When the pulmonary and critical care fellow came in Andre's room this morning he declared, "Let's give Andre a shot at extubation. Everybody deserves at least one chance." He wanted to see if Andre can be spared the tracheostomy which was all but certain from Sunday's meeting with his attending physician.
So, they lowered Andre's sedation and put him on a breathing trial. After an hour of him breathing on his own and having good blood gas levels, they pulled out his endotracheal tube. This was at around 12:15 PM. Three hours later, Andre was re-intubated because he was in distress as evidenced by his fast and shallow breathing, his blood numbers in the abnormal range (lower pH and high CO2 concentration), and his inability to cough out the secretions in his lungs that were likely contributing to his rapid respiratory rate.
He's still asleep from the anesthesia that the doctor gave to him for the intubation process. I'm just here at the hospital waiting for the doctors to come by so I can give my consent to Andre's tracheostomy. Thank goodness Andre and I did our legal paperwork right after his diagnosis almost three years ago. The power-of-attorney sure does come in handy for folks like us who are denied the automatic legal protections that comes with a civil marriage.
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This blog is written by and about a guy with an incurable form of cancer. My purpose here isn't to say "woe is me", but to give insight about my thoughts, perspectives, and experiences throughout this adventure. My name is Andre. My partner's name is Ed. I intend to publish on a pretty regular basis here, but Ed might occasionally pop in with his thoughts too.
4 comments:
What a sad comment on our present day society that two people who are so committed to each other can't set anchor in the sometimes calm harbor of marriage. The depth of love that you two have for each other comes through in every one of your postings. I have been following your blog for the last 11 days. All I can say is Andre is an amazing person who has a very amazing friend and love. Best wishes
The ups and downs of the healing process along with the anxieties of what lies ahead can be wearing, Ed, but hold fast to the intention that Andre is coming through this - and I align with that intention for the highest and best good of all concerned... I do Reiki on both of you daily to support this goal.
Now that Andre has taken a step back, can he now take two or more forward? I do hope tomorrow is a better day for both of you.
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