The Discharge

So, here's a basic rundown of yesterday...

We originally expected that Tricia would be discharged early afternoon (as she usually is) between her meds so that she would have time to get home for her next meds. Monday evening, we were told that she would be discharged around 10:30am on Tuesday, in part because there were two video cameras who wanted to be there to get Tricia leaving and saying goodbye to the staff, etc., and that was the time that best worked for everyone.

Needless to say, Tuesday morning was hectic and a little overwhelming. I came home around 7:30 to get a shower and walk Meka. I got back around 9 and began packing and moving our stuff from Tricia's room to the car, while she got ready and her nurse finished up all of the discharge stuff, and while her surgeons, doctors and the two cameramen showed up.

Once we were all ready, I wheeled Tricia into the hall where she made sure to hug everyone in sight. It was wet outside, so we made use of the underground tunnel and I wheeled her all the way to the car in the parking garage as two of the Duke staff and one of the cameramen followed us and waved goodbye as we drove away.

(On a side note, Tricia felt a little awkward about the whole thing, because she knows that not every transplant patients get the same kind of attention she has been receiving...but, we also realize that maybe the coverage that she's receiving will help bring more attention to the issues surrounding organ donation and transplantation.)

I had tears in my eyes as we left the garage, and that was most certainly the best drive ever! We first went to the drug store and picked up a bunch of new meds and other needed items before finally heading "home".

Meka was very excited to see us, and Tricia got right to work organizing her meds and equipment. More drugs and equipment were delivered to our room, and the Duke home-care nurse who will be helping Tricia as she completes her IV meds over the next several days came by and helped us get started with a few things.

We watched the 6:00 airing of our story on ABC11, although I missed the first half because I was sent on a mission to dig something out of the car. I was then sent on another mission to Target to find several more things that we needed and return to the drug store to pick up the remainder of the drugs. When I returned to the hotel, Tricia got her first shower in nearly four months. She said it was basically the best shower ever...

We then drove back to the hospital and spent an hour with Gwyneth...Tricia was pretty wiped out, but every little girl should celebrate her birthday with her family (and yes, I'll post her birthday pics at some point). Gwyneth has been a very happy baby the past few days, and you won't believe how much she weighs now...

We got home by 11, in time to begin Tricia's late-night meds and watch the ABC video again (again, I'm hoping they'll post the video online because it's really cool to see Tricia hugging all of her docs and nurses).

We had a great night's sleep (Tricia's still sleeping), and, even though I was up several times to take care of her meds, it was a beautiful thing not to have beeps and lights and nurses, etc. waking us up all night. Tricia is still finding it too uncomfortable to sleep on anything but her back, and her right arm is very soar and numb (had it checked out, and everything looks OK...probably just the result of the surgery and other medical things, and should heal eventually), which makes for tough sleeping, but I think it was still the best night's sleep she's had in a very long time.

Our suite is now a huge mess with bags and boxes of meds and equipment. A HUGE thanks to Jordan & Patience and Katie & Brent for spending two hours with me on Monday night cleaning everything from top to bottom (literally). I'm sure I'll be spending a lot of today moving things where Tricia tells me to move them, which is totally cool with me. :)

Tricia has a 4:30 evaluation at the Center for Living, and she should begin PT tomorrow afternoon. She is very excited to see all of the people at the CFL, but not so excited to put her recovery into high gear. We plan on spending as much time as possible with Gwyneth over the next few weeks, as well as finding some time to actually do some baby shopping and registering (I've heard rumors of a baby shower or two when we return home).

Check back in later for the latest pics and more info about what should be going on in the next several weeks.

Thanks!

Nate