Annie's Apple Daddy

You all are so sweet. Thanks for all of the birthday wishes. To comment briefly on the big day... here are my thoughts. 30 is a big one. I certainly wasn't looking forward to it, but I guess I was saved from a day of depression. This summer has been so crazy, and since I've been home, even crazier, that I didn't have time to dwell on the fact. Also, when I think of what I want out of life- a nice home, a wonderful husband, a child of my own, friends and family surrounding me, a good job, my health, I have it all. And I'm ONLY 30. I'd say that's pretty darn good.

So thanks for all of the kind words.I'm so sorry that I haven't posted in so long. As I said, it's CRAZY here. Between work and Annie and the occasional social event, I'm exhausted. But your birthday wishes inspired me. I can't believe that you're all still checking in... you're awesome!

When I last left you, Jerid was scheduled for a bronch. All went well with it. They found no major problems and no signs of rejection. They did find a fungus, so they put him on another antibiotic. I left the day after that, and Jerid's mom and aunt Linda went to stay. I almost didn't come home because Jerid was feeling so bad. He was still very short of breath and in a lot of pain. He couldn't even lie down. When he did, he felt like he couldn't breathe at all. They had him scheduled to do a "sample" where they draw fluid out through his back. However, Jerid convinced me that he was fine and would be able to manage.

He continued to get stronger while his mom was there. His appetite has finally come back in full force- which is good because he has lost over 25 pounds since June 30th. (He may have finally discovered the secret to weight loss- have a transplant.) And though he was still doing good in rehab and PT, and tests were coming back good, he still had a lot of wheezing and shortness of breath. And still sitting up to sleep. If he layed for even a few minutes he couldn't breathe.

So now I'll skip over all of the tests and x-rays and meetings with doctors and frustrations of the past 2 weeks and get to the prognosis. Here's what the problem is: One side of his diaphragm is paralyzed. This is caused by either damaged or severed nerves. It may or may not heal on its own. (We don't know what they'll do if it doesn't.) The unaffected side should be able to work to expand both lungs, but it is not. That's because there is a lining around the lungs that is attached to the diaphragm wall. There is fluid in between the lungs and this lining. Again, we're hoping this will fix itself once the fluid is gone.

Meanwhile, as the Dr. suspected, the connector tubes to the lungs were too narrow. During a bronchoscopy on Thursday, Dr. H. widened these. Though Jerid didn't feel much of a difference that day, he slept for the first time since being home in bed. Woohooo! It made him very happy.

So that's where we are. Even though it feels as if these "bumps in the road" are never-ending, Jerid is still steadily improving each day. We're still hoping for a homecoming sometime in mid-October... and yes, there will be on hell of a party.

As always, thank you for your thoughts and prayers (and dancing and chanting). We couldn't do this without all of your love and support.

P.S. If you have given Jerid, Annie or I gifts in the last several months, know how much we appreciate them. I haven't even had time to even think about writing thank you notes, but will get to it eventually. For now, you'll have to give me a free pass.