I'd like to slide down now please...

Sliding Board Heels

We climb up.  We slide down.  We climb up.  We slide down.  Sometimes it feels like we are only doing part of that ride - continually climbing stairs anticipating the joy of finally being able to slide down.

That's the way the past two days have felt.  When my husband was admitted to the hospital this week - there seemed to be a sense of relief that he had done so well with one lung being collapsed, that he had his age and obvious overall good health on his side.  So on Thursday when his chest tube was clamped and his lung immediately collapsed, my heart kind of sank back down into my stomach.  Not only did I see that my husband was in pain, I knew and saw the disappoint that he would not be going home on Friday as hoped.

Yesterday morning I arrived at the hospital early - wanting to spend more time with my husband, but also wanting to be there when his doctor made rounds.  My husband had been sitting on the side of the bed reading a magazine, when he began to complain of sharp pain in his chest again.  He immediately laid back down and a few moments later there was a rush of air bubbles in his chest tube machine that lasted for a few minutes - which immediately had me concerned.  Air bubbles means his lung is leaking air and at that pace it means his lung is re-collapsing.

The doctor came in and told my husband - "You failed the test yesterday.  Oh and you failed it again today."  We were fine with his delivery method of the information, as my husband and I both really like him.  So the decision was made to order a CT scan of his lung - to help determine why his lung is not healing on its own.  There is a very a high probability that this will require surgery to fix his lung.  So then came the next question - what's involved with the surgery?

I love the fact that the doctor explained it - so that someone like my husband who doesn't have any medical background knowledge would understand it.  So here goes.  The doctor believes my husband has a Bleb - basically it is a portion of his lung that has worn out and ruptured, like a weak spot on a tire.  For the surgery - he would make another incision near my husband's existing chest tube.  They would intentionally collapse his lung.  While his lung is collapsed, the doctors would take a "stapler" and where the bleb is located, roll the tissue down so that it is in contact with good, healthy, strong lung tissue and then staple it together.  Then he would take "sandpaper" and sandpaper my husband's chest wall - causing the chest wall tissue to become irritated and inflamed.  The doctor would then put talcum powder inside my husband's chest wall - insert another chest tube into the new incision and re-inflate his lung.  When his lung re-inflates, the talcum powder acts like a glue helping his lung adhere to the chest wall.

Right now, I feel like we are climbing a ladder for a slide that extends many miles up into the clouds.  Now and again we take a break on the rungs and looking around, hoping that this is where we get to slide down.  We haven't reached the slide yet - but I know we are going to.

It's time to get up - do a few things around the house - and then get the kids ready to go spend the day with their dad.  Here's to hoping we don't have to climb any more rungs today.

"As you slide down the banister of life, may all the splinters be going in the right direction"

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