Saturday
09Aug2008
Jake is Home!
Saturday, August 9, 2008 at 09:34PM
Jake is home! He’s doing remarkably well.
It’s been a long haul, but it has also been another incredible experience of God’s mercy and grace. Not only has the pacemaker/defibrillator corrected his life threatening arrhythmias, but all the various tests have served to give us a very accurate indication of the overall health of Jake’s heart and the condition of his repair. The doctors at Children’s are delighted with the repair he had as a baby. Other than that insignificant leak, it is very, very good condition. His right ventricle is at this time “low normal” which is better than we even dared hope! All that serves to quiet some of our fears for his immediate future and has given him hope for a more normal life. The specter of a heart transplant is, once again, waaaay out there in the future.
We’re glad to be home and ready to get back to normal! Jake will have to keep his arm in a sling 24/7 for 1 month and then continue to wear it when he sleeps for another two weeks. This is to give the leads a chance to affix themselves into the heart lining. Once they are stabilized, he can return to normal use of his arm. He’ll be off work a minimum of 4 weeks and up to 6 weeks. If he’s feeling ready and gets the go ahead from the docs, he might be able to go back in a reduced capacity (no lifting, pushing/pulling) but it would have to be just the right circumstances for that to work out.
We’re looking forward to getting some REAL sleep with no beeps and nightly nurse visits to check vitals. It was a long week, but we are grateful for every moment there.
Thanks again, for your prayers and your concern expressed in cards and phone calls and emails. We’ve treasured each one.
It’s been a long haul, but it has also been another incredible experience of God’s mercy and grace. Not only has the pacemaker/defibrillator corrected his life threatening arrhythmias, but all the various tests have served to give us a very accurate indication of the overall health of Jake’s heart and the condition of his repair. The doctors at Children’s are delighted with the repair he had as a baby. Other than that insignificant leak, it is very, very good condition. His right ventricle is at this time “low normal” which is better than we even dared hope! All that serves to quiet some of our fears for his immediate future and has given him hope for a more normal life. The specter of a heart transplant is, once again, waaaay out there in the future.
We’re glad to be home and ready to get back to normal! Jake will have to keep his arm in a sling 24/7 for 1 month and then continue to wear it when he sleeps for another two weeks. This is to give the leads a chance to affix themselves into the heart lining. Once they are stabilized, he can return to normal use of his arm. He’ll be off work a minimum of 4 weeks and up to 6 weeks. If he’s feeling ready and gets the go ahead from the docs, he might be able to go back in a reduced capacity (no lifting, pushing/pulling) but it would have to be just the right circumstances for that to work out.
We’re looking forward to getting some REAL sleep with no beeps and nightly nurse visits to check vitals. It was a long week, but we are grateful for every moment there.
Thanks again, for your prayers and your concern expressed in cards and phone calls and emails. We’ve treasured each one.
Reader Comments (7)
That's wonderful! Thanks for the update and for offering me the opportunity to pray for you guys. Praise the Lord!
That is sooooooooo good! I hope you celebrate this great news joyfully!
Hi Kim,
good to hear that Jack is home.
Thanks for the C on ABC -- I edited the date to drop it in the right week and I also added a link back to your blog here, since the ABC blog itself is now "no comment"
It’s been a long haul, but it has also been another incredible experience of God’s mercy and grace. Not only has the pacemaker/defibrillator corrected his life threatening arrhythmias, but all the various tests have served to give us a very accurate indication of the overall health of Jake’s heart and the condition of his repair. The doctors at Children’s are delighted with the repair he had as a baby. Other than that insignificant leak, it is very, very good condition.
Praise God from Whom all blessings flow! The relief from worry must be immense! And the future looks bright- how marvelous!
So glad to hear all this good news and happy you are home so that you all can get some much needed and uninterrupted rest. Blessings on all of you.
I am so thrilled to hear this news! God bless you all as you get some much needed rest...