Mom and Dad went to Seattle today for Mom's scan and follow up appointment.
She started feeling nauseous again last night and was back to throwing up as well. It was an uncomfortable trip up on the bumpy roads but they got up there and Mom had her scan first followed by seeing Dr. Mulligan.
He removed her sutures and put the little steri strips in their place.
She was really feeling sick and he got her a anti nausea med that dissolves under the tongue. He wrote her some new prescriptions for anti nausea patches and disolvable meds as well.
He told them that the scans did not show new growth and the lung margins appear clear. He did tell then that there could be microscopic cancer cells unseen to the naked eye, but today is not the day to worry about that. Today we celebrate that everything looked good and she is healing well. She will see Dr. Mulligan again in a month and her Oncologist Dr. Rodler in 2 months.
The ride home was tough again, but I am sure she went home and took a good long nap.
I am so glad the stitches are out now. Please continue to pray for the nausea to come under control and keep the pain down as well.
We love and appreciate your prayers. Please feel free to post, call or write. If Mom can't talk she will not answer the phone or Dad will just let you know that she is not able to at the time. She may talk for just a few minutes and then have to rest, but just know she appreciates you so very much.
Blessings,
Kimberly and family
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Update on Mom Sunday November 22, 2009
Thank you so much for the prayers for Mom.
She seems to be doing better as they are getting a good schedule with her meds and she is getting more relief from the pain.
She is sleeping fairly well and her pain in her back is not as bad as it was.
She told me this morning that she has been enjoying some of the new pajamas and robes she has received. (Thank you Linda Day and anyone else I may have over looked)
She has had ample opportunity to wear them. :) (She never let her kids stay in jammies all day!)
She and Dad drive to Seattle tomorrow for her follow up at UWMC. She has a scan then an appointment with Dr. Mulligan her lung surgeon. Not sure, but we are hoping the stitches come out then as well.
We still wait to find out when or even IF she needs to see Dr.Rodler, her oncologist. Please pray for her comfort tomorrow as the drive home from Seattle after surgery was super uncomfortable. Hopefully two weeks later and with the right combination of pain killers on board she won't feel every pothole in the road.
Thank you all for your words of love and encouragement here.
We appreciate you more than you know.
Blessings,
Kimberly & family
She seems to be doing better as they are getting a good schedule with her meds and she is getting more relief from the pain.
She is sleeping fairly well and her pain in her back is not as bad as it was.
She told me this morning that she has been enjoying some of the new pajamas and robes she has received. (Thank you Linda Day and anyone else I may have over looked)
She has had ample opportunity to wear them. :) (She never let her kids stay in jammies all day!)
She and Dad drive to Seattle tomorrow for her follow up at UWMC. She has a scan then an appointment with Dr. Mulligan her lung surgeon. Not sure, but we are hoping the stitches come out then as well.
We still wait to find out when or even IF she needs to see Dr.Rodler, her oncologist. Please pray for her comfort tomorrow as the drive home from Seattle after surgery was super uncomfortable. Hopefully two weeks later and with the right combination of pain killers on board she won't feel every pothole in the road.
Thank you all for your words of love and encouragement here.
We appreciate you more than you know.
Blessings,
Kimberly & family
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Tuesday 11/17/09
Just a quick update on Mom.
Please continue to pray for Mom as the nausea continues,the pain meds and anti nausea meds sedate her and she continues the dance of trying to balance them all
without the side effects causing more problems.
Thank you to Wanda Barlow (PCLI) for running up to check Mom's oxygen saturation levels today on a moments notice. We appreciate that more than you know Wanda. We hesitate to take her to the Dr.'s office or hospital with so many germs out there.
It was a blessing to have the "house call". Her levels were between 96% - 98% so all was fine. We were concerned because she could not wake up 100% today and was overly groggy most of the day until late afternoon. We believe now it was the combination of anti nausea patch, anti nausea pills and pain medication. She hyper metabolises (is that a word???) medication so she is a hard one to regulate on anything.
It will still be a while before she can have guests. She just feels crummy and so very fatigued. Thank you for understanding.
I don't want to post her address on the Internet, but if you don't have it and would like to send her a card or note, please email me (here) or send them via my address:
Kimberly Gibson
P.O. Box 269
Kapowsin, WA 98344
Thank you again for faithfully praying for Mom.
Blessings,
Kimberly and family
Please continue to pray for Mom as the nausea continues,the pain meds and anti nausea meds sedate her and she continues the dance of trying to balance them all
without the side effects causing more problems.
Thank you to Wanda Barlow (PCLI) for running up to check Mom's oxygen saturation levels today on a moments notice. We appreciate that more than you know Wanda. We hesitate to take her to the Dr.'s office or hospital with so many germs out there.
It was a blessing to have the "house call". Her levels were between 96% - 98% so all was fine. We were concerned because she could not wake up 100% today and was overly groggy most of the day until late afternoon. We believe now it was the combination of anti nausea patch, anti nausea pills and pain medication. She hyper metabolises (is that a word???) medication so she is a hard one to regulate on anything.
It will still be a while before she can have guests. She just feels crummy and so very fatigued. Thank you for understanding.
I don't want to post her address on the Internet, but if you don't have it and would like to send her a card or note, please email me (here) or send them via my address:
Kimberly Gibson
P.O. Box 269
Kapowsin, WA 98344
Thank you again for faithfully praying for Mom.
Blessings,
Kimberly and family
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Sunday November 15 2009
Just a quick update asking you to pray for Mom.
The pain meds are causing a lot of nausea and Mom is throwing up a lot and has dry heaves as well. You can imagine this causes so much pain from the 8-9 " incision from her back to her side. Add to that a sore and tender lung and coughing that follows and it is really miserable. The Dr. ordered her another antinausea patch that can be worn for three days, but asked her to stop the oxycodone and the ibuprofen for now and only use tylenol. Please pray it is sufficient for the pain. She is already sore from the vomiting and now to go off the heavy pain meds makes me a bit concerned for her pain level. It is a frustrating dance. Please pray for Dad as well. He is doing an amazing job caring for Mom, but is worried for her as well. We all feel helpless to make it any better. Prayer changes things. Please pray for relief from pain, nausea, soreness and an incredibly sore back. Please pray for a decent night's sleep for them all.
We appreciate you all and rely on you to lift her up in prayer. We are so thankful for you.
With love and appreciation,
Kimberly and family
The pain meds are causing a lot of nausea and Mom is throwing up a lot and has dry heaves as well. You can imagine this causes so much pain from the 8-9 " incision from her back to her side. Add to that a sore and tender lung and coughing that follows and it is really miserable. The Dr. ordered her another antinausea patch that can be worn for three days, but asked her to stop the oxycodone and the ibuprofen for now and only use tylenol. Please pray it is sufficient for the pain. She is already sore from the vomiting and now to go off the heavy pain meds makes me a bit concerned for her pain level. It is a frustrating dance. Please pray for Dad as well. He is doing an amazing job caring for Mom, but is worried for her as well. We all feel helpless to make it any better. Prayer changes things. Please pray for relief from pain, nausea, soreness and an incredibly sore back. Please pray for a decent night's sleep for them all.
We appreciate you all and rely on you to lift her up in prayer. We are so thankful for you.
With love and appreciation,
Kimberly and family
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Recovering at Home
It is so good to be home again. With no one coming into the room to take vitals, Mama was able to get some better sleep last night. Her pain is under control as well as the nausea. Her incision site on her back is very sore, so she is continually trying to get comfortable. Her medication makes her very sleepy, but we are so thankful for her relief from the pain. Mama is still very weak. It is going to take some time to regain her strength again. She also continues to do breathing exercises to strengthen her lungs.
Mama's longtime friend Sandy Macomber is staying with Mama and Daddy to help with Mama's home care and give Daddy rest. She was also a huge help during Mama's first bout with cancer. Sandy, thank you so much. We love you dearly.
Mama enjoyed reading her cards and looking at her beautiful flowers today. She is feeling very loved. I believe this is the most smiles I have seen from her since surgery.
Thank you for your continued prayers and words of encouragement. We will keep you updated.
With love,
Carmen and family
Mama's longtime friend Sandy Macomber is staying with Mama and Daddy to help with Mama's home care and give Daddy rest. She was also a huge help during Mama's first bout with cancer. Sandy, thank you so much. We love you dearly.
Mama enjoyed reading her cards and looking at her beautiful flowers today. She is feeling very loved. I believe this is the most smiles I have seen from her since surgery.
Thank you for your continued prayers and words of encouragement. We will keep you updated.
With love,
Carmen and family
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Wednesday Nov. 11, 2009 update
They're home!!!
It was a very long day, but sweet in the end. Mom,Dad and Carmen are finally home.
Dad said it was a hard ride as Mom could feel every little bump because she is so sore. When they got home her pain was kicking up a notch but they were able to get some additional meds on board and get it under control. The anti nausea patch seems to be doing the trick for her so far and keeps the nausea at a minimum.
Please continue to pray that she will be able to rest,get comfortable and sleep at home.
She is so exhausted. All her energy is being spent to get her well and regain some strength after this major surgery. So, if you call, she will most likely not have it in her to visit much for a while. She gets tired very easily.
We are also concerned with flu season and the fact that Mom did not get a flu shot before all of this started. It might be a good idea to not try to come and visit for the first two weeks or so. This is not her talking, and she may even disagree, but the front line is worried about her so we are hoping you will join us in protecting her. It will be 6-8 weeks before she will be bouncing back a bit and hopefully she will be feeling better soon and able to let us know what she wants or needs. For now, we are trying to do the best we can to figure out how best to care for her.
Her incision is much bigger than we had thought it would be and getting up and down and walking is no day in the park, let alone the internal healing from removing the lower lobe of the lung. We will post often and keep you all updated as to her progress and will give you a green light when she is ready for visitors.
I'm sure it doesn't need to be said, but when it is time for visitors please make sure you are completely healthy and that no one in your family is sick or runnning a fever. This is a crazy flu season already. The worst scenerio that I see right now is flu that goes into pneumonia. That could be devastating to her now.
As always, I want to end by thanking you all for the cards, emails, blog entries, texts and prayer for Mom and Dad. They definately have the best friends and family in the world. You guys have no idea what the kindnes and love shown to them means. You encourage her to fight and to keep pushing. You reenergize her, delight her and bless her and Dad both. By that, we her children and grandchildren, are blessed as well.
May God return those blessings to you seven fold. (because 7 is Mom's favorite number ) :)
With love,
Kimberly and family
It was a very long day, but sweet in the end. Mom,Dad and Carmen are finally home.
Dad said it was a hard ride as Mom could feel every little bump because she is so sore. When they got home her pain was kicking up a notch but they were able to get some additional meds on board and get it under control. The anti nausea patch seems to be doing the trick for her so far and keeps the nausea at a minimum.
Please continue to pray that she will be able to rest,get comfortable and sleep at home.
She is so exhausted. All her energy is being spent to get her well and regain some strength after this major surgery. So, if you call, she will most likely not have it in her to visit much for a while. She gets tired very easily.
We are also concerned with flu season and the fact that Mom did not get a flu shot before all of this started. It might be a good idea to not try to come and visit for the first two weeks or so. This is not her talking, and she may even disagree, but the front line is worried about her so we are hoping you will join us in protecting her. It will be 6-8 weeks before she will be bouncing back a bit and hopefully she will be feeling better soon and able to let us know what she wants or needs. For now, we are trying to do the best we can to figure out how best to care for her.
Her incision is much bigger than we had thought it would be and getting up and down and walking is no day in the park, let alone the internal healing from removing the lower lobe of the lung. We will post often and keep you all updated as to her progress and will give you a green light when she is ready for visitors.
I'm sure it doesn't need to be said, but when it is time for visitors please make sure you are completely healthy and that no one in your family is sick or runnning a fever. This is a crazy flu season already. The worst scenerio that I see right now is flu that goes into pneumonia. That could be devastating to her now.
As always, I want to end by thanking you all for the cards, emails, blog entries, texts and prayer for Mom and Dad. They definately have the best friends and family in the world. You guys have no idea what the kindnes and love shown to them means. You encourage her to fight and to keep pushing. You reenergize her, delight her and bless her and Dad both. By that, we her children and grandchildren, are blessed as well.
May God return those blessings to you seven fold. (because 7 is Mom's favorite number ) :)
With love,
Kimberly and family
Going Home!
Prayers have been answered!!! Thank you Lord Jesus!!! Pain is under control, nausea is at a minimum, oxygen counts are exceeding the number needed to get out of here. Mama is extremely tired but is doing so much better. Her walks have had to be considerably shortened over the last several days. The short walks feel good to be up and out of bed, but usually wipes her out and sends her right back to bed to regain her strength. They will be doing one last chest x-ray before sending her home just to confirm all is still well. The past x-rays have been fine so they do not anticipate any problems.
We are looking forward to getting her home. Hopefully there she will be able to get some better rest. Besides, there is nothing like going home. :) Thank you again for your prayers. Kim and I will do our best to keep you updated with her progress at home.
All Praise be to God. He is our Great Physician, protector and comforter.
With love,
Carmen and family
We are looking forward to getting her home. Hopefully there she will be able to get some better rest. Besides, there is nothing like going home. :) Thank you again for your prayers. Kim and I will do our best to keep you updated with her progress at home.
All Praise be to God. He is our Great Physician, protector and comforter.
With love,
Carmen and family
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