Dear Family and Friends! I have mostly great news about Bill! After a very nice visit in California for Thanksgiving with my mother, Bill woke up at home on Sunday morning and his feeding tube fell out! (I have been praying for this to happen for a long time, but wasn't sure how Bill would react.) After discussing the situation with our doctor who said we could just leave it out or we had 24 hours to have a new one put in, Bill decided to go for it and start eating and mostly drinking all of his nutrition! He was very excited and diligent about getting enough Ensure down his throat to make up for the tube feedings he has depended on for almost 2 years. But last night (Monday around midnight) I noticed he was running fever. I immediately thought it had something to do with the feeding tube, but Sunny suspected pneumonia because he had been choking and coughing while trying to drink his meals. We headed for the ER and sure enough, he has pneumonia. They got IV antibiotics and breathing treatments along with oxygen going right away and Bill is doing much better tonight. The doctor offered again today to put a feeding tube back in but Bill declined and said he wants to learn how to eat and drink without getting it in his lungs. So...he should be able to go home tomorrow and his spirits are really great! I knew you would all be so happy to hear about this and to know how well Bill is taking it on. He hates being hospitalized yet again but is much improved tonight. We will get the swallowing therapy going again now that he must learn how to prevent future pneumonia. Thank you all for your never-ending love and support, without which we could never have stayed on this path! Pastor Richard, I think we are well on our way to climbing out of that long valley you have spoken about. Praise God! Love to all, Cindy
|
