Loose ends

As the blog entries slow down, I am realizing that there are some details that were overlooked during the last couple of weeks.


 Here are some of the visitors that came to see Luke:

Josh, Lisa and Grant Catalano 

 

Larry & Mary Cruce (from Luke's work)

Morgan Torres-Unger with Alex

Steve & Cole Herrin

Fresh berries, cherries and apricots that the Catalano's picked and brought to the hospital

Luke's nurse taking out his central line just before we left last Friday

Luke untethered, unhooked and ready to go home last Friday

Week One

Progress continues.........
Today (Friday) concludes week 1 of Luke's return home. He is getting a bit stronger everyday and his incisions are looking better than expected.
He is getting lots of rest, but he is also getting up and walking a bunch, which is what the Dr's want him to do.

He has been able to get out of the house several times, including a family trip to the movies last Saturday (the day after he come home).

We have an appointment to return to the cardiologist next Wednesday, and we're not expecting any surprises.......just good news.

More Luke & Huckleberry time

Awesome goodie basket from Luke's fan club at Benelli

Some amazing fruit from our friends

The "Welcome Home" sign that greeted Luke upon his return

More warm greetings for Luke

It's a beautiful Saturday

After a relatively traffic-free, Friday night drive home from Stanford, Luke is back where the real healing can take place......home. He was released last night after his final CT scan and surprisingly, he didn't want to wait around the hospital any longer than necessary.
We stopped at In N Out Burger on the way home, but Luke says that his taste buds are still a long ways away from being back to normal.

A cheeseburger and a chocolate shake...as per doctor's orders.

We got home and he received a warm welcome from family, friends.....and of course Huckleberry.

Luke hanging out with his canine brother

Greg, Luke & Cole just hanging out

As Luke returns home to heal, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from our church leaders;
"The home is the basis of a righteous life, and no other instrumentality can take its place or fulfill its essential functions in carrying forward this God-given responsibility" 


I know that this blog has served it's purpose, both for family & friends as well as for Luke. But sadly there will be less to report on in the coming days/weeks ahead.
I still have a few additional posts that I will be uploading in the near future, some will cover additional medical/surgical information and others will cover some of the highlights that I have overlooked.

Thank you for your comments. Thank you for your love. Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your well wishes.  
We could not have done this without the support of everyone.

With sincere love and appreciation,

KAAL

Elvis has left the building

Well, it's finally over. After a long fought, courageous battle, Luke is on his way home. Now we begin phase 2 of the recovery process, but at least we will be home. 

We stopped off for an In N Out burger and we will be home soon!

Thank you for the continued prayers. 

KAAL

Friday update

So far, so good. 

In spite of the continued post surgical pain, Luke keeps fighting the good fight. He's been up walking this morning, he's gotten cleaned up a bit and he's trying to get a little rest whenever he can. 

There's been a little disconnect between departments relating to how long Luke has to wait until he gets his final CT scan today. This morning the Dr confirmed that his kidneys are healthy enough to have a second scan in less than the 24 hour window which is considered standard protocol, but the radiologists want to wait until 5pm. As you can imagine, he is very anxious to get out and get home, and this is the last step in helping us achieve that. I just returned from a trip to the radiology dept. downstairs, and let's just say that a little squeak sometimes gets a little grease. It looks like he's now been approved to have the scan done early and we hope that will take place within the hour. 

Hoping to go home soon!

KAAL

Stair climber

Just a little update to show you how well Luke is progressing today.

A warrior amongst Warriors

I have wanted to write this post for a while, but it was hard to do when our main concern was to get Luke's quickly changing medical information out on a timely basis. Now that things have slowed down a bit and he is progressing well, it seems like the right time to share this story.
On Thursday, May 16th, Luke and I were invited to attend an NBA playoff game between the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs. We had an incredible time, but it's too bad that it had to be the final Warriors game for the year.
It started with an email to Alicia Jay Smith (Manager of Basketball Operation for the Warriors), explaining Luke's love for basketball and his upcoming surgery and recovery. She responded back with her admiration for Luke's inspirational example, along with the invitation to be her guest at the game Thursday night.

Once we arrived at Oracle Arena, we were escorted down to the floor where we met Alicia in person.

Alicia surprised Luke with a Warriors basketball signed by Andrew Bogut (#12) and a Warriors hat signed by Harrison Barnes (#40). We were then given the opportunity to stay courtside when the players came out to warm up.

The view from our seats where the action was loud and clear!

A great end to a great night!

What you can't see is that Luke is standing on a higher step than Alicia is in this picture.

Thank you again to Alicia for giving Luke the night of his life. It was a well needed distraction to the stress of his heart surgery that was just a week away.

Thursday update

You know a patient feels a bit better, when they start to tell you what they want you to buy and bring back to the hospital room for dinner. Well, last night the request was Pizza Hut.....so we indulged. It worked out great because we had some help in eating it all, but in the end, Luke learned that his appetite, even for pizza, is not back to what it used to be. He filled up quickly and got too tired to eat more.

Wings, pizza & breadsticks. Just what the doctor ordered.

Andrew, Alex, Cole & Kirk w/Luke

When I left late last night, Luke was sleeping soundly and was even talking a bit in his sleep. When I returned this morning, I ran into him near the elevator, as he was being transported to Radiology for a chest X-ray. He said that he got some add'l IV pain meds early this morning, but he didn't get a very restful night's sleep. In turn, he has been very tired and sleepy today. He is off the IV, as well as the oxygen, so it's just the heart monitor now. They are discussing a Friday release, so we will kep our fingers crossed that he continues to improve.

Just hanging out, in between naps

A package arrived today containing a wonderful surprise. A half dozen chocolate covered strawberries were sent to us by The Wood family, as a Get Well/Happy Birthday treat. Thank you!! We are working hard to make these go away before anyone else shows up.

It looks like we will get our servings of fruit today

More updates to follow......

KAAL

Bye Bye-C-U

If you've ever seen the movie Groundhog Day, that is what our week has felt like at times. We were at Stanford for testing last Wednesday, then back for the surgery on Thursday, then in the ICU until Sunday night, then he was moved to D3 until Tuesday night, then back to ICU until today, and now we are back to the D3 unit again. That being said, it looks like he is in the home stretch and they are already talking about what needs to take place before he can get released. Luke was originally hoping to be get out during the weekend, but baring any complications or return visits to ICU, getting home by this weekend should be a cinch.
We learned from Luke's cardiologist today that he probably set a new record at Stanford in the bodily fluids category. Apparently, with the help of diuretics and strong determination on Luke's part to get better, yesterday Luke was able to "evacuate" 8 liters of fluid from his body; and he only took in 1 liter through his IV. That means there was a net loss of 7 liters, which equates to about 14 lbs!

When you think of it in terms of 2-liter soda bottles, it helps to put things in perspective.

Never a dull moment in the Brown family.

Thanks for reading!

KAAL

Gentlemen, start your engines!

With last weekend's Indy 500 fresh in everyone's mind, I thought I would share with you what a lap looked like from a real racer. Take notice of the lack of tubes, wires, O2 tanks, etc...
He took two laps around the ICU just now and he had already done one earlier this morning. Word on the street is that they are wanting to transfer him out of ICU today.

He's looking good, feeling good, he's eating and drinking much better and things are starting to "move" on the inside (which is a very good thing). They have even removed the O2 tube and he has good saturation without it.

With love,

KAAL

Pizza & Snowboarding

Well, if you think the pendulum swings fast on this blog, then you ought to try living through it here. It seems like one minute we are in the CT dept waiting to hear if our son has a blood clot in his lung, and the next minute I'm making notes of the kind of pizza/breadsticks/wings that he wants to have for dinner tonight.
Last night was the best yet. His numbers were very stable and he had a lot less trouble with his O2 saturation. He is not requiring a lot of heavy pain meds and his appetite keeps getting a bit better. He had several breathing treatments with the help of the Respiratory Therapist and he even took another walk around the ICU (he was moving quickly and was tough to keep up with).

Watch out Usain Bolt

I watched a movie with Luke until midnight and he was looking/feeling really good.
The "shocker" of the week came last night when he said "Dad, do you know what I want to do when I recover from this?........I want to go snowboarding!" That's pretty big coming from a young man who has had a lifetime of physical restrictions and limitations.
I guess we'll see you out on the slopes of the Sierras this winter!

On another note, Allison found this little figurine in the hospital gift shop, and with a borrowed Sharpie, Alex wrote our dog's name on it (Huck is short for Huckleberry). As you can imagine, Luke and Huckleberry have a close bond, and we know this week of separation is causing there to be sadness at both ends.

The real Huck

Gift shop Huck

Thank you for your continued support for Luke and of this blog. Luke appreciates everyone's love, prayers and kind words and is looking forward to getting home soon.

KAAL

Tuesday afternoon

I will have a more thorough entry later tonight, but I wanted to send an update that Luke is improving. 

He's breathing better, he's walked around the floor once, he's had some food and overall is doing well. 

More info/pics soon. 

KAAL

Not a good night

It's 230am Tuesday and Luke is back in ICU. His O2 levels struggled to be strong all night and things did not look right to the Drs and nurses. A little after midnight, a cardiologist did an echo of his heart which gave them a little cause for concern. A possible blood clot in the lung was discussed (pulmonary embolism), so they ordered a CT scan. We just got word from the Dr that the test came back negative for a clot, but it looks like he has pneumonia. They will treat him with antibiotics, and we hope to be out of ICU quickly this time.

What we are hoping to accomplish by writing this blog, is that those of you that can't be here with Luke during these tough times, can see his strength and his courage through the words and images we compile. He is nothing short of a superhero,  and in fact I think that many superhero's would look up to him.

Thank you for the continued prayers.

KAAL

Up, Up (but not) Away

He's making progress!!
Just a few minutes ago, Luke returned from his first official lap around the nurses desks. He did such an awesome job and we are so proud of him and of how well he is doing. He is fighting hard to do all that is asked of him, and at the same time he's hardly complaining about all the pain and discomfort (which I know he has).
He is a great example to all around him, and he's working hard to get home as soon as he can.

With love and appreciation.....

KAAL

I know they're very similar, but can you tell which one is Luke?

Happy Memorial Day

I'm sitting here with Luke as he recovers from heart surgery, and I can't help but think of the countless Americans who have paid the ultimate price for us to have the freedoms that we do. We are so blessed to live in this great country and we should take a few minutes today to remember those who died while serving it.

Well, today is Luke's first full day outside the ICU. As you know he had some challenges last night, but he was looking and feeling much better in the morning. Right now he looks good and his numbers are good, but he's still in a lot of pain and still needing a lot of rest. Luke has eaten a little food today (a few bites of Cheerios/muffin/banana), but he didn't tolerate things too well. He even asked for his phone again today and he spent a few minutes on it; so you know he isn't feeling well when he spends this much time away from technology.

Luke is now the recipient of two heart pillows; one from his co-worker Larry and the other from Stanford. They're designed to be held against your chest when you're moving around or when you cough. They are a very useful part of the recovery therapy.

The goal for Luke in the coming days will be to get up more, walk more and sit up more. These things are very hard to do after surgery, but they are so important for a patient's health.


KAAL

Sunday night

Just a quick update to let you know that Luke is out of ICU as of tonight. Unfortunately he's struggling right now with his oxygen saturation and pain, but I think we can turn that around soon. 

More info to come as I have it. 

KAAL

"The Ice (Cream) Man Cometh"

Well, anyone who thinks this kid is not a fighter, is obviously being proven wrong. Less than 72 hours after a very long, very complicated open heart surgery, here he is eating a popsicle as he sits in a chair next to his bed. It's not coming easily or without exhaustion, but he knows he needs to fight and endure, in order to be successful on the other side of this trial.

Cherry popsicle anyone?

Luke continues to be a great example to so many around him and I only wish that this wonderful hospital staff was able to spend some time around him when he wasn't at his lowest point.

After his popsicle he decided he wanted a little snack, so he requested some chicken noodle soup, a cheese/fruit plate and a bowl of cream of wheat. He won't be able to eat too much, but hopefully he can get some solid food in his belly.

While waiting for his snack he decided he wanted his hair washed, so we got one of these fancy, shampoo infused shower caps and got him all cleaned up (his hair anyway). After about an hour in the chair, he decided he'd had enough and we helped him back to bed. He's resting comfortably and he's cleared to be moved out of ICU, as soon as hey have space available for him.

Watch out Vidal Sassoon!

More to follow as it occurs.

With love and gratitude.

KAAL

Sunday update

Just after completing this morning's blog update, a gentleman walked past me in the hallway, whom I recognized from previous visits to the hospital. He was carrying his scriptures and I asked him if he was there to visit a patient. He acknowledged that he was, then he looked at his paperwork and he said he was going to visit Lucas Brown. He was bringing the sacrament to Luke (as he had done during previous hospital stays) and he offered for me to go back in to the ICU with him.....which I of course agreed to. Since ICU visiting hours don't officially start until 9am, and my 6am visits are intended to be brief, the nursing staff was not prepared to see me come in through the back door at 8am. Once they realized why we were there to see him, they agreed to let us go in and we had a very beautiful experience with Luke. After we were done, this wonderful volunteer left and I was then able to stay with Luke again as he began to wake up a bit.
The nurse & I then assisted Luke out of bed and into the bedside chair, and I helped him to eat a couple bites of

Breakfast of champions

scrambled eggs, along with some milk and OJ. He was still exhausted but managed to watch a little bit of TV along the way (this is the first time he has asked for it to be turned on). His throat continues to hurt from the breathing tube, he is still in a lot of pain and he even whispered to me this morning, "am I ever going to get out of here?" I assured him that he was progressing very well and that the doctors/nurses were really pleased with what they saw.
Around 10am, the doctors made their rounds and I was fortunate enough to be there to talk with them. They decided that the 2 drain tubes were ready to come out sometime today and they put in the order for him to be moved out of ICU (unfortunately they're still a bit short on non ICU beds right now). We are very hopeful that once he gets the tubes out and gets into a regular room, he will start to feel even better.

Enjoy this Holy Sabbath day and be sure to hug your family and spend time together.

With love and thanks.

KAAL

What a difference a few hours can make

Sunday morning

Saturday night I left Luke's room at midnight, and he was not doing as well as he'd been doing earlier in the day. His blood pressure was down, oxygen saturation was down, and a chest x-ray had shown some build up of fluid on the lungs. They put him on higher levels of oxygen given through a mask (instead of the normal cannula) and they gave him Lasix; which is a diuretic intended to help him evacuate fluids. When successful, this method will trigger the kidneys to absorb more fluids from the body; in this case the lungs. Good news.......it worked!
When I arrived at 6:30 this morning, his color looked better then ever, his heart rate was down from the 90's to the 70's (normally in the 60's to 70's for Luke), the Lasix had been working and he had been getting rid of a lot of fluids and his oxygen levels were back up to the mid/high 90's (and that's with a lower oxygen concentration and no mask). He's basically off all IV meds, they've turned off the pacemaker, taken out the catheter and taken out one of the IV lines from his neck. Clinically he is doing very well. It looks like he may get released from ICU to a step down unit today, but waiting for an open bed may be part of the delay.

Who wouldn't be excited for this?

Luke has been really thirsty through all of this can't seem to get enough water or ice chips. He was even approved to start a clear liquid diet yesterday, but he hasn't had much of an appetite for clear hospital food.


Thank you for your continued love, support and prayers!

KAAL

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

Matthew 5:5

Saturday morning update

Sorry for the lack of communication Saturday. All of the progress was quiet and our visits with Luke in the ICU were short. Compared to previous hospital stays, he is requiring a lot of alone time; due in part to the visitor restrictions in ICU as well as his insatiable need for sleep/rest. That being said, his "fan club" seems to overtake every waiting room in our path and we are getting pretty good at rotating visitors through his room in 5 minute intervals; as tolerated.

Brian, Andrew & Charlie Wood

Gma/Gpa Bateman, Uncle Jeff & Aunt Carman

Mom & Dad

Kirk & Alex

Gma/Gpa Brown

In contrast to Thursday's fast and furious flow of information, Friday's updates were much fewer and farther between. Overall, Luke did very well, especially considering what his body was put through during surgery. Yesterday was a lot of sleeping, and when possible, he got out of bed and sat in a chair for however long he could endure. The Occupational Therapist came by Friday morning and helped him with a few things, including brushing his teeth.

When we planned this surgery some months ago, we knew that it was going to fall on graduation week. One of the many frustrations for Luke, was knowing that he was going to miss the RHS graduation of his friends. Last night, while in the waiting room, we were able to watch a live video feed of the graduation and we got to chat with Luke's best friend Cole afterward. I brought the phone into Luke's room, woke him up, he opened his eyes a little, gave Cole the "I love you" sign then closed his eyes to rest. That's when the waterworks started for Dad.

Cole @ graduation

While I was talking with Cole, Luke's cardiologist (Dr. Liang) came to see him and reported to me that Luke looks GREAT and was very pleased with what he saw. This doctor has a great attitude along with a wonderful sense of humor, and when I asked him for more details, he simply said "Luke looks great; they (nurses/surgeons) worry too much about the numbers, but just look at him. He is doing great"...............That was wonderful to hear.
The night ended quietly with everyone having a chance to say goodnight to Luke, then all of us tried to get some well needed rest; especially Luke.



Even though visiting hours don't start until 9am in the ICU, I've managed to get in early the last two mornings to see Luke before the nurse shift change. This morning he told his nurse that he wanted to sleep a bit more and that he was not ready to get out of bed this early. He looked great and he was partially awake for my short visit. He received a visit while I was there from the attending doctor and he too was pleased with everything. They have reduced or discontinued nearly all of his IV meds and the nurse removed the dressing from his incision this morning (it looks great!). He was not feeling nauseous or throwing up overnight and he has tolerated water & diet Sprite (that's all he gets right now). They plan to slowly start him on a full liquid diet today and their goal is to get him out of ICU by tonight.

More as the day progresses.

Thank you again for all of the support.

KAAL

Revelation 7:12

"Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen."