Please send healing thoughts for DH

Pam I am wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 4:34 AM

I'm glad to hear he's doing so much better.  It's good that his oxygen saturation is above 92%, I hope his output returns to normal soon and the O2 sats inprove too.  I also hope he feels better, he must be worn out with struggling like that.  Quitting smoking is definitely good, walking is good, but not if he's overdoing it, start slow :)

It sounds like your trying your best to take care of yourself too, it's going to be a long term thing, you'll need your strength.  Are your son and daughter going to be there with you and your husband soon? 

I'm praying a lot for all of you, let me know if I can do more....

Pam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circulatory_system

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ejection_fraction

cbreul wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 7:35 AM

 Good news!  I hope that it continues to be good news for you both. Please remember to take care of yourself! You need to be healthy to help him.  You both are in my prayers!

Courtney

Billy Z wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 9:47 AM

 That's actually not too bad for a middle aged man who has smoked for years. My output is about 25%-30% and I only have 17% of my heart tissue left. I get around fairly good and am pretty active for a guy in my condition so he's still in decent shape there.

 If he does quit smoking, his output WILL increase, I know that for a fact. Exercise and diet will help considerably. Definitely get rid of the SALT. You can use other spices like white pepper and lemon pepper to replace it. White pepper has a salty taste on it's on and the lemon has a little different kind of zing, but it replaces salt nicely in most dishes. I haven't cooked with salt in years and no one in my house misses it. The only reason tht there is any salt in this house at all is for popcorn and french fries. *laughz* True story!

 Continued prayers your way and i hope that he continues to improve.

 Billy ;o)

sisterhoney61 wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 11:20 AM

 Pat, I was really glad to hear that your DH has improved. Please keep us posted on his condition. I'm sending lots of healing vibes his way.

JSmaz wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 12:36 PM

Billy's right about the salt-the docs said my dad had to cut out the majority of his salt intake as well which was hard because he's bit of a potato chip junkie!  He still eats a few but not like he used to.

PatD3 wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 5:58 PM

He is home and cleared to return to work on Monday. We need to schedule follow ups with a pulmonary specialist and cardiologist in the next 2 weeks. He is currently wearing a nicotine patch to help with the smoking. I'm going to try to get one of the portable monitors for the pulse ox as he said when they woke him up this morning it had dropped to 80 but later when the aide came to take his vitals it was back up to 94.

Billy Z:

 That's actually not too bad for a middle aged man who has smoked for years. My output is about 25%-30% and I only have 17% of my heart tissue left. I get around fairly good and am pretty active for a guy in my condition so he's still in decent shape there.

 If he does quit smoking, his output WILL increase, I know that for a fact. Exercise and diet will help considerably. Definitely get rid of the SALT. You can use other spices like white pepper and lemon pepper to replace it. White pepper has a salty taste on it's on and the lemon has a little different kind of zing, but it replaces salt nicely in most dishes. I haven't cooked with salt in years and no one in my house misses it. The only reason tht there is any salt in this house at all is for popcorn and french fries. *laughz* True story!

 Continued prayers your way and i hope that he continues to improve.

 Billy ;o)

He has smoked for about 40 years and until this chest xrays were always relatively clear. I am guessing I will need to start doing more of the cooking as my mother-in-law usually does most of it and in spite of her own history with heart issues still cooks the country stuff with more fat and salt than she should. She just doesn't get the fact that if it is in a frying pan with even a little vegetable oil I consider it fried food. I prefer to bake or grill most of my stuff and I don't use much salt at all.

Pam, my son is supposed to come over this weekend and I'm not sure when my daughter will be down. I guess it will depend on if her boyfriend has to work this weekend. I don't want her making the drive down and back by herself on just 2 days and then have to go back to work early Monday morning.  

Jeni, I think giving up or at least cutting back on his pretzels and chips will be almost as hard as the quitting smoking. I am no longer smoking in the house and will be cutting back to try to quit myself. I have tried the patches and they don't even begin to take the edge off. My doctor has told me to just try reducing by one cigarette each day until I can quit completely.  

I on the other hand need to get up early tomorrow and go back to work. Even more so since today was the last day for one of our people and we don't know if we will be able to hire anyone to replace her since we have a hiring freeze. So again, thank you all for the thought and prayers, they are appreciated more than you know.

ChristinaMarieH wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 7:29 PM

 Pat, I hope that you Dh is feeling better soon and continues to improve.

Gyspy Mary wrote

on Aug 20, 2009 9:53 PM

 Sending Prayers for your DH. My heart goes out to you. I have spent so much time at the VA, folks think I work there.

I hope your hubby is doing ok now. I am a little slow in see this post.

Bless you both, Mary

Pam I am wrote

on Aug 21, 2009 5:48 AM

I'm glad he's home and feeling better Pat.  I hope that continues and you can both relax a little bit. 

Pam

JSmaz wrote

on Aug 21, 2009 7:45 AM

Glad he's able to come back home!  That will make him feel a ton better all by itself.

Pat, the doc's suggestion about reducing how many cigarettes you smoke is a good one.  That's been working for my mom.  She hasn't entirely quit yet but it's drastically less than what it used to be.  Smoking outside really helps too, as well as giving your house as thorough a cleaning & airing out as possible.  The less you smell it the more it seems to bother you when you do.  That's what mom & hubby have said at any rate.

Hubby doesn't like the patches much either.  He chews the gum which helps a bit though he says it's still no real substitute.  He says the hardest thing for him is breaking his 'routine', if you will.  Hope that helps a little!

PatD3 wrote

on Aug 21, 2009 6:47 PM

Ok, here is the latest. Last night when he went to bed (7:30) he got back up about an hour later saying that it was hot in the bedroom and he couldn't breathe good. He tried to lay down again and got back up about 10:15 still not able to breathe too well. We called the doctor's office and then went back to the ER exactly 12 hours after he was released. He had more fluid in the lungs than he did on Wed. Then about 2:30am they said he was being readmitted. So, he is back in the same room, just the other bed. He has been scheduled for the heart cath on Monday morning. They are now thinking that it may be heart issues more than lung issues causing his difficulty in breathing. I guess we are on hold until we get the results from this.

Cat_P wrote

on Aug 21, 2009 7:53 PM

 Oh Pat I hate to hear he is back in the hospital but really that's the best place for him to be in case of an emergency over the weekend.

This same thing happened to my step dad last October. He kept feeling tightness in his chest and couldn't breathe. He kept contributing it to his asthma he had as a child but in reality it was his heart. When he finally went to the hospital they kept him over the weekend because they told him he was basically a walking time bomb. He had 5 blocked arteries and that Monday morning did a triple bypass and hoped the other two would clear with meds.

Keep us posted on what happens and know you are in my thoughts and prayers.

Pam I am wrote

on Aug 22, 2009 3:47 AM

I'm glad he's being cared for Pat, that's a good thing though it can't be fun for either of you.  Are your kids on their way?  My thought is that if they're coming down to be with you and their dad that would be good for you both. 

Still praying....

Pam

Vanbeads wrote

on Aug 22, 2009 6:24 AM

Pat, my thoughts are with you and your husband and your families!  It sounds as though he is getting good care, and I am hoping for a speedy recovery. 

Please keep us posted!

-Jen

JSmaz wrote

on Aug 22, 2009 7:43 AM

Pat, I'm sorry to hear that!  I sure hope they can figure it out, and that you're able to get some rest too.  Hugs and prayers from me.