Kayla Quote: "While life may not be the party we hoped for, while we're here we might as well dance..." - Andy Rooney - found written in one of Kayla's small notebooks
Short Synopsis: This is beginning to get boring...the long slow treck to gaining strength. Kayla spent 8 hours with her trach collar before going back on the ventilator. Most of her breathing is done on her own with just a small amount of assistance. Still, her lungs get tired and need help. She has a lot of junk in her throat that is hard to cough up so she needs to be suctioned. The nurse pulls out flem with the suctioning tube that is attached to a central vac type system on the wall. She even gets big plugs in her throat and she has difficulty breathing. She has to press the call button to get help. It's very uncomfortable but not dangerous.
She continues to spend hours sitting in her chair. This also gets her lungs stronger - today she sat for 4 hours. It all continues to go in the right direction. After she does both of these things, she is exhausted and needs to take naps. The recovery process is hard work and she has to push herself a little bit more each time.
Moving her from the bed to her chair and then back again is the most difficult part. The tubes that go into her body shift a little and this causes a lot of pain. Now the pain medication is timed to come just before the move to help her.
Long Story: I spent most of the day at home. There is a lot to do and I like to spend time with Thomas, Mike and the cats! I arrived to the hospital at 5:30 p.m. and I was getting my pass to go upstairs, there is Arnold and his family leaving. Arnold comes right up to me,
"It's over. She's gone," and he grabs me in a bear hug. I tell him he is one of the strongest people I know. For days, our corner of joined families has been keeping a vigil over his wife as well. Arnold showed me the most beautiful picture of when he and his wife were young. He dated her for 3 years and then he was married for 43.
"You look like the Italian stallion, Arnold," I told him, "Like something out of a Rambo movie." His wife is petite with black hair and dark skin.
The daughter, Stacey is next after Arnold, to give me huge hugs. We broke apart and came back together at least three times. We could not stop. I remember about five days ago how they said her feet were blue but then they were happy that was solved. I remember how Arnold wrote out a temperature chart from the data base the day before she died. Her temp did not want to go below 103-104. She was on fire. He wanted her to be at peace, not to suffer. He would begin to cry and when he did, he would walk away. He did not want any of us to see. Men are not allowed to cry.
I go up the elevator and in our cozy corner, they tell me that someone was with her from 7 a.m. until her last breath at 5 p.m. Two teen grand-daughters were in there a lot. They kept going back in when Arnold could not.
I wonder if I will ever see these people again. I see them in my mind but honestly, when would I ever see them again?
At 8:05 p.m. David, Mordechai's younger brother by only a few years, bounces in happily. This one is a big playful puppy. He announces to the room jauntily that he has arrived.
First I show him Mordechai's chair. It is his now. Then I tell him about Arnold.
He gets sober, "When did that happen?"
"5 p.m."
"Oh, three hours before I arrive...."
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