Urgent Prayer Request

Urgent prayer request: They're taking Danny into surgery to insert a camera down his throat to discover why Danny's oxygen level is remaining low requiring the ventilator despite the fact that his throat isn't extremely swollen and they are suctioning the fluid out of his lungs. This surgery requires general anesthesia which is a risk because Danny is on a ventilator. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors and for God to continue to sustain Danny. Thank you. (Julie's Mom)

Danny Back on the Ventilator

Sad to report that Danny had to be put back on the ventilator Sunday afternoon - not because of his throat, however, but because he has a lot of lung congestion and he's too weak to cough. His oxygen level was down to 40% (should be closer to 100%) so putting him back on the vent was a necessary life-saving procedure. When Julie saw him at 3:30, he was totally sedated because they had just reinserted the vent.
Julie was able to get permission for Dave (Julie's Dad) to see Danny Sunday evening because Dave flies back to the U.S. on Tuesday and hasn't seen Danny because Dave arrived the day of Danny's surgery. A friend drove Dave to the hospital after church today. I stayed at Refuge Ranch with the kids. Appreciate so much your prayers. God is always with us through the ups and downs. He is faithful and we trust in Him. (Julie's Mom)

This is Dave. Yes, I was able to see Danny yesterday! He was heavily sedated, but when I asked him if he would like to take a walk with Grandpa when he got out of the hospital I thought he gave a slight nod. He looked good, for all that he's been through, if you can call it looking good having a feeding tube down your nose and a ventilator down your throat. I kept my visit short so Julie would have some time with Danny, which she had. It was sure great seeing the little buddy of mine. Our specific prayer is that the lung congestion clear up, along with continual improvement with all other body systems. (Julie's Dad)

Saturday Night Update/Las noticias del sábado por la noche

El blog en español empieza abajo del blog en inglés. ¡Gracias!

Saw Danny at 7:00 p.m. tonight and he had been without the ventilator for 2 hours already!
Praise the Lord!  His upper airways are still quite swollen and so it is important that Danny not try to talk (he has NO voice) or cry in order to help the swelling to continue to go down.  If the swelling would increase they would have to put the ventilator back in again.  The first 48 hours without the ventilator are the most critical...so we keep praying!

The thing is, Danny wants to talk!  He especially wants water!  The doctor said they would moisten his lips and tongue, which I hope will make him more comfortable so that he will stop trying to ask for water!

I explained to Danny, who was quite conscious, the importance of not talking or crying or they would have to put the tube back in his throat.  He does NOT want that tube put back in!  As soon as I got done explaining the situation to him, he scrunched up his face to not cry!  A few minutes later he wanted to talk/cry again and all I said was, "Danny....", in that mommy tone of voice that we mommies have, and he immediately scrunched up his face to be quiet!  It was the maximum demonstration of self-control!  I was so proud of him I wanted to cry!  He is definitely doing his part to get well and get home!

As for the other updates:

• his lungs had some fluid this morning, but the afternoon x-rays showed that they were clear again, so the drainage tubes are doing their job!
• the doctors are gradually reducing Danny's other medications, including his heart pressure medication
• there were only 9 IV pumps today, rather than 15 or 16 like at the beginning
• Danny is getting lactose-free formula through a feeding tube that is inserted in his nose (I told him today:  "Danny, you're all backwards...you breathe through your mouth and eat through your nose!")
• blood tests showed a possible infection in Danny's system so the doctors have started him on a wide-spectrum antibiotic to cover those bases until the culture and blood test results come in on Monday to confirm or deny the presence of an infection
• Doctors should be removing Danny's two chest tubes tonight (He had two chest tubes draining excess blood and fluids from his chest cavity and two draining his lungs.  The lung tubes need to stay in longer...which is normal.)

So, please pray that Danny stays off the ventilator and that there is no infection!  Thank you so much!

Here's something extra:

This is the ICU/surgery/cardiology/orthopedic waiting room.  At night, all of the parents who have children in regular ICU and Cardiac ICU sleep here.  We each stake out our spot and spread out our blankets (which we store in lockers on the main floor during the day).  So, this is Victor and my "suite" :-)  Through this experience I have some advice for those who are looking for a future mate (or a great premarital exercise):

If you can imagine sleeping on the floor of a hospital waiting room night after night with the guy while your critically ill child, who you can only see for less than an hour a day, is fighting for his life....you can date the guy!

If you can imagine the guy sleeping by himself on the hospital waiting room floor so that you can go and sleep in a bed....you better marry the guy!  (Glad I did!)

En español:

Vimos a Danny hoy a las 7:00 p.m. y ¡ya había pasado dos horas sin el ventilador!  ¡Alabado sea el Señor!  Sus vias aereas todavía están bastante hinchados.  Es muy importante que Danny no intente hablar (no tiene nada de voz) ni llorar para que lo inflamado pueda bajar.  Si la inflamación sigue tendrían que volver a poner el ventilador.  Las primeras 48 horas sin el ventilador son críticas…así que, ¡seguimos orando!

La cosa es, ¡Danny quiere hablar!  ¡En especial, quiere agua!  El doctor dijo que le iban a remojar los labios y la lengua y espero que con eso se tranquiliza un poco y deja de tratar de pedir agua.

Le expliqué a Danny, quien estaba bastante consciente, de la importancia de no hablar ni llorar o le iban a tener que volver a poner este tubo en su garganta.  ¡El NO quiere el tube devuelta!  En cuanto terminé de explicarle la situación, hizo una cara de mucho esfuerzo tratando de no llorar.  A los pocos minutos quiso llorar/hablar y lo único que hice fue decirle:  “Danny…” en ese tono de voz de mamá que las mamás tenemos e, inmediatamente, ¡hizo la cara de esfuerzo para controlarse!  ¡Fue una muestra increíble de autocontrol!  ¡Estuve tan orgullosa de él que quise llorar!  ¡Definitivamente él está poniendo de su parte para mejorarse y venir a casa!

En cuanto a lo demás:

·         Sus pulmones tenían algo de líquido en ellos en la mañana, pero el rayos-x de la tarde mostró que estaban limpios de nuevo.  Eso quiere decir que los tubos de drenaje están funcionando bien.

·         Los doctores están gradualmente pudiendo bajar las cantidades de todos los medicamenots.

·         Hubo solo 9 bombas en la torre de sueros hoy, en vez de 15 o 16 como al principio

·         Le están dando formula libre de lactosa por la nariz (Le dije hoy: “Danny, ¡estás todo al revés…respiras por la boca y comes por la nariz!”)

·         Sus exámenes de sangre muestran una posible infección, así que los doctores le empezaron a dar un antibiótico de alto espectro, por si acaso.  El lunes estarán los resultados de sus cultivos y otros exámenes para confirmar o negar la presencia de una infección

·         Hoy se supone que le iban a quitar sus dos tubos de drenaje de su pecho (Tiene cuatro: dos que drenan de su pecho, la sangre o líquido que se junta allí, y dos saliendo de sus pulmones.  Los tubos de los pulmones todavía tienen que durar puestos,)

Así que, ¡siguen orando que no le tienen que volver a poner el ventilador y que no haya infeccion!  Muchas gracias!

Aquí hay algo extra:

Esta es la sala de espera de Terapia Intensiva/cirugía/cardiología/otropedía.  De noche, todos los papás que tenemos hijos en terapia intensiva o terapia intensive de cardio, nos dormimos aquí.  Cada quien agarra su lugar y tiende sus cobijas (las cuales guardamos en lockers durante el día en la planta principal).  Así que, ese es el “suite” de Victor y yo.  Por medio de esta experiencia tengo un consejo para aquellos que están buscando pareja (o como un buen ejercicio pre-matrimonial):

Si puedes imaginar dormir en el piso de la sala de espera de un hospital noche tras noche con el chico mientras su hijo, en estado grave y a quien solo puedes ver por menos de una hora cada día, lucha por su vida…¡ese chico puede ser tu novio!

Si puedes imaginar al chico durmiendo solito en el piso del hospital para que tú puedas ir a dormir en una cama…¡cásate con él!  (¡Estoy feliz que así hice!)

Specific Prayer Requests for Danny

Two prayer requests for Danny: 1. Drs. plan to remove the ventilator this afternoon. Please pray that the steroids brought down the swelling in Danny's airway enough for him to breathe on his own. Every time they re-insert the vent tube, it causes more damage to the throat which leads to swelling and inability to breathe on his own - a vicious cycle. The vent has been inserted twice now, and we pray that once it's removed today it won't have to be inserted again. 2. Blood test showed a possible infection. Drs. put Danny on antibiotics and results from a culture will come back on Monday. Please pray for no infection. They also plan to remove two drainage tubes from his chest today. Julie saw Danny at 2 p.m. and says he is more peaceful and alert even though he is only partially sedated. Thank you so much for your continued faithful prayers. We know that God is hearing every one! (Julie's Mom)

Tonight's Update

Danny is making progress. Julie saw him at 8:30 p.m. for about 20 minutes. He was somewhat alert and able to respond with nods. He is receiving liquid food through a feeding tube into his stomach rather than just through IV. They are gradually cutting back on meds and oxygen and hope to remove two of his four drain tubes tomorrow as well as the ventilator. He is still considered in critical condition, but is stable rather than unstable. These are all very encouraging signs. (Julie's Mom)

Update on Danny

Victor and Julie saw Danny at 2 p.m. He was even more sedated because they had just removed his bladder catheter. The main concern now is that he will be able to be removed from the ventilator this weekend. As long as he's on the vent, he has to be sedated and it slows down the healing process. Thankfully, at this point, everything else seems to be stable. Posted by Julie's Mom

Thursday, August 16, 2013/ el jueves, 26 de agosto, 2013

We had an incredible day today…we got to see all of our kids in one day! 

¡Tuvimos un día increíble ya que pudimos ver a todos nuestros hijos en un solo día!

(Para español vaya al final del blog en inglés, después de las fotos.  ¡Gracias!)

I’ll start with Danny!  They cancelled the noon visit due to other critically ill children that needed the hospital staff’s full attention.  However, just 10 minutes after we got back from spending four incredible hours with our other children, they called us in for a 15 minute visit.  Victor was so gracious to give me the full 15 minutes with Danny!

I’ll give you the run down like the doctor does:

Heart: His heart is functioning very well!  He is on only two, rather than three, heart medications to keep his blood pressure where it should be and help his blood vessels return to their normal size after being on the heart pump for so many hours during surgery on Monday.

Lungs: Danny is still on a ventilator.  They had tried to remove the ventilator yesterday, but Danny only tolerated several hours breathing on his own when swelling in his upper airways required the doctors to decide to put him back on the ventilator.  This also means that he is sedated again.

Kidneys: He is still on a med to help his kidney function as he had stopped urinating yesterday, but the med is working and he is urinating well.

Diet: Just tonight they hope to start him on lactose-free formula through a feeding tube to get his tummy working again.

General: There are only 11 IV pumps (11 different medications), rather than 15 or 16 like the beginning!  Reductions in medication are huge steps forward!  One of his catheters measuring his heart pressure became crystallized with medication, so they removed that and put him under general anesthesia this evening and placed a new catheter in his groin.

When I saw him this afternoon he was more peaceful than yesterday.  When Danny was unsedated and off the ventilator he was very agitated and trying to remove all the cables and hoses!  However, he is not very heavily sedated now, so he opens his eyes, recognizes me, nods and shakes his head in response to my questions.  He knows he his thirsty and tries to ask for water, but he has no voice due to the ventilator…I just read his lips! Man, that’s tough!  He knows he is trying to talk and doesn’t hear his voice…I can understand his lips, but I can’t give him what he so wants!  We both get frustrated and sad!  As my mother would say:  “This too shall pass!”  As our daughter Diana reminded me on Facebook today, only God is eternal..this situation is NOT!

The biggest prayer request right now is that they will be able to remove the ventilator sometime this weekend.  It is very important that he breathe totally on his own to help his heart heal!

As for our 17 other children…we saw them today too!  Grandpa and Grandma and Adrian and Vero brought them to see us!  We asked permission from the lead CICU (Cardiac Intensive Care Unit) physician and he let us leave for a few hours, leaving our cell numbers behind, of course! 

The beginning of the afternoon was quite an adventure as protestors at the local university had closed the main road that runs past the hospital. So, Victor and I took a taxi to meet up with the kids and then all 23 of us travelled in public transportation and then walked to a park nearby.  In the process, Grandpa almost got stuck in the automatic bus door.  He wedged free, but his camera bag got stuck!  The door closed and the bus was going to pull away, but thanks to Ruth’s shrilling screams and Victor’s whistle, the driver stopped, opened the door and all was well again!  (Those of you who know my Dad need to ask him about his public transportation experiences in Mexico!) 

What a person won’t do to have the whole family together!  It was SOOOOO worth it!

We spent the next two hours at a park with a pond, ducks, turtles and a playground eating Kentucky Fried Chicken!  Then we celebrated Fatima’s 13^th birthday with two cakes:  one that survived the family’s two hour hot drive to the hospital, then on our public transportation adventure and then on the walk to the park.  The second cake was a homemade cake made by Richard.  

Richard and Susana are our angels!  They are the couple that have opened their apartment to Victor and I only five minutes from the hospital!  Some nights Victor and I both sleep at the hospital, on the waiting room floor, while other nights we take turns coming to sleep at the apartment.  We have both showered here and breakfasted here.  Well, today our angels, Richard and Susana, surprised us by joining us at our picnic with a homemade cake!

Do you know how God sent these angels to us?  Richard is the brother of a friend of my great-aunt Lois who lives in Central Ohio!  Great-aunt Lois told her friend about her family who said: “I have a brother who lives in Mexico!”  Turns out that that brother, Richard, “just happens” to live five minutes from Danny’s hospital!  The lengths God doesn’t go to to shower His love and care upon His children!

After the picnic and birthday celebration, we took the kids to the hospital so that they could at least see it from the outside and the main waiting room and thereby better imagine where Victor and I are with Danny.  So hard to say goodbye, but so glad we could say goodbye because that meant that we were able to spend time together!

Thank you, Jesus, for today!

At the park! 

En el parque

Carolina, Ana and David playing!

Carolina, Ana y David jugando

Fatima taking the traditional "bite" of her 13th birthday cake! 

¡Fatima tomando la mordida de su pastel al celebrar sus 13 años!

The family, minus Danny and plus Adrian and Vero, on the hospital steps!

La familia, menos Danny y más Adrian y Vero, en las escaleras principales del Instituto Nacional de Pediatría.

¡Tuvimos un día increíble ya que pudimos ver a todos nuestros hijos en un solo día!

¡Empezaré con Danny! Cancelaron nuestra visita a mediodía ya que hubo otros niños que requerían toda la atención de los doctores y enfermeras.  Pero, solo 10 minutos después de haber pasado cuatro horas increíbles con nuestros otros hijos, nos llamaron a una visita de 15 minutos con Daniel.  ¡Victor fue muy generoso en darme a mi todos los 15 minutos con Danny! 

Les doy el reporte como me lo da el doctor:

Corazón: ¡Su corazón está funcionando bien!  Solo tiene dos , en vez de tres, medicamentos para mantener su presión como debe de estar y para ayudar a sus vasos sanguineos regresar a su tamaño normal después de haber estado conectado a la bomba tanto tiempo durante cirugía el lunes.

Pulmones: Danny sigue con el ventilador puesto.  Intentaron quitarlo ayer, pero Danny solamente toleró un par de horas respirando solo cuando sus vías aéreas se hincharon y tuvieron que tomar la decisión de volver a poner el ventilador.  Eso quiere decir que ya está un poco más sedado de nuevo.

Riñones: Sigue con un medicamento para ayudar el funcionamiento de sus riñones ya que había dejado de orinar, pero la medicina está funcionando y está orinando bien.

Dieta: Hoy en la noche esperan empezar a pasarle formula deslactosada por un tubo directo a su estómago para que pueda ir acercándose a comer de nuevo.

En general: Tiene solo 11 medicamentos, en vez de 15 o 16 como al principio.  Reducir los medicamentos es un gran avance.  Uno de sus catéteres que mide las presiones de su corazón se cristalizó con medicina, así que hoy lo durmieron con anastesia general para poner un nuevo cateter en su ingle.

Cuando lo vi esta tarde estaba más tranquilo que ayer.  Cuando Danny no estaba sedado y no tenía el ventilador estaba muy agitado e intentaba quitar sus cables y mangueras.  Pero, hoy, aunque está sedado no es tanto, así que abre sus ojos, me reconoce, mueve la cabeza sí y no cuando le hago preguntas.  Él tiene sed e intenta pedir agua, pero no tiene voz debido al ventilador…¡solo le leo los labios!  Eso es difícil de vivir….él sabe que está hablando pero que no se escucha su voz…I puedo entender sus labios pero no puedo darle lo que pide.  ¡Los dos nos frustramos y nos ponemos tristes!  Pero, como mi mama diría:  “Eso también pasará.”  Como nuestra hija Diana me recordó en el Facebook hoy, solo Dios es eterno…¡esta situación no lo es!

La petición más grande por ahora es que puedan quitarle el ventilador este fin de semana.  Es muy importante que él empieza a respirar por si solo para ayudar a su corazón sanarse.

En cuanto a los otros 17 de nuestros hijos…¡los vimos hoy también!  Grandpa y Grandma (mis papás) y Adrian y Vero los trajeron para vernos.  Le pedimos permiso al doctor de terapia intensiva de cardio para que pudieramos pasar unas horas con ellos, dejando nuestros números celulares, por supuesto.

El principio de la tarde fue toda una aventura ya que hubo una protesta que cerró Insurgentes Sur enfrente del hospital y la camioneta no pudo llegar.  Así que, Victor y yo fuimos en taxi para encontrar a los niños y luego los 23 de nosotros viajamos en el metrobús y luego caminamos a un parque.  En el proceso, Grandpa casi se quedó atorado en la puerta del metrobús, pero su bolsa de su camará sí quedó atascado.  La puerta se cerró y el autobús empezó a arrancarse, pero, gracias a los gritos de Ruth y el chiflido de Victor, el chofer se detuvo, abrió la puerta y soltó la bolsa de mi papá.  Ya van varias aventuras que mi papá tiene en transporte público en México.

¡Lo que uno no hace para que la familia pueda estar juntos!  ¡Valió la pena!

¡Pasamos unas dos horas en el parque con un lagito, patos, tortugas y una área de juegos, comiendo pollo Kentucky!  Luego celebramos los 13 años de Fatima con dos pasteles:   uno que sobrevivió el viaje de dos horas de la familia, luego nuestra aventura en el transporte público y luego la caminata al parque.  El otro pastel fue hecha a mano por el Hmo. Ricardo.   ¡Ricardo y Susana son nuestros ángeles!  Ellos son una pareja que han abierto su departamento a nosotros mientras Daniel está en el hospital.  Viven solo 5 minutos del hospital.  Algunas noches Victor y yo dormimos en el piso de la sala de espera del hospital, mientras que otras noches nos turnamos a dormir en el departamento; nos bañamos aquí, usamos el internet, et cétera.  Bueno, ¡hoy nuestros ángeles nos sorprendieron al acompañarnos a nuestro picnic con un pastel hecho en casa para Fatima!

¿Saben cómo fue que Dios nos mandó estos ángeles?  ¡Ricardo es hermano de una amiga de mi bis tía Lois en los Estados Unidos!  Mi bis tía le contó a su amiga de nuestra familia quien comentó:  “Tengo un hermano que vive en México.”  Al final de cuentas, ese hermano, “por casualidad”, ¡vive cinco minutos del hospital de Danny!  ¡Lo que Dios no hace para demostrar su amor y cuidado hacia sus hijos!

Después del picnic y de celebrar los cumpleaños, llevamos a los niños a conocer el hospital para que mínimo puedan imaginar el lugar donde estamos.  Fue tan difícil decir adiós, pero gracias a Dios que pudimos decir adiós porque eso quiere decir que pudimos estar juntos.

¡Gracias, Jesús, por ese día!