5:40pm: Real quick update while I am at the airport. My 8pm flight was cancelled and they got me on the 6pm instead. I think I have a pretty crappy seat, but at least I am going home. Snowing in Atlanta and about to start snowing in DC. Both of Reid's eyes are now Stage 2 Zone 3. Looking on the web, looks like he could go either way, but Stage 2 is still in the safe zone. His feedings have been increased to 8cc per hour and they are now giving him the diuretic every other day. They have cut the hydrocortisone in half. Kristen was able to talk to Dr. Piazza in regards to the side effects that I had seen, and I think he partially agreed. Not sure if he made the cut in dose in reaction to Kristen bringing it up, but I am glad to see the change in steroid. currently, his O2 has come down to 50%.

2:15pm: I wish that Reid could keep his IVs in longer... and after another one fell out today, he was stuck 10 times before they could find another one in his scalp. Currently, his O2 is up to 55, but they have weaned his BPM down to 37. And the good news for today, no change on the eye test, still at the same Stage/Zone as he was last week --- will check again in another 7 days.

8:00am: It would be taboo for Reid to continue to have good days and nights, so he decided to switch it up on us. He kept the nurse busy last night and seemed very agitated and the medicines (Ativan and Morhphine) aren't working as much anymore. He had a not-so-good blood gas test this morning and had to put his breaths per minute back up to 40 (I believe they were in the mid-20s prior to). However, his O2 has further come down to 40%. The IV that they gave him last night fell out (not sure what is going on there) so they ended up giving the morphine through his central line (which is supposedly not supposed to be mixed with the other things going through it). I guess the idea of the nurses trying to stick Reid again for another IV was probably not in their best interest. Right now (well, as of 5am), the nurse said Reid is practically snoring he is sleeping so hard. All of this activity wore him out.

I told Kristen about the side effects of the hydrocortisone and she was going to call the nurses here in a few minutes. Reid has tremors that shake his hands and feet (seizures), the IVs keep falling out (thin skin), vomiting, easy bleeds, black and tarry stool... personally, I think it is time that maybe they wean him off the steroid??

Nurse had done a blood test and was waiting on the blood counts to come back. If low, he will have yet another transfusion today.

Follow-up eye test is today.

And last but not least, please wish Kristen good luck today. She is making her way up to campus as she starts work for the first time in over 6 months. She is not teaching today, but trying to get everything prepared and ready for class on Monday. I know it is probably the last thing that she wants to deal with knowing Reid's situation, but getting back to a normal routine for her might be a good thing. Oh, and the money will be nice... the sugar daddy has run dry. :)

12:15am: I had no sooner finished writing the last blog and then got a call from Kristen in regards to Reid... so now I have another blog entry to write. This one isn't as fun. I will try to keep this one fairly short as I am quickly starting to fade... but Reid had another episode of vomiting tonight like he did on New Year's Eve (same brown substance that they are assuming is old blood). Kristen had spotted a brown stain on Reid's clothing earlier in the day and the nurse brushed if off as being a stain on the clothing. When the night nurse took over, she noticed that that stain went through several layers of his clothing and noticed it was from him. Shortly there after, he had several bouts of throwing up and then, with the help of a NG tube, they suctioned the remaining 15cc of fluid out of his stomach. The nurse had noticed that he seemed uncomfortable earlier in the shift and said that he was much more calm after all of it was out. They did another xray and saw that all of his tubes (ET, NJ, NG) were all in the correct place and there wasn't anything alarming. They have prescribed two additional medicines that will help with the ulcers and the coating of the stomach and bowels. They temporarily stopped the feedings during all of this, but have since resumed.

In addition to this mess, Reid had to have another IV put in tonight. I guess the one in his scalp was starting to go bad, so he has a new one in a different place on his scalp. The nurse did have to poke him 3 times to get the IV (he was heavily sedated with morphine at the time) but noticed that he was bleeding more than normal when they place these IVs. Tomorrow morning, he is going to have some blood work done to see if he is able to keep his blood counts up and see if there is anything else that might be alarming. I don't think they are overly concerned, but just want to make sure they aren't missing anything.

So, after Kristen told me all of this info... the only question I had in my head was about how far backwards we went in the oxygen requirements. And, to end this post on a good note: he was at 45%. It is good to know that he can have these sort of events and remain stable.

Doing some quick browsing about some of the meds that Reid is on, I came across the side effects of the hydrocortisone steroid. I have bolded the side effects he has. Wondering if all of this mess is from this drug??

Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); black, tarry stools; changes in body fat; changes in menstrual periods; changes in skin color; chest pain; easy bruising or bleeding; mental or mood changes (eg, depression); muscle pain, weakness, or wasting; swelling of feet or legs; seizures; severe nausea or vomiting; sudden severe dizziness or headache; symptoms of infection (eg, fever, chills, sore throat); tendon or bone pain; thinning of the skin; unusual skin sensation; unusual weight gain; vision changes or other eye problems; vomit that looks like coffee grounds.