The last day

There was some confusion today about rather or not Dad would be released tomorrow. Dr. Duncan came in after therapy and told Dad that he wanted his IVC filter taken out before he goes home and that he would need to be monitored for 24 hours after removal. The filter was placed in Idaho Falls as a precautionary measure to prevent the traveling of any blood clots to a vital organ. When it was initially placed we had no idea just how badly it would be needed in Dad's case. Both of my parents were very disappointed that they would not be going home tomorrow as we have been looking forward to this day for a very long time now. Around five o'clock the doctor returned and said that the vascular team had reviewed Dad's most recent ultrasound and did not think it would be safe to remove the filter at this point. He will be following up in 2-3 months with vascular surgery to check the status of his remaining clots. We are praying that his body begins to dissolve those clots as an IVC filter can only be removed within the first six months and keeping it in your body comes with a host of problems of its own. That being said, we certainly do not want to remove it before it is safe to do so and Dad feels more comfortable returning home with it in place.

The short of it... Dad is returning home tomorrow. Our journey as an inpatient hemorrhagic stroke survivor has come to an end. It's surreal to be honest. We have been looking forward to and praying for this day for such a long time and it is suddenly upon us. He is so ready to return home but told me this morning that he is very nervous about people's expectations for him. I think that going back to his life the way he is right now is scary and he is showing some apprehension about his ability to perform his old routine. He is so lucky to have my Mom. Today she learned how to clean and flush his feeding tube. He is no longer using it for nutrients but it needs to be in place for six weeks for healing purposes. Hopefully it will come out within the next few weeks. He is looking forward to going to the eye doctor and while we constantly remind him that he does not necessarily have a problem with his eyes, but the connection between his brain and his eyes, he is hoping they can help in some way. We are just looking forward to losing the press 'n seal glasses.

I am feeling so many emotions about saying goodbye tomorrow. I am over the moon ecstatic about him getting to go home. But I will miss he and my mom so much it makes my heart physically ache. Not seeing his progress and helping where I can will be difficult, but I know my siblings in Idaho will pick up where we have left off.

These last six weeks have been filled with more emotions than I have ever felt in my life. I cannot explain the depths of despair we have reached nor the level of elation. We have witnessed a miracle. I am grateful for the gospel and for the prayers that got us through. I am grateful for the blessings my Dad received from his father and brothers and I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father that spared my Dad. I am in awe at my Mom who displayed more faith than anyone throughout this ordeal and always said 'when he wakes up' even in his bleakest hour. She is a true example of strength and love through trials and I hope I can be half as strong as her someday. I have said it before and will surely say it again but thank YOU. Thanks for the prayers, the calls, the texts, the gifts, the visits, the fasting and the thoughts. They have been received with so much gratitude. People are good and we have felt so much love and support. Lastly, thanks for supporting this blog and the kind words you have shared. Expressing true emotions to people without faces has been difficult for my sisters and I but we have felt such appreciation and love in return. For those of you in Idaho anticipating my Dad's return... Take care of him for me. Please remind him to take it slow and encourage him in his progress. He is so lucky and blessed to have such amazing people in his life. He will recover and he will prevail. After all, we did say from the beginning that this was just a 'stroke of bad luck'.