Recovery Day 6 - Update (4/24)

Allie and I arrived around 1pm today, and surprised Dad! He was sitting in his chair, and was delighted to see his kids. He seems very tired; he hasn't really slept for the past 4 days. But, today he slept for several 30-minute intervals--he is all smiles about that!

We also watched as he took a short (but painful) walk outside his room and back--another great step (pun intended) in his recovery.

For the past 6 days, he's had what is called an NG tube stationed through nose and directed into his stomach; this provides major drainage of fluids from his stomach (typical after gastro surgery). It is a very painful tube to withstand as it causes discomfort in the nose, throat and esophagus. At one point, Dad managed to pull this out himself (when he was under the influence of some painkillers!), which meant the doctor had to put it back in (this was several days ago).

But today, the Doctor pulled the NG tube for good! Dad immediately felt better, could speak louder and was given permission to have POPSICLES! He smiled ear-to-ear when this was mentioned and so he, Allie and I enjoyed a round of orange popsicles. This, and permission to sip water, should help him gain back his strength quickly.

Allie and I will be here tomorrow, and we'll meet with Scott's parents (our grandparents) who will arrive around 3pm. I'll have more updates then. All-in-all, this was a great day full of progress.