Saturday 26 June 2010

Acronyms...

And top of my list is R & R.  I need it after the whirlwind of the last 3 weeks. 

The last week has been a blur and conversations have been full of acronyms.  My Dad finally had his CABG last Thursday, as planned, albeit a little later in the day than expected.  We visited him in ICU where it was quite a shock to see him ventilated and with so many wires and tubes going in and out of him.  By the following day, he was sitting out in a chair, sipping tea before being transferred to HDU.  He spent a couple of days in there having some CPAP as his lungs were still collapsed.  I took him on his first little walk along the corridor, laden with drip stands and oxygen cylinder on Saturday afternoon and then on Sunday he moved back to the ward. By Tuesday, he was home!  I think it is just starting to sink in what exactly has happened to him and the thought of having open-heart surgery is almost unbelievable to him.  Even with the scars so visible to remind him. 

Being in the thick of such an intense hospital experience had a profound effect on me and stirred many, many memories of a time 13 years ago when I got my first taste of ICU.  I have spent the last couple of days chilling in the garden and trying to establish some normal routines again.

I can't leave a post without a photo and here's one (not a very good one, I know) of Dad's hospital bed one afternoon.  It raised more than a few eyebrows and several smiles...



...I'm not very good at doing nothing for hours on end, so took something along with me!

12 comments:

  1. I'm so glad he's home - been thinking of you. And any bed can be improved by a few cheerful squares!

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  2. glad he's home and on the mend, take care and have a restful weekend xox

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  3. Sending "get well" messages to you Dad. I love the granny squares on the bed.

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  4. Have been thinking of you all and keeping fingers crossed. So happy to hear your dad is home and getting better. Had to smile when I saw the hospital bed, and I'm sure it made your dad smile too! K x

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  5. Thank goodness for medical acronyms.

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  6. Oh dear sorry to hear about your dad but glad he's better and back home now!!

    Do love the squares on the hospital bed - who wouldn't be cheered up by that!!

    xx

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  7. So glad he's come through the surgery and is home again. Wishing him a boringly uneventful recovery!

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  8. so have you taught your Dad to crochet yet? that'll keep him occupied! seriously though, am so pleased he's on the mend, scary stuff indeed.x

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  9. There's nothing quite like the soothing effect of familiar hand work to ease the stress and uncertainty of a hospital bedside vigil - I appliqued so much when in with Nick after his diabetes was diagnosed - it certainly went a long way to keep me sane. So glad it all went well for your dad - hope his recovery continues in the same vein

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  10. I'm glad he's through it and home. Hope he feels better soon. Thoughts of my own heart op have been filling my head recently for some reason? The picture of your dad's bed made me smile, he is so lucky to have you- visitors make all the difference- especially if they bring their own entertainment so you can drift off to sleep without feeling guilty. Jx

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  11. Best wishes for your Dad's speedy recovery. My Dad had bypass surgery six years ago and it gave him a new lease of life. Wishing the same for your Dad.

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  12. that's great that he's home and able to recover from the trauma in comfortable surroundings - hospitals are not nice places to spend any length of time although they'd be a whole lot better with more of your crochet adorning the beds!

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