May 23,1993 the liver transplant

I don`t know how long I can blog,it looks like storms again here in Pa.But I wanted to blog about what happenned 20 years ago on this day.My husband`s liver transplant.
May 22ond,1993, I was dressed for my nurse`s aide job,ready to walk at the door for my 11pm-7am shift,when we got the call.My husband was already in bed sleeping,he had worked up to the day he was called for the transplant,on oxygen,being a welder by trade,he`d go to work every day,put his oxygen in his locker,work,then leave at the end of his shift,wearing the oxygen on the way home .The hospital said,we believe we have your husband`s liver,leave now,& phone us when you get half way here,to Somerset.We called from the turnpike at Somerset,they said,keep coming out here.
.At 9am the 23rd,after all tests were done to make sure my husband was strong enough for the transplant,we went to the operating room.I never lost faith that he would survive,& when the surgeons asked me to come into the operating room,I did,& I felt the hand of God on all of us as the doctor said,join hands,& we will pray.We did,my husband cried,& our son & I left to wait.
Wait we did.The one doctor came out around supper to say he was still being operated on,he had already been in surgery for 8 hours,he said he had some rough times,but he is still coming through it.At 8 pm,I started pacing & pacing.I had never checked into the family house as I was afraid to leave the icu waiting room.By 9pm they came & got our son & I & took us up to his room.When I looked at him at that moment,my faith was shaken.His head looked huge on his body,like it was disconnected from his body or something.I cried out to God within myself,as I did not want our son to see me shaken.We left & went to the family house,which I forgot to check in during the approved hours,& was locked out.I remember being angry,at them,& they let us in & gave us a room,said we`d have to make our own beds.I was so thankful.
Then started the course of ups & downs over the next 3 months.I ended up sending our son home with friends,begged the social worker to let me stay somewhere till my husband could come home-somewhere-as I could no longer pay the $10 a day for the room.She placed me with a pastor who lived on the outskirts of town.The pastor was a woman,& an angel from God,for sure.
I was on leave from work,my husband couldn`t work,& our church stepped up & paid the 3 months mortgage on our home so we would not lose that.God is good.
During this time,I became very close to another family from Hazard,Kentucky,& we were close to another man from Delaware who was going through this a second time with his wife.I do not know what I would have done without them.There are so many stories I can tell about them,& others.I will ,maybe next time.
However I`ll have to type a little faster as it sure looks stormy outside.
We do not know who gave my husband the gift of life.We are forever grateful for all things that God placed at just the right moment,even the hospital that rejected him,I feel it was a blessing he was rejected by them,it just wasn`t where we were to go,I see that now.So,when you have hardships,& you ask yourself,why,why is God doing this to us? just remember,God works all things together for the good.
There are many things to be aware of when you have a transplant.We had to attend classes at the hospital before he came home.I recently learned that these classes are not part of every hospitals agenda,especially the hospital he was rejected from,we know for a fact as someone we know got a liver from them.they do not have these classes.
The rules are,never eat "dippy"eggs,drink only public or bottled water-never from a well or spring,swim only in chlorinated pools or salt water,never the lakes or rivers,don`t eat meriqane-can`t spell-from pies because the topping made from egg whites may have not been baked long enough to get rid of bacteria.Always wash everything,bagged lettuce,watermelons,cantalopes,every meat must be cooked well done,don`t eat at buffet restraunts-which we do,but not in flu season.Those are some of the basic things.
20 years is usually the limit on transplanted livers to remain healthy.There are meds a person can take to try to rid oneself of hep c,but twice my husband tried them & he became so ill from them he almost died.So,he could never try them again.That is why for one reason that I`ve looked into herbs.
I also have Hep C.I have tried those meds too.They are almost like a cancer treatment.I lost alot of my hair,& lost so much weight the doctor does not want me to try again for a while,& it`s been 10 years since my treatment.I grew my hair back,but never regained any weight & am thin.I was free from the hep c,but 6 weeks after treatment,my bloodwork showed I had as many cells of it as what I did 7 months before when I started the treatment.I doubt I will try it again.I`m going herbal,using mother earth & the plants God gave us to help us when we`re ill.We shall see how it goes.
My husband has good & bad days.The past 2 days have been bad.I`m hoping we hear something soon about another hospital.Hershey meets on Fri`s about transplants,so every Fri.I`m hoping his case comes up.
Thanks for being blogger friends who pray.

Pittsburgh

My husband`s nurse from Pittsburgh called me today,she wanted to know what I was doing & how I am.I got choked up.No one ever asks about me.
I told her I was filling hummingbird feeders again,& I`m doing ok.My husband was still asleep as we spoke,& it was already 3:30pm.He takes his morn meds in the evenning & evenning meds when he comes to bed-whenever that may be.I made him buy headphones for the tv so I can get some sleep at night.He got up at 7pm today,as I had to get our granddaughter off the bus for my son, who I took to work at 12:30,so he did get to see Savannah a little.Then I had to go get my son & take them both to his my mom`s place that I bought & he is fixing up.Now the husband is fast asleep on the couch again.Ten to 1,he`ll awake when I`m ready to sleep.We barely say 2 words anymore.On the 23rd it will be exactly 20 years since his first transplant.He is now 62 & his papers are at Hershey.We`ve not heard anything yet.
His nurse said that the doctor wanted to follow him & see him every 3 mos.,& I told her,what`s the point if he`s not getting transplanted there.She wanted to let me know she is praying & we can come back if  we want.I know we don`t want.
I`ve been spending alot of time on facebook.I`m PhyllisAnn HoovenOller on there.There are days I can`t write,so my posts here have been not daily as I would like.
Leaving you with pics,blooms,hubby with Chloe wrapped around his head,my son`s cats,which will be here forever I`m sure.I believe I have 8 now.
I still haven`t got the plants in the garden,it did get tilled up.I`m trying to do things on my own.I was going to try to put the spark plugs in the lawn mower,but my son says they need "gapped" so I have no idea there on what I`m doing.He will do it for me.

humm there`s alot of cobwebs up here

I must learn these things as I do most everything now,& it sure isn`t easy.

Frost

We had light frost last night.It didn`t affect my peach tree,but it did the grape vines ,magnolia trees,& some other trees I can`t think of the name of.But there are still blooms about.
I`ve found 3 dead birds so far this year.First a robin,he looked fine,I just wonder if he turned the corner too fast between the shed & the wood pile,then I was heartbroken to see a hermit thrush dead at the goats old pen,he still had insects in his mouth.The brown thrashers were bullying the pair of thrushes,& it was the first pair of thrushes that I`ve had for awhile.I saw the other one in the woods collecting food.I wonder if they had already nested,what will become of the offspring if there`s only 1 to feed them?
Then there was the baby bird,apparently taken from the nest,it`s throat gashed.It was a formed bird,but not yet feathered.It may have been a bluejay.
I`ve been spending alot of time outdoors,so I`m bound to see & find such things.
We are still waiting on the medical center to call to set up an appt.for my husband.

peach tree

robin burying his head to catch the worm

let some weeds grow for the bees

A walk in the woods,grooming the bunnies

I desperatly needed that walk in the woods this am to pray & clear my head.My husband`s sister `s husband went missing on Tues,he took his truck as if he was going to work,& didn`t go.They found him on Wed.dead.He was having alot of health problems.Sherry finally phoned us today,but my husband was unable to get awake enough to talk to her.I listenned,she was angry,but she was wondering if her husband went to heaven,she & he were saved when a pastor stopped into the hospital room years before,when he was sick with the swine flu.He had some strokes,he was going to be unplugged from the machines,so she had gone to York to be with him.He survived.But,he had alot of health problems .I told her that I believe he did go to heaven.We don`t know what went on between him & God in those final moments.They had been together since they were teens,so it is hard & she is angry.
My husband`s cousin,Connie,husband died the same day,but went naturally with heart problems.I keep thinking that it comes in threes....
I looked at the trees & the new growth in the forest & realize that life goes on eternally & forevermore.
I then focused on the bunnies.I did not cut them back,just groomed them & trimmed them up a bit.They do need all their fur taken off,so I will get to that next week.I lost Buster back in March,I believe he may have had wool block.It was the first time I EVER gave a bunny an enema,but I did,& pellets came out,soft ones too,but he ended up dying.I have not tried to spin any of the rabbits angora fiber yet,I feel sure I`ll have to mix it with some wool.It is so soft.

Cloud

Dori

Ginger

woodpeckers are making meals from the insects they probed to get,probably carpenter ants

I thought this was a nuthatch,but now am not so sure.

I see faces in all the trees

What`s blooming here in the woods...

Robin Ridener

Robin is another beautiful artist who has gifted me through out the years.I received a gift on Dec.24th of a bird ornament,which I dearly love.The red bird is hanging in my kitchen window,reminding me of yet another wonderful soul I`ve never met but dearly love.Go visit her at baggaraggs.blogspot.com/  she also writes beautiful stories ,& I`m praying she`ll get published in Prims or Art Doll Quarterly,she so deserves it,have a beautiful mother`s day,Robin!

Knit Quilt Spin Weave

Judy,over at fundamentallyfiber.blogspot.com is another beautiful person I`ve "met" in bloggerland who kindly gifted me back in Nov.when I was going through alot.She made this beautiful quilt for us

,& I feel her prayers for us everytime I look at it displayed in my kitchen.Everyone who comes here is moved to go over & touch it as they look at it in awe.So,go over & pay Judy a visit,she is awesome & creative & is currently making a patio screen from cut up recycled plastic grocery bags by weaving them.So creative!