It’s been all been a whirlwind…

It’s been about 4.5 months since moms big kidney surgery. 

Once mom arrived home from Mayo, we hit a rough patch. She became quite malnourished, within the first 3 weeks she battled nausea, vomiting, decrease appetite and weakness.  

She returned to Mayo for her routine follow up, shortly after the Easter holiday where they discovered an infection in her abdominal area from a lymph node complication.  She was then admitted back into the hospital.  To cure the infection a drain was placed and IV antibiotics were given and after 10 days she was discharged. 

Mom and dad returned home, and truly focused on increasing her appetite, eating superfoods and building strength. Since early May she seems to be getting better each week. With continued OT and PT we’ve seen her get stronger and stronger, she’s gained her appetite back, and has not experienced the nausea. 

She was discharged from home health PT and OT at the beginning of June, but has since started outpatient OT and PT for more intense therapy, we are so proud of how far she’s come. 

She currently is struggling with some memory issues but has been following with a neurologist at Mayo. They feel this is due to recurrent hospital stays/admissions over the last 6 months and feel it will continue to improve over time. 

She’s continues to experience GI issues from inflammatory colitis. We’ve seen some slight improvement and we are working closely with Mayo and local GI doctors to find solutions. 

Mom has already had repeat scans, which have shown continued clean margins, stable lung lesions and no new brain lesions. Her labs continue to be stable with good kidney function and protein levels increasing. 

The relieving news is that moms large medical team from both locally in Bismarck and extended through Mayo have continually agreed to not recommend any chemo or immunotherapy due to no progression of disease. This is what we wanted and hoped for, so we hope it can stay like this for a long time.

The past month we’ve really seen some growth. She’s able to finally make it back up her stairs at home, spend quality time with grandkids, planted flowers with dad and truly being able to enjoy her days.  We’ve seen them be able to enjoy retirement and spend time with friends, doing the things they love.  

Dad and mom just recently celebrated their 38th anniversary.  We are grateful they made another year together, they are a true inspiration. 

We’re always thankful for you thinking, praying and supporting mom (and dad) in anyway possible. Keep it coming!