It's been a while, sorry!

Hi again!

Jon came home about two weeks ago. It's been pretty crazy and I apologize for not posting sooner! He is doing well. The first week that he was home, it was all about the little victories... getting out of a chair by himself, being able to sleep on the bed instead of in a recliner, etc. His doctors say he is doing great. His heart function and size is almost back to normal, and his pulmonary pressures are good. He will start physical therapy tomorrow. He has to go 5 days a week... he is going to be tired!

It's incredible to see how well he is doing now. As I was driving home from Church today, I found him walking our dog about a mile away from our house. I ended up needing to pick him up because we had some people from Church coming over right then and I needed him home, but I was amazed that he had made it that far. In the weeks before the surgery, he could barely make it to the mailbox. We are so thankful that he has such great doctors and is healing.

He will be able to go back to work in about a month. He is going insane with boredom! If anyone wants to call or stop by... I'm sure he'd love the company! His mom is still here and will be here till February 22nd. It has been a huge relief for me knowing that he is taken care of while I'm at work. He can't drive yet so he needs help getting around. Plus, at any age, I think when you're sick there's nothing like having your mom there to take care of you ;)

Anyway. That's all for now. Thank you all so much for the prayers, calls, care packages, meals, and love that you have shown us!

slowly but surely

Hello!!

Jon is recovering well. He now just has 1 IV, instead of 5 or 6 bags of fluid going into him from his neck and both arms. He is walking with his walker a few times a day. He still has tubes draining fluid from his lungs that make him uncomfortable, but he is growing stronger every day.

That's pretty much all I have for you for now- thank you for all the prayers! Keep em coming! Thanks for thinking about me and his family, too, this has been harder than I ever imagined.

Much love to you all!

they just wheeled him by

Rachel and I are hanging out in the cardiac ICU waiting room... Surgery ended about an hour ago and he's doing ok. The doctors said "his pressures" are still abnormal but his heart function is much better. I have no idea what pressures they are talking about. They also said that they were able to clear out more clots from the right side than the left side. So, this means that the doctors have some more work to do, but overall the surgery went well and he's doing ok right now.

A few minutes ago they wheeled him by- we could tell it was him by his giant feet sticking out of the bed haha!

surgery

Whew! It's only 8 am but Jon has already had quite the day. They came in at 3 am and started taking blood for some final tests. Then he got scrubbed and prepped. By 5 am he was in pre-op, and they kicked me out at 6 am and they began the cooling process. At 8 I received an update saying that had begun surgery. I'll post more as the day goes on.

They started the surgery about an hour earlier than planned... I'm glad they did because I was getting so scared that I wanted him to back out!! I know he needs it and he would be in horrible shape without it... but I cant tell you how scary it was leaving him this morning.

Tomorrow

Jon goes in for the PTE surgery tomorrow morning- about 5 am! Yikes! He should be in the ICU for a few days and then in a regular hospital room.

Thanks for all the prayers... keep em coming!

cath test

His cath test showed his pressure in his lungs is double what it should be. This means he is going to get the surgery. The date has not been set but it will happen this week. Please pray for him!

PS

Please ignore my spelling and grammar throughout this blog... I am exhausted and I'm sure I will only become more tired as the month goes on!

Updates

Hey everyone,

I appreciate all the love and support that you all have been giving us! If one good thing has come out of this, it's been realizing how many people really care about our little family.

I started this blog so I could keep everyone updated on Jon's condition. I wish I had the time to update everyone personally, but between a million doctors visits; trying to spend quality time together; and maintaining my employment... I just don't have enough hours in the day!

So let me start from the beginning. About 6 weeks ago, Jon was diagnosed with multiple blood clots in his lungs and pulmonary hypertension. He began to take blood thinners to take care of the clots, but he gradually became worse until he couldn't even make it up a flight of stairs without becoming totally winded and completely exhausted. On Monday December 27th Jon went to the hospital in an ambulance and was diagnosed with level III heart failure. He stayed at WakeMed in Cary for a few days before transferring to Duke University Hospital for more specialized care. His tests have shown that he not only has blood clots in his arteries, he also has scar tissue that has formed around the clots. He came home on Friday.

On Tuesday he will have a few more test (including a hearth cath) to determine if he needs the pulmonary thromboendarterectomy surgery. It is looking like he will probably need the surgery and the tests on Tuesday are pretty much for the doctors to dot their I's and cross their T's. He will likely go in for surgery on Thursday or Friday. After surgery, he will be in the hospital for 2 weeks-1 month, and then needing to rest at home for about 1 month after that.

Jon's doctors don't know what is causing the blood clots, and this surgery is only going to clear out existing blood clots and scar tissue. After his surgery, his doctors will begin to determine how to prevent future clots and scar tissue from forming.

Jon's mom flew out last week and will be here as long as we need her. We can't be more thankful for her being here!!! We are also thankful for the sacrifices that her family has made for her to come and stay with us.

Jon may stay in the hospital between his tests on Tuesday and when he goes in for surgery, but he also could come home for a day. My bet is that he will stay in the hospital because it takes forever for anything to happen at the hospital... and I seriously doubt they will actually get him discharged from the hospital before surgery.

That's all for now... I'll post more on Tuesday when we know if he is going to have the surgery or not.