On the Path, Still in the Woods

We just spoke to the doctor of infectious control, he said that TJ’s lungs are looking better, and that TJ is looking better all around (which, after having seen him over the last 72 hours is very true).

The doctors’ round this morning was more encouraging than not. His vitals (pulse [heart rate], blood pressure oxygen saturation in the blood, and other blood gasses) have improved and continue to do so.

He does have significant pneumonia in his left lung (technically pneumonia simply means fluid in the lungs, it says nothing of the cause), as well as plural effusion (excess fluid around the lungs) on the same side.

They are running some blood cultures which have been initially negative but take two days to know for sure. They are also testing for legionnaires disease (which can cause pneumonia), or other pneumonia causes.

TJ will be in the ICU for at least one more day and (somewhat sadly) still requests no visitors. TJ and the rest of the family simply don’t have the energy to deal with people at this point. See the first post of this blog for contact information.

A quick background could help put things in perspective. About two weeks ago TJ had a pinched nerve in his lower neck due to a slipped disk. Last Thursday he went to the doctor with a tooth ache which they found to be infected, and then pulled it. Between those two things TJ has been on quite a bit of vicodin.

This had two results, first, symptoms that usually would lead one to suspect pneumonia were suppressed by the vicodin, pain, fever, etc. Second, vicodin acts like lomotil. That is, it stops you up, bad. This is probably why he needed the sigmoidoscopy done.

On Tuesday morning he was admitted into the ER, you can see this post for more information on that. Tuesday afternoon he was on the verge of turning towards the dark side of things, but by Tuesday evening he was doing better. That is, things were not quite as dangerous, but enough that the doctors put him in the ICU.

We get a lot of questions such as, “How is TJ doing?” or “Is he doing better?” They are difficult to answer inasmuch as compared to Tuesday he is walking on water. Compared to normal life he is still on the way out of the woods.

We do truly, truly, truly, appreciate all the prayer support and letters of encouragement. JMA makes sure that they all make it through quickly. As a family we believe in medicine (MA is a nurse, TJ’s father the former chief surgeon at United [we keep running into people that still know him, after a decade plus]), but believe more deeply in the power of God and intercessory prayer. It is never comfortable to be in a bad situation and simply hear, “It’s all for the best,” or “Don’t worry, God will take care of you,” to the extent that it is obviously not a good situation and most people don’t like the idea of God “taking care of them” by nearly striking them dead.

And yet, we believe in a God with a father’s heart who has always been faithful, and so we believe in God’s healing hand. At least one of us is praying something along the lines of, “Yeah God, give the doctors wisdom, etc. etc., but what I would really like – and know that you can do – is just heal him on his bed, miraculously.” He hasn’t picked up his mat yet, but we believe that it can happen, that He can do it. And so the author of this part of the post asks for prayer beyond “God’s will,” but simply for miraculous healing. We are supposed to petition for what we want, right?

We love you all,

The Addington Family