I don't know what has been my problem this week. I have not had time to post any new entries or look at anyone else's blog.
Hopefully this weekend I will have a few minutes to catch up with my friends.
Just wanted to let y'all know that I haven't forgotten about you and you can expect new posts and comments from me soon!
Have a great weekend!!!
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Back to Our Regular Scheduled Programming......
We are back to our "normal" routines today. After days and days of laying around, watching The Food Network and movies (Amelie, The Queen, Dreamgirls, Bobby, Caffiene...) we are both going back to work today.
Keith has an appointment to get one more round of blood work done this morning and then he will be going to class and work at the gym tonight. I hope he can make it through a whole day without getting tired. You know how you wear out easily after you haven't done much for a few days? We did get out to Borders yesterday. We both needed a breath of fresh air.
He wore "regular" clothes Saturday night. (By regular, I mean, shorts and a polo shirt). I hadn't seen him in anything but a t-shirt and workout shorts in almost a week! And, he even trimmed his beard up yesterday! Whoo-hoo!
Just another little update. Everyone has been so great with all the emails, calls and cards! Just wanted to let you know that Keith is doing fine!!!
Keith has an appointment to get one more round of blood work done this morning and then he will be going to class and work at the gym tonight. I hope he can make it through a whole day without getting tired. You know how you wear out easily after you haven't done much for a few days? We did get out to Borders yesterday. We both needed a breath of fresh air.
He wore "regular" clothes Saturday night. (By regular, I mean, shorts and a polo shirt). I hadn't seen him in anything but a t-shirt and workout shorts in almost a week! And, he even trimmed his beard up yesterday! Whoo-hoo!
Just another little update. Everyone has been so great with all the emails, calls and cards! Just wanted to let you know that Keith is doing fine!!!
Friday, June 22, 2007
There's No Place Like Home
GREAT NEWS! I am posting this from HOME! Yup, that's right, you read it correctly- from HOME!!!! Keith was released today around 10:30!
After our doctor left, we had 2 friends, Annie and Amanda, come visit. We were just getting ready to play Phase 10 when the nurse came in and said that she had some bad news. (I was thinking, uh-oh, what now?!?!). She said that Keith was able to go home. She had the release papers in her hand! I started jumping and clapping and yelling "YEAH, YEAH!". Other nurses came in to say that we were having too much fun, but I just couldn't stop celebrating! Oh, by the way, the nurse meant bad news for her because Keith was such a great patient. They all just loved him. She said that he was more than welcome to stay until 3:00, when her shift ended. (Smiles).
We didn't see the kidney specialist today, he wasn't making rounds until late tonight. They figured that we would rather get home than wait for him and boy, oh boy were they right! The renal scan came back negative, everything working normally. They said that he is able to eat anything, make sure he gets plenty of fluids and cannot do any weight training or lifting. The most exercise for now is a stroll around the neighborhood. He has to go back to the lab on Monday for more blood work, just to make sure the numbers are not increasing and our doctor will want to see him for a check up in two weeks, but other than that he is good to go! Thank God! They think that the original kidney infection just got that out of control and affected the kidneys that much. No bacteria present now, but they are still keeping him on antibiotics for 10 days.
Oh, I thought I would post two pictures- one of Keith and I after we got the great news of his release and one of Keith getting ready to be pushed out of his room. They let him stay in his regular clothes, so no pictures of Keith in a hosptial gown! *Sorry Rod, I know that was your request! :) *
It is such a relief to be home. We cannot thank you all enough for the prayers, thoughts and offers of help you have given us. We love you all so much and you have made the past 4 days so much easier for us.
Hosptial updates are officially over! (Big sigh of relief)
After our doctor left, we had 2 friends, Annie and Amanda, come visit. We were just getting ready to play Phase 10 when the nurse came in and said that she had some bad news. (I was thinking, uh-oh, what now?!?!). She said that Keith was able to go home. She had the release papers in her hand! I started jumping and clapping and yelling "YEAH, YEAH!". Other nurses came in to say that we were having too much fun, but I just couldn't stop celebrating! Oh, by the way, the nurse meant bad news for her because Keith was such a great patient. They all just loved him. She said that he was more than welcome to stay until 3:00, when her shift ended. (Smiles).
We didn't see the kidney specialist today, he wasn't making rounds until late tonight. They figured that we would rather get home than wait for him and boy, oh boy were they right! The renal scan came back negative, everything working normally. They said that he is able to eat anything, make sure he gets plenty of fluids and cannot do any weight training or lifting. The most exercise for now is a stroll around the neighborhood. He has to go back to the lab on Monday for more blood work, just to make sure the numbers are not increasing and our doctor will want to see him for a check up in two weeks, but other than that he is good to go! Thank God! They think that the original kidney infection just got that out of control and affected the kidneys that much. No bacteria present now, but they are still keeping him on antibiotics for 10 days.
Oh, I thought I would post two pictures- one of Keith and I after we got the great news of his release and one of Keith getting ready to be pushed out of his room. They let him stay in his regular clothes, so no pictures of Keith in a hosptial gown! *Sorry Rod, I know that was your request! :) *
It is such a relief to be home. We cannot thank you all enough for the prayers, thoughts and offers of help you have given us. We love you all so much and you have made the past 4 days so much easier for us.
Hosptial updates are officially over! (Big sigh of relief)
Keith's Update.....
Day #4 in the hospital.
I got here about 8:30 this morning, just in time to see our regular physician. She just did the routine-question-thing, and answered some of our questions. Keith's creatin (I could completely be butchering the spelling of that word!) is down to 1.7, not that it means anything to non-medical people, but I know we have few nurses out there reading this! He was a 3.0 when he was admitted, so that is a huge improvement. We weren't really given any new information. Still running tests, waiting for the renal scan results and trying to stay upbeat. Our doctor said that the kidney specialist would be in later today to talk to us again. He'll make rounds every day.
Keith did get a roommate yesterday afternoon. An older gentleman who had knee surgery. (Have I mentioned that the IMU was full, so Keith was placed on the surgical unit?) Keith got NO sleep last night. The roomie had nurses and doctors in constantly and when no one was tending to him, he was snoring like a freight train. Keith told me that the man was completely out of it, yanking on his tubes, trying to move his leg when he shouldn't be, kicking and throwing things.... basically making it very difficult for Keith to sleep! Keith said at one point he got up to go to the restroom in the middle of the night and roomie had removed his gown, so Keith got a bit of a show when he passed the bed. He turned his head as quickly as humanly possible!
Thankfully, the nursing staff really likes Keith (who can blame them!?!) and they moved the roommate to another room around 7:00am. I know they were trying to move him last night, but had no where to put him. Very sweet and considerate of the hospital staff......
Oh, Keith did get some Bobby's custard last night, which meant that I got some too! Mmmmmm.....
That's the newest. Will post more later.
I got here about 8:30 this morning, just in time to see our regular physician. She just did the routine-question-thing, and answered some of our questions. Keith's creatin (I could completely be butchering the spelling of that word!) is down to 1.7, not that it means anything to non-medical people, but I know we have few nurses out there reading this! He was a 3.0 when he was admitted, so that is a huge improvement. We weren't really given any new information. Still running tests, waiting for the renal scan results and trying to stay upbeat. Our doctor said that the kidney specialist would be in later today to talk to us again. He'll make rounds every day.
Keith did get a roommate yesterday afternoon. An older gentleman who had knee surgery. (Have I mentioned that the IMU was full, so Keith was placed on the surgical unit?) Keith got NO sleep last night. The roomie had nurses and doctors in constantly and when no one was tending to him, he was snoring like a freight train. Keith told me that the man was completely out of it, yanking on his tubes, trying to move his leg when he shouldn't be, kicking and throwing things.... basically making it very difficult for Keith to sleep! Keith said at one point he got up to go to the restroom in the middle of the night and roomie had removed his gown, so Keith got a bit of a show when he passed the bed. He turned his head as quickly as humanly possible!
Thankfully, the nursing staff really likes Keith (who can blame them!?!) and they moved the roommate to another room around 7:00am. I know they were trying to move him last night, but had no where to put him. Very sweet and considerate of the hospital staff......
Oh, Keith did get some Bobby's custard last night, which meant that I got some too! Mmmmmm.....
That's the newest. Will post more later.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Hospital.....
So much has happened over this week. I guess I will start from the beginning, but with shortened versions of everything that has happened.
I wrote a post last weekend about Keith, how he was feeling sick and diagnosed with a kidney infection. They put him on antibiotics last Saturday and we figured it was only a matter of time until he was feeling 100% again. We were wrong.
He didn't feel much better on Sunday. As a matter of fact, he had a really bad night Sunday night. I wasn't sure what to do. I could feel the panic attack coming on, but went to our room, spent some time in prayer and thankfully God was able to calm me so I could focus on Keith. I stayed home with him on Monday and we went to our regular physician. She wanted blood work done, told him to stay on the antibiotic and they would call by Friday with the lab results. I had to go back to work on Tuesday, so his mom came over to stay with him (she offered and I accepted, Keith didn't want to "put anyone out"). Keith called me at work and told me that the lab called and said he was in renal failure and he needed to get to the doctor. Of course, we were both SO scared. I mean, how did what we thought was a kidney infection progress to kidney failure?!? We all met at the doctor's office and Keith was admitted to Anderson Hospital in Maryville, IL. Our physician in still in IL, we never found a new doctor when we moved to St. Louis. We learned that his kidneys had not actually failed, but "acute renal failure". From what I have gathered, the kidneys were in distress, which could have led to renal failure, had the appropriate actions not been taken.
(big breath cause this is a long story and alot of information)
So, they administered IV fluids, took a lot of blood, did an ultrasound and then told me that I wouldn't be able to stay the night with him at the hospital. My mom was driving down and told me that she would get us a close hotel to stay at, so we could just get right up Wednesday morning and go right back to the hospital, instead of driving all the way back to St. Louis for the night. I am so thankful my mom drove down. I needed to see her face. You know how your mom always is able to comfort? I needed that motherly comfort. *So, THANK YOU Momma, for coming down and keeping us company!*
Back to the updates- the ultrasound came back fine- no kidney stones. His blood levels are returning to normal, slowly but surely. Still not completely back to normal, but the high levels are definitely dropping. They did a renal scan today, which will show any problems with kidney function. We haven't gotten the results from that yet. I don't know if we will get those tonight or tomorrow when the nephrologist comes back in. They said he will probably be here for a couple of days still. Just running tests, tests and more tests. It is so strange for a young, healthy man to have kidney issues. Oh, and he was able to get off his IV, so he no longer totes around the "buddy" as we have come to call it. AND, the most exciting part to Keith- his diet restriction was lifted, so he can eat whatever he wants now. The past two days have been bland, low potassium, low sodium, no dairy foods. The doctor lifted all restrictions, so he will be ordering whatever he wants for dinner tonight and I am pretty sure I will be making a Bobby's run before I leave for the evening. (For those out of towners, Bobby's is yummy, yummy frozen custard)
The hospital does have free wi-fi, so I was able to bring the laptop up, which helps pass the time. Keith is able to check his fantasy baseball teams, email and all that. We have our DVD player and are in the middle of Dreamgirls. Showing later tonight or tomorrow will be The Queen. We have books, magazines, Phase 10 and other card games to keep us entertained. If only the hospital had an outdoor pool, we could stay here for a week. Of course, we are praying that he is able to go home as soon as possible, but may as well make the best of it while he is here.
We have been very fortunate. People were praying for Keith immediately. We know that the prayers are working and God has answered many of them. Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. We know that God has been right beside us and that is the most comforting thing of all, definitely more comforting that the hospital bed! :)
I will keep updates posted on my blog, so please check back. Pass the link on to anyone that doesn't check my blog, but would want to know the updates.
Thanks again for all the concerns and love- it means so much to both of us to know that so many people love and care for Keith!!!!! We are so blessed with amazing families and friends!
I wrote a post last weekend about Keith, how he was feeling sick and diagnosed with a kidney infection. They put him on antibiotics last Saturday and we figured it was only a matter of time until he was feeling 100% again. We were wrong.
He didn't feel much better on Sunday. As a matter of fact, he had a really bad night Sunday night. I wasn't sure what to do. I could feel the panic attack coming on, but went to our room, spent some time in prayer and thankfully God was able to calm me so I could focus on Keith. I stayed home with him on Monday and we went to our regular physician. She wanted blood work done, told him to stay on the antibiotic and they would call by Friday with the lab results. I had to go back to work on Tuesday, so his mom came over to stay with him (she offered and I accepted, Keith didn't want to "put anyone out"). Keith called me at work and told me that the lab called and said he was in renal failure and he needed to get to the doctor. Of course, we were both SO scared. I mean, how did what we thought was a kidney infection progress to kidney failure?!? We all met at the doctor's office and Keith was admitted to Anderson Hospital in Maryville, IL. Our physician in still in IL, we never found a new doctor when we moved to St. Louis. We learned that his kidneys had not actually failed, but "acute renal failure". From what I have gathered, the kidneys were in distress, which could have led to renal failure, had the appropriate actions not been taken.
(big breath cause this is a long story and alot of information)
So, they administered IV fluids, took a lot of blood, did an ultrasound and then told me that I wouldn't be able to stay the night with him at the hospital. My mom was driving down and told me that she would get us a close hotel to stay at, so we could just get right up Wednesday morning and go right back to the hospital, instead of driving all the way back to St. Louis for the night. I am so thankful my mom drove down. I needed to see her face. You know how your mom always is able to comfort? I needed that motherly comfort. *So, THANK YOU Momma, for coming down and keeping us company!*
Back to the updates- the ultrasound came back fine- no kidney stones. His blood levels are returning to normal, slowly but surely. Still not completely back to normal, but the high levels are definitely dropping. They did a renal scan today, which will show any problems with kidney function. We haven't gotten the results from that yet. I don't know if we will get those tonight or tomorrow when the nephrologist comes back in. They said he will probably be here for a couple of days still. Just running tests, tests and more tests. It is so strange for a young, healthy man to have kidney issues. Oh, and he was able to get off his IV, so he no longer totes around the "buddy" as we have come to call it. AND, the most exciting part to Keith- his diet restriction was lifted, so he can eat whatever he wants now. The past two days have been bland, low potassium, low sodium, no dairy foods. The doctor lifted all restrictions, so he will be ordering whatever he wants for dinner tonight and I am pretty sure I will be making a Bobby's run before I leave for the evening. (For those out of towners, Bobby's is yummy, yummy frozen custard)
The hospital does have free wi-fi, so I was able to bring the laptop up, which helps pass the time. Keith is able to check his fantasy baseball teams, email and all that. We have our DVD player and are in the middle of Dreamgirls. Showing later tonight or tomorrow will be The Queen. We have books, magazines, Phase 10 and other card games to keep us entertained. If only the hospital had an outdoor pool, we could stay here for a week. Of course, we are praying that he is able to go home as soon as possible, but may as well make the best of it while he is here.
We have been very fortunate. People were praying for Keith immediately. We know that the prayers are working and God has answered many of them. Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. We know that God has been right beside us and that is the most comforting thing of all, definitely more comforting that the hospital bed! :)
I will keep updates posted on my blog, so please check back. Pass the link on to anyone that doesn't check my blog, but would want to know the updates.
Thanks again for all the concerns and love- it means so much to both of us to know that so many people love and care for Keith!!!!! We are so blessed with amazing families and friends!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Grow Marriage, Grow!
Keith and I are officially registered for this conference! I am so excited. I loved Gary Chapman's book "The 5 Love Languages" and am currently reading "The Four Seasons of Marriage". This will be our first marriage conference. I can't wait. I thought we had waited too long to register and the event would be sold out. We were meant to go.
I am going to have to think of something for us to do after the conference. It is a one day event, so maybe we could do a little night out in St. Louis and stay in a hotel and have a really nice dinner somewhere. Hmmmm, I will have to think about this.
Poor hubby......
My husband has been sick since Wednesday. He came home from work not feeling well. By Thursday, he had gotten worse. He was having joint aches, nausea and back pain. He stayed home from work and class on Thursday, which is a rarity for Keith. I knew that he wasn't feeling well at all when he called in. He couldn't keep any food or liquid down on Thursday, which of course worried me. I just chalked it up to the flu at first.
I begged him not to go to work on Friday, but my husband can be stubborn. He did go to work and said he was feeling better. He even managed to eat a cheese toastie and tomato soup for dinner! Yeah!
Last night he woke up with nausea and back pain around 3:00am. I woke up at 6:15 this morning and his side of the bed was empty. He had been up, walking around, laying on the couch for 3 hours. (He later told me that he was scared at that point). He called his clients and cancelled this morning. We called our doctor, but her office is closed on Saturdays.
After talking to my friend Tracy (who is a nurse) and Keith's aunt (another nurse), I started to wonder if he had something wrong with his kidneys. I wanted to take him to the Urgent Care Center, but he did not want to go. He said it would cost too much money and would just wait for our Dr. on Monday. After a nap and some more coaxing on my behalf, he agreed to go to Urgent Care. They weren't busy and we got in and out in less than an hour. Keith was diagnosed with a kidney infection, prescribed some antibiotics and anti-nausea meds and sent home.
I am so thankful that he agreed to go and we found out what the problem is. The dr. told us that if he had waited, he could have ended up in the hospital with IV antibiotics.
So, he is relaxing on the couch, watching the US Open. I don't know how golf is funny, but it must be because he is laughing (a very good sign!).
Oh, in the dr. office, I said "Babe, I sure hope you don't have kidney stones." He said "Yeah, me too. I'd hate to have a baby before you do." It made me laugh. That's my husband, no matter how much pain he is in, he is still trying to make me feel better!
I begged him not to go to work on Friday, but my husband can be stubborn. He did go to work and said he was feeling better. He even managed to eat a cheese toastie and tomato soup for dinner! Yeah!
Last night he woke up with nausea and back pain around 3:00am. I woke up at 6:15 this morning and his side of the bed was empty. He had been up, walking around, laying on the couch for 3 hours. (He later told me that he was scared at that point). He called his clients and cancelled this morning. We called our doctor, but her office is closed on Saturdays.
After talking to my friend Tracy (who is a nurse) and Keith's aunt (another nurse), I started to wonder if he had something wrong with his kidneys. I wanted to take him to the Urgent Care Center, but he did not want to go. He said it would cost too much money and would just wait for our Dr. on Monday. After a nap and some more coaxing on my behalf, he agreed to go to Urgent Care. They weren't busy and we got in and out in less than an hour. Keith was diagnosed with a kidney infection, prescribed some antibiotics and anti-nausea meds and sent home.
I am so thankful that he agreed to go and we found out what the problem is. The dr. told us that if he had waited, he could have ended up in the hospital with IV antibiotics.
So, he is relaxing on the couch, watching the US Open. I don't know how golf is funny, but it must be because he is laughing (a very good sign!).
Oh, in the dr. office, I said "Babe, I sure hope you don't have kidney stones." He said "Yeah, me too. I'd hate to have a baby before you do." It made me laugh. That's my husband, no matter how much pain he is in, he is still trying to make me feel better!
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