"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." - Psalm 23

Monday, August 2, 2010

August 2 Post - Outpatient Journey Continues

Long day at the hospital from 8am to 5pm. Blood test this morning revealed solid number for platelets and improved kidney functioning. Hemoglobin , magnesium, and LDH are still lagging. Austin's body is struggling to tolerate the ongoing plasmapheresis with a lot of fluid retention and generally feeling crappy.

Another point of discouragement is sudden onsets of extreme pain in his stomach which makes us fear that we still have a long way to go to heal the colonitis. Since he is now outpatient at Saint Joe we will need to redirect treatment for digestive issues back to our family doctor and Goshen Hospital. For Austin, it feels like being back at square one and it is very frustrating. The renal doctors at Saint Joe just keep saying that his body went through an extreme illness and it will just take time for everything to heal.

We feel the next two weeks will require much mental fortitude to fight through the treatment regimen when "feeling better" is still elusive. It seems the pheresis is doing it's job so our prayers now focus on the complete healing of Austin's digestive track.

1 comment:

  1. How frustrating...I can't even imagine...hang in there guys...we will continue to pray for fortitude for all of you to keep on going each day in addition to the healing process to continue for Austin...maybe you'll run into my mom or dad, Maurice Fred & Cecelia Yvonne, at Goshen Hospital where they both volunteer...I know they are praying for all of you, too!

    We appreciate the updates, Ritch & Char, and care deeply for your family...

    Cleveland Rosy & Craig

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