EK here again. Overall Sareana is doing pretty decent under the circumstances. We're about 3 and 1/2 days out from surgery and the flap appears to be working properly, so that's definitely good news.
As I mentioned in the previous post, this was a bigger surgery than anything she's been through before, so she still has a long ways to go. She's on a couple of heavy antibiotics for infections they found during the surgery, and a had a PICC line installed yesterday for antibiotic delivery. They also found that she has an infection in her digestive system, apparently a result of all the antibiotics she's been taking for the past several months upsetting the balance of good/bad bacteria in the stomach. However, they think they have a solution to that in the form of yet another antibiotic for the next 5 days. This antibiotic can be pretty rough on organs, so it's good that she's in ICU where they can keep a close eye on her for this as well as surgery recovery. The bottom line is we really need to get her digestive system working as soon as possible so she can start getting some good nutrition and hopefully getting her strength back. Meanwhile she's getting nutrition via IVs etc and eating a little bit as she's able.
ICUs are not a relaxing place to be, and I think she's pretty tired from lack of sleep as well as just being really beat up from surgery, medications, etc. But, it's the place for her to be right now. Not sure how long she's gonna be down in Nashville, but it may be longer than we originally anticipated while they work to get her squared away. The team of docs at Vanderbilt really seems to be bending over backward to make sure she's getting the best care possible and that everyone is communicating with everyone else to make sure all the pieces of the puzzle are being addressed. Having her Uncle Wright close by is hugely helpful, and we think it's very clear that going to Vanderbilt was the right call, despite the fact that she's a long way from home. Sareana's mom is down there with her right now, and her dad will be coming back soon. It's really tough being with someone you love in an ICU unit with all the frustrations and interruptions and just seeing your loved one in that condition, and it's a difficult balance trying to be helpful and useful and at the same time stay out of the way when necessary. They are really doing a tremendous job, and I'm so glad they are there with Sareana.
Despite everything, Sareana is doing pretty well. She's miserable (understatement), but she's really surprisingly upbeat and positive. Of course, for anybody who knows Sareana, maybe that's not surprising. She's tough as always.
Life is busy around here with the boys. Everything's going well but we all miss Sareana quite a bit. I'm hoping to get down to Nashville next week for a few days.
That's it for now. Best,
EK
