The Bottomline – Thank you so very much for your interest and prayers. We received so many OUTSTANDING words of encouragement as we prepared for what would prove to be a very long day of surgery and an even longer recovery. Surgery went very well and Karen and I are so very glad to be home again. Time will tell, whether the concoction the surgeon and his staff placed (or did not place) inside my head is working. But, at least for my part, the surgery is over and here I am writing you.
(see below)
The Details
4:00am til 7:30pm (Day0)
A Side Note
“My Picasso”
(Day8)
3 Take-Aways
Hospital Packing List
The Details – The surgeon requested that we drive to and from Denver rather than fly. Karen rented a very nice, brand new, Lincoln Nautilus and on Tuesday, August the 20th off into the sunset we drove. (Actually we left around noon; but “riding off into the sunset”, sure sounds more romantic and has that happy everafter, everything is going to be alright, just kind of nice, feeling to it.) Along the way we enjoyed staying at the Cobblestone Hotel in Quinter, Kansas. The hotel looks new, was very clean, the bed was outstanding, and they had a wide selection of breakfast items to chose from.
The RESTORE-1 Medical Trial secured a very nice hotel for us right across the street from the University of Colorado Hospital – Anschutz Medical Center in Aurora, CO. We arrived just before dinner and the helicopter pilot in me, asked Karen to drive around the hotel and hospital so I would know exactly how to get to where we needed to be in the morning.
As we unpacked, we felt a growing sense of gratefulness for all our friends, who were thinking about us and praying for us, and the surgical and hospital staff. Having done all we could to prepare, it was time to drift off to sleep (easier said than done).
At 4:00am, Thursday (Day0), August the 22nd, we got up and made final preparations.
Inside my head, I heard my mentor saying…
“You have to choose to get there EARLY,
if you hope to get there on time…
So, early we went!
And, you know what?
Much to my surprise,
we were not the 1st to show up early.
I guess other people have my mentor inside their head too.
– Around 7:30am, Simeon and Karen waved one last good bye as Peter was rolled away.
– Peter had fun assuring the surgical staff that he had brought extra marbles just in case they misplaced a few of his; but it wasn’t long before the surgical team had the last laugh and he was in lullaby land.
– At 11:01am, Karen was notified that the surgery was underway
(six hours after we arrived).
– At 4:11pm, came the text, “procedure is complete”
(meaning about 5 hours in actual surgery)
– At 6:41pm, “in recovery”
– It would not be until 7:30 pm before Karen was at bedside and Peter was waking up. (About 14 hours after we 1st walked into the hospital.)
A Side Note: Simeon had a whole list of things he and his mom could do (like shopping and museums) in the area. That way she would NOT sit in the waiting room worrying. As you may recall, Simeon and family had just recently moved to Aurora and their home is only 15 minutes from the Hospital. Karen LOVES to organize, so she suggested she help him organize his garage. An offer he accepted.
Due to the double blind nature of the study the surgeon had already warned Karen that they could not say much, but he and his staff did go out of their way to assure Karen and Simeon knew that surgery had gone very well.
Even so, Karen was skeptical until she could hear my voice and look into my eyes.
We spent the rest of Thursday evening (Day0), and most of Friday (Day1) in a private room, in ICU (Intensive Care Unit). In many ways we were treated very well and in comparison to the life and death situations just a few feet away… my situation looked like a cake walk.
As a result, I will not get into the challenges, except to say: Dopamine to me, is like air to you. If you would like some idea of what living without dopamine means to me – Imagine you are going 100 feet under water to weld a critical piece of equipment. Your diving suit is connected topside with a long oxygen hose. You have lead weighted boots on and lead has been strapped to your waist to help hold you down while you are welding. Shortly after descending you notice that someone topside has turned your oxygen supply off. How would you react? Without dopamine, the brain and muscles, just don’t talk well with each other. In my case, the lack of dopamine makes me feel very heavy, I get slow, and all my muscles begin screaming at me. So, if the goal is to get my gut to wake up and function like normal; than, I NEED my medications, as prescribed.
Late Friday evening (10:00pm – Day1) they wheeled Peter to a nicer and larger private room on the 11th floor, Room 1177, overlooking the City of Denver
at night… a very beautiful sight.
Early Saturday evening (Day2), August the 25th, Peter was released from the hospital. His gut was still not talking well to his brain and he had a slight fever. We spent that evening and Sunday at the hotel across the street. Monday morning (Day4), August the 26th, perhaps earlier than prudent, we decided to head back to the Cobblestone Hotel in Quinter. It would be late Wednesday afternoon, August the 28th (Day6 after surgery and the 9th day of this journey) that we finally got home.
Overall things went very well. In fact, if you look at me from the front you might think I never went under the knife. But one look at the patch work of shaved hair, superglue, and staples on the back of my head; and you know.. something is wrong with this guy. I call the evidence of my surgery, “My Picasso” (a bit of modern artwork that only the artist can appreciate).
Karen and I have a few more days of rest, before heading back to KUMed, where we visit with familiar faces, have the staples pulled, and run through some familiar tests (Days11-12).
This journey was far more difficult for Karen than for me. She did all the driving, waiting, and advocating.
Thank you for standing with us… we will keep you posted, but we might do so via a blog or facebook.. we will keep you posted about that too.
TAKE-Aways – I will only list three for now:
- Your words of encouragement and prayers did our hearts good
(and who but God knows what else).
- Marry the right woman and take good care of her;
someday soon, she will be taking care of you!
- When traveling bring Cash and Lots of it.
That way you can express appreciation for all those
who will lift your bags and help you get where you need
to go – especially true when traveling through airports
and staying at fancy hotels.
We also added a few things to include on our Hospital Packing List (If you would like a copy, shoot us an email.)
Thanks for being a friend….
Pete and Karen
