Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Update on Gran

Larkspur, July's flower.

Great-Gran is recovering nicely from the surgery to remove the plaque from her carotid artery. Her throat and neck were swollen and sore, but are much better now. I think the sore throat was more from the tube they used for the anesthesia than from the surgery. She still has a little swelling around the incision, but it looks great and is healing well. She is sleeping well, and her appetite is good.

She's been coughing, which is also a result of the anesthesia. I'm encouraging her to cough deeply to get everything out, instead of the little "ladylike" coughs she does when people are around. She's using a spirometer, too, to strengthen her lungs.

She will see the surgeon for a follow-up July 22nd. Once she is completely recovered from the surgery, she will see a gastroenterologist about her low red blood cell count which they think is caused by a slow bleed from somewhere in her gut. Meanwhile, she is taking iron twice a day.

We are thankful that she is healing well, thankful for the doctors who are taking care of her, and thankful for your prayers!

2 comments:

Sarah Oldham said...

More prayers coming your/her way. What an ordeal! I'm glad she's coming through this part very well. May the same be said of the next situation. I hope it's something very easy to fix!!!!

Love that flower. Very pretty. It looks as soft as it's colour.

Linda said...

What a blessing you were able to catch this in time! I'm so glad she is recovering.
Those post-surgery coughs can be painful. It's good to encourage her though.