI Team since last month

when we were there. So we do not know when we will be going back.

 

Chad went and played laser tag last night and

3 days ago he got a hearing aid. The hearing aid will

be very helpful for him as he continues to lose his hearing.

 

We don't know how long it will take, it could take 3 months or

5+ years. We obviously hope it takes FOREVER!

 That would work out the best for me (and him).

 

So in the last month Chad has been healing still, I think it

takes 2 months to recover from brain surgery.

 

He is having some side effects from his medicine.

He is having chest pain so they asked him to stop one

of the meds and referred us to a Cardiologist.

 

Yes... We get to add another doctor to our TEAM!

 

I started my job a week and a half ago.

Blake finished wrestling and Eric is doing the same thing.

 

 

I am laming on the pictures. I will try to get some up soon.

 

Happy Valentines week!

 

 



Not the best news... and that thing I wouldn't tell you.

Hi to all my readers...

 

Here is what I didn't want to tell you till it was over.

(because it FREAKED ME OUT!!!)

 

Well about 6 weeks ago we went to Chad's pre-op

appointment and the ABI "team" said that when we

turn on the ABI they would have a nurse, Dr. and a crash cart.

 

I wish you could have seen my face! It said "EEEK! DON'T TELL ME THAT!"

 

I was alone with her and later that day Chad's doctor told him the same thing.

But... Chad does not hear well so he didn't hear it. (Thank goodness!)

 

I did not mention it to him.

 

So... We spent the last two days 3 hrs each day.

 

 

 (I tried to post pictures but something is wrong with the website.)

Well anyway... Wed they had a crash cart in the room and Chad
was curious about it. Then Thursday they got a different
crash cart in the room and they hooked him up
he asked "why am I hooked up to this AED?"
They said... just in case your heart stops.

He said "no seriously why?"

They said in case your heart stops... He then got nervous.

We went on and did the programing. 2 days... 3 hrs each day.
Exhausting...

There are 20 electrodes on the ABI and they turn each one on by
sending in a current and seeing how Chad reacts, what he feels etc.

He mostly began to feel faint as they got to a certain level.
So they would send in a current and then increase it
 and increase it and increase it
until he felt something. Usually he felt like he was going to faint.

Occasionally he felt something in his ear, or throat or at times elbow.

But the bad news is.. No sounds. :(

So the people from Cochlear and the Audiologist both are
going to do some research and we will go back.

We got home very late.

Then today we took him to get fitted for a hearing aid.
He was not happy about going to the doctor again.

That is our update. Thanks for reading! 

 



4 More days...till we turn it on!

An ABI must be turned on.

 

It is going to take 2 appointments on

 2 different days...

 

Why?

 

Apparently it is exhausting to do.

 

We turn Chad's on this coming Wednesday.

I am still not going to tell you the scary

 part until we get back. 

(When it is over!)

 

Last week we also took him to get fitted

for a hearing aid. His doctor wants him to have one.

 

Do you know how much those things cost? 

Actually they are CHEAP compared to and ABI.

 

So 4 more days...

 

 

 



End of 2012 Thanks goodness!

Well.... We have made it to the end of 2012.

 

It has been a very rough year for us...
(just start reading from Jan 2012)

You will see that we have been through a lot
and are ready for it to END!

 

a couple pictures from Nov & Dec ...

Thanksgiving with Amy, Chloe and Shavik

Our whole family

The girls

Blake wins!

Chelsey and her co-worker Janessa

Chad with his buddies... Tyler & Cheri 

This poor kid has been through HELL this year!

 

Ice on the swollen eye really helped but... GEEZ 2 DAYS SOLID!

Christmas eve.... we live where it snows A LOT!



We had a set back, but we are back on track... or we changed the track?

 

So things were going well until Chad said @ 6 am Sunday morning.

I think I am leaking brain fluid.

 

 

It seemed that indeed he was and the Dr. had us

do a test. Put some ointment on it and if

it was leaking it would bubble.

 

Sure enough it was bubbling. So we packed up our clothes

for the week and left for Seattle. We were supposed to go

to Seattle Wednesday anyway so they could turn the ABI on, on

Thursday and Friday.

 

So... off we went. Over the pass which was a snowy

night mare. We were told they closed it about an hour

after we crossed it because it was so crazy.

 

Got to the hospital where the Dr. met us and

admitted him. They needed to put in more stitches

and could not use any anesthetic because if things were coming

out then they could also go in, and cause infection.

It was extremely painful. Then they put in an IV, took blood,

gave him eye drops, and eventually a sleeping pill, he had a nightmare,

that scared him and he clenched his teeth so hard

it caused him a migraine, so they gave him something for that and

then he was so freaked out he could not sleep for a while.

 

It was a very bad night.

 

We are home now... 2 days later.

They are going to wait 3 more weeks to turn it on.

 

Hopefully he will heal quickly. He is having a very rough time.



Had a good night!

Chad had a good night, (he might not agree)

He wants to sleep all through the night.

He is improving using less IV drugs gets him closer to home

Getting up out of bed is good for him but he is not fond of it.

 

His head is swollen today. They may or may not

take off the dressing today. He is not eating much at all.

 

 

He complains less that the last surgery, he was very

ready to go home last time. Now he is just enduring.

 

On to another day @ Swedish. :)