Congestive Heart Failure

My mom took my grandmother, Nanny, to a pulmonary specialist today. The nurse/technician drew 900 cc of fluid from around her left lung. This is the same side in which they withdrew 1000 cc when she was in the hospital two weeks ago. The concern is not only how quickly the fluid built up again, but also that the color of the liquid was raspberry. That means there is blood mixed with the fluid--a sign that her congestive heart failure is worsening.

Mom continues to have hope that Nanny will recover. After all, no one expected her to pull through last year when she had two surgeries to repair her broken hip. She not only survived, she was almost ready to put bear weight and start trying to walk again when she started having chest pains three weeks ago. I am in limbo while waiting for my mom to call me and let me know Nanny has passed. I hope it is peaceful and in her sleep. She's had enough trauma over the past year.

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Update on Nanny

My grandmother (Nanny) was having horrible pain in her lower back when she was taken by ambulance to the hospital on Sunday night. The pain meds the hospital staff gave her were not helping. An MRI showed several fractures in her spine due to osteoporosis, an injury she sustained in 1976, and perhaps a recent injury. A simple movement like getting her from her wheelchair to the examining table at the doctor's office could have caused the fractures. At any rate, one vertebrae was compressed and pinching a nerve. She was supposed to have a Kyphoplasty procedure (http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00388 on Wednesday to inject some type of filling material into the damaged areas. However, her sodium and iron levels were too low, and she ended up getting two units of blood in hopes of getting her stable enough to do the procedure on Thursday.

It looked like we were losing her. I just couldn’t go on my planned vacation without seeing her, so I drove to Atlanta yesterday, spent a few hours with her, then drove to my aunt Kat’s to check on her. Back to the hospital this morning in hopes that Nanny would be able to have the procedure. Her blood levels still weren’t back to normal today but the pain, inactivity, and morphine were jeopardizing her chances for recovery. So, her doctor went ahead and did the Kyphoplasty procedure (http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00388) this morning. I waited several hours to hear how things went, but I hadn’t packed a thing for our trip to Punta Cana. I had to get back to Nashville in time to pack, catch up on some business emails, and get some rest before the taxi arrives at 4:30 in the morning.

All the way home, my mind was saturated with all the wonderful memories I have of the times I’ve spent with Nanny. Two hours into the trip, my mom still hadn’t gotten to see Nanny and we were worried when the doctor told us she was having trouble breathing and her blood pressure was low. She has fluid around her heart and lungs. Finally, Mom got to see Nanny about five o’clock this afternoon. Nanny was awake, knew where she was, what had happened, and who everyone was. The Kyphoplasty procedure went well, and she has relief from her back pain. Her vitals are still improving. Hopefully, she will be able to get her blood gases to stay in the upper nineties without the bi-pap by morning.

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For more information, you might enjoy reading the complete book More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife available on Amazon.com.

Ready to Go?

My grandmother turned 92 last July. Two weeks ago (November 7) she fell in the kitchen in the home she shares with my parents. She broke her hip and arm, overcame surgery, and was released from the hospital in less than a week. She was doing well until her in-home nurse discovered that Nanny's oxygen level was low. Tanks could not be delivered without doctors prescription and the doctor could not prescribe it without seeing the patient, so back to the hospital (by ambulance) she went. X-ray revealed pneumonia in her left lung. She had an MRI today of her stomach and abdomen to see where the infection in her blood is coming from.

My honest opinion is that her soul is ready to depart from her body and is looking for a way out. Why? Because she wants to be on the Other Side when my aunt Kat arrives. Kat is in hospice care for terminal lung cancer.

It is only natural for the body to try to heal itself. Does the soul override the will of the body? I can't answer that question. Therefore, I remain unattached to the outcome. If Nanny or Kat is done with her Earthly mission and wish to depart, it is their choice, not mine. Of course I would miss them. I am close to both of them, but I would not blame them or be angry if they chose to leave. My choice is to be as supportive and loving as possible while attending to their needs in the interim.