TO HELL AND BACK ...

So, on January 23, 2019 my husband donated a kidney to our daughter.  This was her second kidney transplant and I am happy to report that she is doing AMAZINGLY WELL!  Her numbers are great and I am praying things continue in this direction.  Last time we did transplant (donated by my wife-in-law, Lauren's mom) we ran into issues with rejection, endless worry, trips to the emergency, etc.  Hopefully, we will not encounter any of these issues.

Lauren now has mom's kidney and dad's kidney.  Mom said she should get a tattoo on each side of her belly saying MOM and DAD.  

We were told that Dan would be in the hospital for three days.  NOT.  As fate would have it, he had terrible complications, a bowel obstruction, serious pain due to vomiting, dry heaving and basically, suffering and agony in the form of an NG tube into the nose down to the stomach.  PRAY YOU NEVER HAVE TO WITNESS A LOVED ONE GOING THROUGH THIS.  It was HORRIBLE.  To see a grown man screaming while vomiting black shit into a barf bag all the while having a tube shoved down his nose and throat ... well, let's just say the memory alone makes me want to faint.    

He suffered greatly but on day four the tube was removed and he was able to eat bland food, broth, Jello, crackers, ice chips.  Day five he was released from the hospital.  Hallelujah.  NOT.  One day at home, one night in his own bed, next morning ... DRY HEAVING ALL MORNING.  Call the hospital.  Bring him into emergency.  Luckily got a room right away because he was a kidney donor in distress.  After x-rays and a ultrasound it is determined he needs another NG tube or he will continue trying to vomit and die of pain while doing so.  A truly life threatening situation.  So, they attempt to put the tube into the same nostril.  Bad idea.  It was sore and tender from the previous tube. They had to take it out and insert it into the other nostril and I once again had to watch my beautiful husband undergo this torture while yelling and vomiting and pleading for them to stop.  HORRIBLE.  H-O-R-R-I-B-L-E.

The cause of all this hell is called paralytic ileus.  The stomach and intestines never woke up from the anesthesia.  I didn't know that your organs also go to sleep when you're given anesthesia.  Also, the opioids they were giving him for pain made this situation worse.  He is VERY sensitive to opioids.  Now, where I can pop Vicodin like candy, Danny cannot.  Doctors do not know what causes this, there is no cure for it, the bowels just wake up when they wake up.  And then, they can go to sleep again!  So everything he'd eaten or drank was basically sitting in his stomach like a stopped up sink.  And it had to come out, via the tube into his stomach.  

After the second NG tube had been inserted poor Danny tried to calm down and breathe somewhat normally while I rubbed his brow and let him know I was there.  They admitted him and he endured the next five days with a tube in his nose and no food, water or even ice chips.  It was terrible.  At one point he looked me in the eyes, dead serious and said he didn't think he was going to survive it.  

Without going into more detail about wearing the same clothes for five days, no sleep, endless worry, helplessness, watching someone I love more than life suffer so horribly, we finally got the word that they could remove the tube and he could slowly begin eating a very bland diet.  After eleven days in the hospital and a loss of 20 pounds he was finally able to go home.    

NOW ... those of you who read my blog know how stubborn my man is.  The day of his release the entire transplant team comes in to talk to us.  First question Dan asks the doctors is ... can he have hash browns.  Yeah.  You know, potatoes fried in oil?  Yeah. Those things.  Doc says no.  GO SLOWLY.  Tea, jello, broth, soup.  The doctor actually said "listen to YOUR WIFE."  I'm thinking, "doc, you'd have better luck bringing a stranger in off the street to tell my husband he should not have hash browns.  A stranger he'd believe.  Me? I'm only HIS WIFE.  But no.  Dan continues asking EVERYONE in the hospital if he could have hash browns.   Knowing Danny, he figured that if he asked enough people eventually he'd find someone that would say "Yes.  You can have has browns."  (eyes rolling) even if it was the janitor.  

Well, glad to report, his appetite returned, he is eating normally, though like a piglet and when he eats like a piglet he feels really stuffed and uncomfortable.  But, like a cranky baby who is exhausted and fighting sleep by crying and crying, I just have to let him do it HIS WAY.  God help me.

His energy level is not what it used to be, but will return in time.  He's adapting to doing nothing, which is driving him batty, but in time he'll be back better than ever.  And most importantly, Lauren is doing EXCELLENTLY.  She is eating great, she looks beautiful, her skin once mottled with dark spots has completely cleared up, her hair is beautiful again.  The kidney disease was robbing her of  her of energy and health.  Now, she is WHOLE.  

LIFE.  GOD, GOOD HEALTH, LOVE, AND FAMILY.  This is ALL that matters in life.  

Dan minus NG tube.

LOVE HER SOOOOOO MUCH!

Lauren in bed, Dr. Dafoe in white coat (Willem Dafoe's brother!)  An amazing team of healers.

Danny, I love you more than you'll ever know.  Lauren, I love you more than you'll ever know.  I love everyone more than they'll ever know.  Our wonderful friends and family who gave mountains of support, help, love and prayers.  We could not have gotten through it without you all.  

GOD BLESS YOU ALL