Justin's Spleen - 2/21/12 - Part Three

Justin wanted to know everything that had happened between his ER visit in Grove City and Wednesday morning.  He remembered most of it, but there were some foggy moments, especially when his BP and heart rate bottomed out.  He said the doctor had been in that morning and said that only 20 minutes separated him from waking up in that hospital room this morning or not having made it through the helicopter flight, much less surgery.  He said that the amount of blood he had lost and was continuing to lose would not have allowed his life to be sustained much longer.  I firmly believe that the Lord was in those 20 minutes for several reasons:
    1. The EMT standing right by the door who took instant control of getting Justin immediate treatment had no reason to be there.  He had already dropped off his patient and should have left already.
    2. The doctor in Grove City didn't wait in making a decision between trying to ahold of the surgeon on call to come in and do the surgery which could have taken a long time.
    3. The MedStat team made the decision to leave even though Justin's BP wasn't technically stable enough to fly.
    4.  Dr. Watson just happened to be standing in the ER when Justin came in without prior warning of his critical situation.  Dr. Watson also didn't hesitate to acknowledge the urgent need to get him straight to surgery without waiting to do more scans.
Each of these things would have definitely added 20 minutes, if not more, and without God's hand in all of this Justin would probably not be with us anymore.

The physical therapy lady came in to see Justin early Wednesday morning and made him move into a chair to sit.  She said the longer he laid in bed, the longer he'd be in the ICU and the hospital in general.  She wanted him up and moving.  Justin wasn't very happy and the pain was pretty bad.  He and his pain med button became the greatest of friends.  I finally got to see his lovely strip of 40 staples.  Not going to be the prettiest of scars, but will always be a sign of the Lord's faithfulness.  It'll also be a conversation starter at the beach : )

Around 2:25 on Wednesday, we were told that all they were waiting for was a bed to open up on a regular floor.  He was still pretty tired and even ice chips made him sick to his stomach, so he was content to just sit in bed.  He slept most of the day off and on until eventually we made it to a regular room on the 12th floor.  We were assured before we left the ICU that the staff on 12 was great, but we couldn't have been more pleased with their care over the next four days before Justin was discharged.

I went home Wednesday night so that I could get some things packed for myself, check on the boys, take a shower...  It was late when I got there so the boys were already sleeping when I got home.  When Tanner saw me Thursday morning, he said, "Wow, mom, I bet your personal hygiene is slipping."  I told him I had taken a shower last night and he asked, "What about Tuesday night?"  I told him I was in the ER with his dad and showering wasn't really an option.  Tanner just kind of grimaced at me.  Great welcome home, we missed you mom kind of reception ; )

On Thursday I headed back to Pittsburgh after getting the kids off to school.  Justin was upgraded from ice chips to flat ginger ale.  That meant shaking the can for fifteen minutes and then letting it sit for fifteen before risking opening it : )  The nurse told him she couldn't upgrade him to chicken broth until he stopped getting nauseaus from drinking the ginger ale.  He was determined to get past this step quickly but it just didn't happen.  I guess having your abdomen ripped open and all your guts moved around while they dig for your spleen doesn't make for things settling well right away.  They told Justin it would just take time for everything to calm down.

Back home, by this point my parents had decided to basically move into our house.  They thought it best to keep the boys in their routine.  Other than a few run-ins with the uncompromising supervisor at Lucas' pre-school who wouldn't let my dad pick him up because his name wasn't on the list (just my mom's is because I never imagined my dad would ever need to pick him up).  My dad enjoyed sleeping in the most comfortable bed in our house, even if he did have to share a room with JJ.  He also enjoyed only having a two-minute commute in the morning to work versus his regular 40 minutes.  I don't know what the boys and I would have done if my parents hadn't so willingly dropped what they were doing to make the boys comfortable.  My grandma was also a big help and she cooked dinner every day for them.  After dropping the boys off at school, my mom would head to Cochranton to work and then after work she would pick up the hot dinner at my grandma's and take it home to the boys and my dad.  It was a great system.  I was kind of jealous I wasn't getting grandma's dinners!

By Thursday evening, Justin had sweet-talked the nurse into a blue popscicle and he had taken a short walk up and down the hall.  By Friday morning, they were talking about taking away his pain pump and hopefully upgrading him to solid food.  Friday around lunchtime, they agreed that solid food was the next step and ordered him a tray.  They also took away his pain pump and other IV lines.  Definitely making great progress and moving closer to a discharge date.  We were told that Sunday was probably the earliest he would get home.

My mom and the boys came to visit Friday night and while they were a little hesitant, Justin was excited to see them.  They had been warned to be very calm and quiet and for once they listened.  I could tell they were glad to see him moving and able to walk.  I'm sure their imaginations had run away with what their dad would look like after having surgery.  JJ climbed up on the bed beside Justin and snuggled in.  After they left, four of Justin's fraternity brothers stopped by and after they left, Justin was worn out from all the excitement.

By Saturday, the doctor told us Justin was looking great but he wanted him for one more day to be sure everything was working properly.  This was the ultimate "you must poop before you leave" challenge.  And by Sunday afternoon at 2pm, we were cleared to go.

We left the hospital on Sunday, February 26.  Justin said he felt every bump along the way, so he enjoyed the fact that he was going home, just not the trip there.  We got him settled in at home and the couch became his new home.  The couch we have has recliners built in, which was good so that he could change the angle of how he was sitting without having to actually move much.  I'm almost thankful he was in a bit of pain.  I know that sounds terrible, but I also know how hard it would have been to keep him sitting and resting if he felt good.

We returned to see Dr. Watson on March 8 and he remove the 40 staples leaving Justin with this as his permanent reminder of this journey and how God is always at work in our lives:

We will never be able to thank the people that prayed for us, sent us kind words of encouragement, sent us gifts and cards, cooked food for us, etc.  God has given us a great family, friends, and church and we are greatful for them all.  We will never understand why Justin was spared that day, but we do know that Justin now has a very large scar that will start conversations through which we can tell others of God's grace and mercy.  And if all this was so that we could have that opportunity, then it was all worth it.