We both slept well last night, at least; Amanda got a higher dose of her sleeping meds. For me, I turned a chair around and stacked pillows in it to match the level of the recliner, Amanda’s idea. I also made the chair with a fitted and flat sheet, so maybe it was just a mindset, but I am sure my feet not dangling helped, too!
Today, the nurse was good. I wasn’t sure at first, but she turned out good. When we told her where we were from, she was asked about border problems; we told her about the daily car chases through our small town. She used to live in a rougher part of Houston and would see them unload what she assumed were smuggled illegals by the truckload. So, she was all too familiar with the border situation.
We were both in a little better mode today; yesterday was just frustrating. Amanda was perturbed with no answers yesterday morning and was ready to know the plan. The new hospitalist came by early, prepared with a plan, and will be here for the next week. Knowing she’ll be here for the discharge makes things easier. She is also receptive to my suggestions for pain management going home. We know from vast experience that is always a big hang-up.
Amanda or I could write a book on the power of a shower! Amanda had one yesterday, even with the wound vac, so she was happy. I had a good shower this morning, too, and of course, the transplant team walked in then. Our transplant doctor wasn’t with them, so I didn’t miss much, at least. They did mention the infection was staph, and ID would follow with a course of treatment now. That the other power of the shower, or poo for that matter, those two always summon the doctors to come by!!!
It’s a good thing I loaded the StarBs card heavy when we arrived because you know Amanda wouldn’t be passing that up each morning with one so close by! At least the walk keeps me active; with all my years of experience on that trek, I think I could make it blindfolded.
The surgeon came by and talked to us a little more. He asked what Amanda’s pain tolerance was, and we both said low, with a high tolerance to pain medicine. He was preparing for the dressing change, saying the first would be very painful. He mentioned sedating her slightly but said, either way, they’ll dose her with good pain meds before they do anything. He also mentioned a foreign body showing on the CT but forgot to tell us about it yesterday. Mentioning he looked for it and felt around but couldn’t find it during the procedure. He wasn’t too concerned but said that it could be an issue if the infection made it over there. To find it would take specialized equipment that they didn’t have set up.
After that, I headed out to drop the Yukon off to have the windshield replaced. It had a crack when we bought it, but I got hit by a rock on the way home from buying it, which made a substantial baseball-sized crack as well. I picked up some Torchy’s for lunch and Ubered back to the hospital. They didn’t write my appointment down, so I just asked them to keep it till they had it ready tomorrow morning. That would save me what the Uber would cost there and back with the $20 a-day parking here! Trips like this are so expensive with not only parking but eating out every meal as well.
It was a quick but eventful trip over and back. I had picked up some Chick-fil-A drinks, and one ended up completely upside down in the passenger seat after I had to slam on the brakes! It was surprising, but it only spilled a few drops! At least the Uber ride back wasn’t too bad, except for the hard cornering and braking. Let’s just say I held on to those drinks real tight.
Lunch was good. We hadn’t had Torchy’s in a while; they have the best Mexican street corn. After that, the ID doc showed up much later than we thought. She was busy all morning and tired, asking if we’d mind if she sat down while going over things! She confirmed the infection was a staph stain but not MRSA, so it’s unlikely it came from Amanda. It will be IV antibiotics every 8 hours for four weeks.
This infection treatment was different, not in the treatment plan but in how we’ve been treated. Years ago, with the pacemaker infections, the doctors wanted to point fingers at us. They seem to own it this time and aren’t looking at us. Amanda mentioned how much better this experience has been. She talked about how terrible the previous doctors from Austin made her feel about the whole situation last time.
Dinner tonight was poke. We haven’t had any from a place we frequented after the transplant that is close by in a while. They lacked a few veggies, so the bowls weren’t as full as we’d liked. That may be why I ran out later for some fries and a sweet treat! We kicked back after that and watched the new Bob Marley movie off our travel firestick.