We had a consultation with a critical care neurosurgeon as well as the ICU intensivist and team. Everyone remains confused and concerned by Ronda’s state. During her brain surgery, they were unable to ascertain a location or reason for the bleeding. They were unable to find any evidence of an aneurysm or seizure that may have caused it. There was no fall or trauma. She continues to have blood around her brain but today’s imaging shows the midline shift has been reduced from 1.5cm before surgery to 0.5cm today. This is attributed to the craniectomy giving her brain some room.
Ronda has gradually been responding to commands. She can squeeze her right hand and wiggle her toes. She is able to move her left hand but most of her movement has been on the right side. She sometimes opens her eyes when asked. The ICU nurse comes every hour to try to get her to respond. During one of these visits, she yelled at Ronda to open her eyes. Ronda just flipped her wrist to wave her off. I think she was saying “Quit bugging me, lady!” Ronda has also been able to nod her head yes and no in response to questions. No - she’s not in pain Yes - her leg itches. At one point she wanted her socks off and the sun was shining on her feet. Mike asked if we removed her socks because she wanted a suntan on her toes and she nodded “yes.” She recognizes voices and responds to them. She is most responsive to Mike and least responsive to the nurses when they shout at her.
She has a ventilator in place as well as a feeding tube, a central line, and an arterial line. She also has some drains in place from her chest and brain surgery. We have been very impressed with the ICU team here at Mckay Dee. They round with a big team every morning and they ask that the family be a part of the discussion regarding her care. They are thorough, thoughtful, and genuinely interested in taking good care of our mama- and us. They offer to bring us chocolate pudding (one of the few dietary offerings on the ICU floor) and tell us to go home when we get tired. One nurse said to me “It’s my turn to worry about mom for the night - you go home and I’ll call you if I need to tell you something.”
The road ahead is long but we have some hope that she’s trying to communicate. We are comforted by her brilliant team of involved caregivers as well as the many prayers and messages of hope and encouragement we continue to receive from our friends and family. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Mike or any of the kids with questions or messages. We love hearing from you, it helps the burden feel a little lighter.
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