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Monday, January 5, 2009

So much for optimism...

In a matter of hours on Friday, I went from feeling optimistic about the new year to feeling completely helpless. Friday had been such a great day! I had gone to the doctor and everything was going well, I'd gotten a haircut, and after I got home from work, I had a very nice nap! Randy and I were getting ready to leave the house to go to Chili's for dinner (Christmas gift card!), when a bomb was dropped on us.

Randy's step dad had collapsed at home had been rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. The EMSA tech thought it was a stroke. I had a brief moment of freak-out because my grandfather had a stroke in 2002 and didn't survive. But I needed to be strong for Randy. So I start gathering some books and magazines to take to the hospital with us and as we were getting ready to leave, we received another call. The CT scan revealed that it was a ruptured brain aneurysm and Tom's chances didn't look good. We left home fully expecting to arrive at the hospital to say goodbye. However, the pain medication that he had been for the headaches he was having (which he thought were due to a pinched nerve), had luckily not thinned his blood out. The doctors were able to drain the spinal fluid off of his brain Friday night, and then Saturday morning they performed an angiogram to find the bleed, and put in some coils to stop it.

Tom is currently in a coma, but he has remained stable and is making some progress. The next week will be critical because he will likely start to experience vasospasms, and he is also likely to develop pneumonia. The doctor said that on a scale of 1 to 5 (with one being the best) Tom was at a 5.

Please keep Tom, and the rest of Randy's family in your prayers, as this may be a difficult journey.

A family friend has set up a website for updates on Tom's recovery. I have put a link at the top of my blog, if anyone is interested.


Thanks!!

6 comments:

Bobby said...

Sorry to hear about this. Wishing for the best.

Casey said...

Where is he at? Jeff works in the ICU at Saint Francis. If he's there I will make sure Jeff knows so he can take extra good care of him. Praying for you
Casey

Suzi said...

oh my goodness, how scary... I am definitely praying for all of you during this very scary time.

powerma said...

please remain optimistic and I will keep your family in my prayers.

Chrissy (Cooper) Whitten said...

Prayers being sent up now. Remember that putting it in God's hands is better than in ours! We are strongest on our knees!2009 is going to be better than 2008! Believe it!

coco bean a.k.a. lisa said...

Stay strong! Randy needs you! You have our prayers!