U of W Medical Center, Seattle, WA, sunny 48 degrees.
I am learning to wait on the Lord. Patience is not a virtue that comes easily to me. I am used to being able to make decisions and get on with my life. Psalm 62 calls us to a life of patient waiting on God's timing. So much of my life is completely outside of my control right now. Maybe being in control is only an illusion the rest of the time as well. I am at day 12 of my transplant life. According to my medical team I am doing fantastic. If this is doing fantastic, I would hate to see what doing poorly looks like.Fever is under control. But the new meds I take to counteract Graft vs Host disease conspire with my hydration regime to send my blood pressure over the roof. So now I am taking high blood pressure medication to keep me from having a stroke or other related problem. It is still almost impossible to eat a normal diet without supreme effort. I work at it three times a day, but the list of things I feel like eating is very short. I tried some chicken noodle soup last night with disastrous and immediate regurgitation. I don't know if it was the smell or the spices, but it wasn't pretty. All the nurses and staff go out of their way to help out.
I will have to stay in the hospital until my blood counts begin to rebound. Typically that begins around day 14-17. I will also have to be able to take all of my meds orally before they release me. It is a major task just to swallow all the pills I am already taking. I take a walk around the unit daily. Today I got up to 6 laps. A woman we passed said that she wished her husband could get around as well as I was doing. Walking is one of the few things I can control that will make a positive contribution to my general improvement. We continue to be blessed by all your prayers, cards and expressions of love and concern. I would never be in the posiitive path I am on without all of you. Kriss is planning to fly back to Walla Walla tomorrow for a few days. There are a couple of things she wants to do, but I have lots of caregivers here in the hospital to meet my needs. Hanna will be back either Wednesday evening or Thursday morning. Kriss will return to Seattle on Friday so I will have her here when I get discharged.
It is good to be in the hospital when you need to be there. For now, I'm content to be here and know that God has put me here to receive the specialized care necessary. I am very weary and it takes great effort to write this short of a blog. I'll get back to our adventure in France in my next blog. We miss all of you and pray for your joy in Christ's service. Robin
Prayers do continue, Robin, for God's healing hands to be upon you, for strength for your family and for the continued wisdom and vision of the medical team on your behalf. Your words continue to inspire and encourage - you are indeed God's mighty vehicle to those of us who are in your prayer circle.
ReplyDeleteRobin,
ReplyDeleteI think you are right, "Being in control is only an illusion!" God is in control and He loves us more than we can comprehend. With the loving care He gives, as evidenced by your hospital staff and prayer supporters, we have every confidence that His will is being done. Thanks for the continued reports on His love in your life.
I know that there is nothing we can say or do to make God love you any more or any less but even so we keep asking for His best for you knowing all the time that 'His best' is all he ever gives His children.
We're looking forward to your next words...
Robin, I know the updates are hard to do, and take a huge amount of energy, but keep it up, we really appreciate knowing how you are doing. Stay strong and I look forward to seeing you in person.
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