Well, I guess He isn’t done molding me yet. I was hoping that He would just let us take little baby steps forward from yesterday, begin recovery, and get on with rebuilding our lives. Lea did so well yesterday! Today, however, she seemed to have hit a barrier. After letting her rest overnight her ventilator support was reduced to the levels she had worked to yesterday.

After a short time, however, she began to struggle, couldn’t absorb enough oxygen, and the support had to be turned up. And, it had to continue being turned up, in increments, throughout the day. Cultures were taken to determine what bug might be growing in her lungs, if any, to select a proper antibiotic to combat it before it turns into pneumonia.

Meanwhile, her narcotic medications are being reduced gradually, and the sedation is being replaced with another non-narcotic drug. She likes the new drug really well, and has become the only person I know who can snore with a tube in each nostril!

She continues to be heavily sedated, and we haven’t seen any responsiveness from her since she went to the operating room on Tuesday afternoon. She is aware of what is going on, but only seems to react to the fear of pain. When she was being turned once today, her weight being shifted from side to side, I saw her wrinkle her forehead and open her eyes wide when the nurse, Amy, told her she was going to roll her on her other side, and she mouthed, “Wait, wait, wait!” As soon as she was turned, she went back to sleep.

She has not responded to commands for the last two or three days, and won’t open her eyes to look at me. She has not yet made an attempt to bend her fingers, as far as we know, probably because her hands are still swollen and movement is painful. Her feet, however, have lost much of the fluid below the knees she had collected, and the 24X7 massaging she gets has, so far, prevented any more blood clots from forming.

That is good news, as is the fact that we are ahead of where we were two weeks ago. Trying to keep everything in perspective is difficult when you have to deal with alarms going off in a irritatingly nerve-wracking cacophony of beeps, yelps, loud buzzes and horns; particularly when you don’t know what it all means, let alone what to do to resolve the problem. Each alarm, though, brings pressure, tension and concern.

I have to confess to being weary after nearly eight weeks of intensive care, but I also know that if Lea and I were in the opposite situation she would be right there by my side until I could seek help for myself when I needed it. I will continue to do my best to communicate with her that we are all here supporting her, praying for her, and helping in any way we can. I will also continue praying for her healing.

Last night, Link and Deanna’s last night here with us, we were visited by one of Lea’s nurses who had the day off. Adam drove into Hartford during the evening, to meet his girlfriend, Angela, who is also a registered nurse at Hartford Hospital, and brought her up to meet us. What an unexpected joy! We had a very nice visit of well over an hour, and ended the night, standing in a circle around Lea’s bed, holding hands, and praying for her healing.

It continues to amaze me how God has worked through this illness. The things He has brought about in the past few weeks humble me. I am awed by the power of prayer and the power of Christian love. I know that Lea is not out of the woods yet, and that we must continue our faith during the trials he gives us, and that He gives us the strength to endure the load He gives us to carry. In fact, I’m counting on it!

Thank you for your continued love and support,

Larry