Movin' on up

Paul was moved out of the "unit" today. yippee!!! I think it's funny how they call it "the unit" instead of the ICU. anyhoo, he's been upgraded to the PCU - Progressive Care Unit. It's a transition unit between the ICU and the floor; the nursing care is a little better than just out on the floor, but not one-on-one like in the ICU. He's also not on all the monitors in the room which is nice. He actually has a wireless monitor, with leads on his chest and a receiver in his gown pocket. It's pretty cool to us nerdy folk. They only come a couple times a day to get his vitals, so he doesn't have to wear the blood pressure cuff all the time and no oxygen. :)

The best part? Visiting hours! I no longer have to call in and ask permission to see my husband, and I can stay during the dinner hours and help him eat - although he doesn't need much help anymore. He's eaten really well today. We figured out that it's the Healthy Shot super-concentrated protein drink that's making him nauseous, so he's not drinking that anymore. He's eaten considerable meals all day today and kept it all down. They are still watching how many calories he puts in and won't let him drink anything with no calories (water, tea...). He's holding the line in the fight for no more feeding tube!

The ultrasound of his gall bladder last night showed nothing. It was all normal, so they didn't do the hydascan today. The ID doctor said his WBC is a little down today, so they'll keep monitoring it and if it doesn't continue to come down in a couple days, we'll decide whether or not to do the scan.

His urine output has doubled since yesterday. It's still small amounts, but it makes me happy. If it continues to double, we might not have dialysis for so long; maybe only a month or two, instead of three... The doctor actually gave us an estimate on hospital discharge - that's a first. He thinks Paul will be in here another week. I'm thinking he would give himself a little wiggle room in giving us an estimate, so I'm interpretting that as less than a week until jail break.

Paul did another excellent job with walking today. The PT ladies are really taking baby steps. His baby steps today consisted of accomplishing walking on a different surface (carpeted hallway vs. tiled room), turning while walking, and walking farther than yesterday. He did it all and passed with flying colors. He only had to take one break, but then was right back up and charged right on through the next break they offered and marched right back into his room. Tomorrow, I think we're going to try to walk the loop around the PCU.

Ben was able to come visit today. He hasn't seen Paul in 16 days because he hasn't been allowed in the ICU and we didn't want him seeing his daddy hooked up to beeping machines and with tubes all over his face. He was excited to see him when we talked about it downstairs, but then he got a little shy and apprehensive once he actually saw him. Maybe it was the fact that he was lying in bed and Ben has associated daddy with the voice in the phone, but I think it was the fact that Paul hasn't shaved in 16 days and looks a little scruffy. He warmed up eventually after we gave him a happy meal toy and some balloons to play with. It really helped Paul to see that smiling face. I think he feels even more motivated now to get home quick.

Paul would love to see you if you'd like to visit. He's in room 350, unless he's strolling the halls or if they've wheeled him away to do dialysis on the other side of the hospital (usually in the mornings). I think the visiting hours of the hospital end at 8:30pm, so no late night parties... If it's during the day, just give me a call and I'll let you know if he's in dialysis or not - no need to waste a trip up here only to wait up to 4 hours!