Sitting with James reading dueling papers. I picked up the Telegram on my way in and found him already reading it. Good to know they're taking care of mind and body!We're currently practicing the art of patience. The nursing staff on the floor is stretched much thinner than the ICU and when you're the patient waiting in the bed for the lidocaine and nicotine patches it can feel like forever! Hurrah, the nurse just rolled in. Pausing to chat....
The nurse is gone and we're all set except for the lidocaine patch for James' back. It's something we found was super effective for his lower back issues (blown disks, spinal stenosis, osteo arthritis) first used in ICU last month and I'd been buying them for home ever since. 12 hours on and 12 hours off. If you have any kind of back pain I'd recommend it highly. We buy icy hot lidocaine highest dose but there are others out there. James never wanted to take opiates for his back so just suffered through the pain. Love having a solution for relief.
The nurse unhooked him from the feeding tube drip. Still feeding through the nose but now it's "food" every 6 hours (I think he said) through a funnel-ish-tube they'll attach to the wee yellow feeding tube still stitched in place. It's one more slight disconnect for mobility. Hurrah!
He still has quite a bit of swelling around his neck and chin, not surprising given what he's gone through. The respiratory therapist comes every 4 hours to make sure all is ok although I haven't seen anyone yet this morning. Hmmm....
He hasn't asked for pain meds yet, for as long as I've been here at least. That's a good sign!
All for now, I'll post again if anything exciting happens. Til then be assured all is well and he's hanging in thanks to the good kind patient care and nursing staff at UMass Memorial. Adding a pic of his room with a view while he works on the crossword. Hope your day is beautiful wherever you may be. Take a walk in the sunshine for James! xxoo Beth
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