Day 5

Nate had a tough night last night. He had lots of pain and discomfort and became agitated through the night. He was asking some pretty strange questions and definitely wasn't himself. By morning he was pretty much back to normal, but remembered feeling disoriented. Dr. Lambert picked up on it right away and ordered some tests. She thought that he may have some infection going on somewhere.

He had a chest x-ray which showed he has a pleural effusion, which is when fluid gets trapped between the lung and the chest wall. It causes the lung to collapse, which can cause pneumonia. In the morning, a Radiologist will use imaging to guide a syringe into the space and drain the fluid. It should give Nate some relief.

He also just went for an abdominal CT scan. Dr. Lambert wanted to look at the bowel resection she had to do to make sure it wasn't leaking. She should be able to see if there is any infection there as well.

His white blood cell count was elevated and he's had a slight fever. Results came back that he has a UTI. Dr. Lambert started him on two antibiotics which will cover the UTI, any pneumonia that he may have, and any abdominal infection that might show up.

We knew this surgery wasn't without a lot of risk, but it's disappointing to have these setbacks. I can tell Nate just doesn't feel well. He's been so brave and good spirited through all of this and it's sad to see him going backward in his recovery. I'm grateful that Dr. Lambert is so attentive and on top of things. The nurses here on the Oncology Floor have so much respect for her, which I believe is a great indicator of the kind of person/doctor that she is. We know Nate is in good hands.

I was able to go to church today with Nancy and Genn. It's such a blessing to have that support so far from home. We met so many nice people there. Dr. Lambert even gave the lesson in Relief Society! She was giving me updates about Nate's lab results and vital signs in Sunday School. I know this is where we should be!

Tomorrow I'll take Nancy and Genn to the airport. It's been a huge blessing to have had them here, and I'm so grateful that they could come. Our whole family has sacrificed so much in order to help us through this crazy thing and I hope they know how much we appreciate it.

Please say a prayer for Nate tonight that his body will effectively fight these infections and that he can get some relief from his pain. As always, thanks for your love and support!