You've Got Mail!

Today Mom was pretty alert and talkative.  We've discovered that if we sit her up in bed she stays much more awake, so we make it a point to raise the bed and prop her up on pillows when we're there.  Yesterday at church the Primary kids and Relief Society sisters all wrote notes to Mom.  Dad read them last night and brought them to the hospital today. He warned us that they would bring tears to our eyes, and he was right. It was so special to share people's sweet and tender feelings about our Mother.  What an incredible lady!

Today Mom did a couple things we weren't expecting.  While I was putting lotion on her hands, she looked at the whiteboard hanging across the room and read some things out loud that were written on it! Shortly after that, Jim Jr. brought up a scoop of ice cream from the cafeteria and jokingly asked if she wanted a bite.  To our complete surprise, Mom nodded her head!  That is the first interest she has shown towards food.  Unfortunately she can only have water or ice chips, and only from the nurse, so ice cream was not even an option.  

This afternoon they took Mom for another MRI.  It did not show any further damage in her brain, which is great news!  However, we did get some other disconcerting news today.  From previous testing up at LDS hospital, we know that Mom has clots in both of her lower legs as a result of the surgery.  This is not unusual, and it isn't much of a concern as long as the clots stay below the knees.  Well, they have done further testing and discovered that the clots in her lower left leg are gone.  That might seem like good news, but clots do not disappear that quickly, so what it really means is that the clots are moving.  

In Mom's case, clots are dangerous.   From all the testing done after surgery to find the cause of the stroke, it was discovered that Mom has a hole in her heart which has been present since birth.  In the womb, everyone has a hole in their heart between the chambers.  As soon as a baby takes its first breath, the hole closes.  However, in about 20% of the population, the hole doesn't close all the way.  Normally this wouldn't cause a problem, but since we are dealing with strokes, the plot thickens.  In a  normal heart, blood returns from circulating throughout the body and then goes to the lungs for oxygenation.  Any clots floating around are stopped in the lungs.  However a hole in the heart can allow clots to escape before reaching the lungs.  The clots then head straight to the brain where they can cause strokes.

We know Mom has a moving clot.  We also know she has a hole in her heart, so there is a danger that the errant clot can cause further strokes. We are anxious to eliminate this possibility!  Therefore, the doctors have scheduled a procedure to close the hole on Wednesday morning. They will access Mom's heart through a vein in her leg, so she won't have to undergo anesthesia. (Thank heavens, because I'm not sure any of us could handle that!)  We are hoping and praying that this will be a relatively simple procedure and will prevent further strokes.

Thanks for your continued faith and prayers on our Mom's behalf.  We know we are being watched over and we truly appreciate all your love and concern!