Homeward Bound on Tuesday!

It was a very trying week for all of us.  After the Baclofen pump was put in, Rachael's recovery was not fun to be a part of.  As the week progressed the issues escalated.  To do the surgery she had to be without meds for 24 hours.  Some of those meds are narcotic and she grew agitated at their absence.  Without pain meds, muscle relaxers and the lot, post op was traumatic for Rachael.  Looking back to earlier posts, Rachael will 'storm' on occasion and it is usually precipitated by a traumatic experience.  She developed a severe headache and vomited.  As it turns out, the Dr. diagnosed a leak in the dermal layer which is where the catheter for the Bacfolen pump is inserted.  Sometimes it makes for a small leak around the hole.  This comes with the territory and is nearly impossible to keep from happening.  The Dr. that inserted the pump is a very skilled surgeon.  I had the privilege of watching him work.  The symptoms of the leak are a vicious headache, vomiting and disorientation.  Rachael had all three.  The resolve is to take some of her blood and insert it into her dermal layer.  It goes to the leak and coagulates, plugging or patching the area around the hole.  The colloquial term for it is a blood patch.  We had to spend a few nights with her to keep an eye on the vomiting.  For several days she maintained an elevated heart rate, profuse sweating, a small fever and verbalizing her discontent.  Nancy and I laid hands on Rachael, I anointed her with oil and prayed for the headache and surgery related issues to go away.   The next day (yesterday) the headache was gone and Rachael had a pretty good morning but her day went a bit sour when her left eye muscle began to spasm or cramp.

She had an uncomfortable day but as the eve has progressed tonight she is relaxed, laughing and pretty much back to normal.

So it has been a rough one.  The good news is that the pump appears to be doing it's job.  As of tonight, her legs are much more relaxed than before.  The most relaxed I have seen since she came out of her coma.

So Tuesday she is on her way home!! Rachael's journey moves into a new season at home.  We are so excited that she is going home.  We have been traveling back and forth from Hospital to Rehab to Venice for over 5 months.  Both Nancy and I have really been stretched these past few days.   We need your prayer.   Though she is going home, you can imagine the huge change it will be for us.  We want to maintain a good witness for Christ as we sprint to the finish of this part of the race.  Pray that we do.

"I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained. "

The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Php 3:14–16). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.