It is almost 8 PM and Mikie’s pulse rate has been gradually going down.  I’ve seen it as low as 90, but is floating around 100 most of the time.  He is sleeping soundly.  Temp is normal, even a little low.  He’s had quite a day.  The nurse told me that they are going to do a test Monday that will determine what is causing Mikie’s pain.  It will take two days to do the test.  I can’t imagine what it is.  I wish the docs would tell us these things.  When I went to the ER a few years ago with terrible pain in my gut I had a hard time explaining exactly where it was.  The ER doc said it was likely a kidney stone, I think it was a bowel obstruction as I had similar pain back in my hernia days.  It would be nice if Mikie could tell us it was his belly (or whatever) that hurt, but that is my reading by the way he acts and how I have seen him act in the past when he suffered from constipation.

The J-tube is gone and replaced with a MIC-KEY G-tube.  He is getting food through it right now.  I had hoped that we would see immediate results, if the J-tube was the irritant.  But, it might take a few days to know for sure.  I suppose it’s possible the J-tube was irritating his bowels to the point that it could take a few days to recover.  He is as comfortable now as I have seen him for a few days, but he gets that way when he sleeps.  It’s when he is awake that will be the real test.

It’s almost 9 PM and he is resting so well we are going to go home and do the same.  His heart rate has been as low as 61 but I think the meter has trouble reading when it gets that low because within a few seconds it is back to 90 and above.  Needless to say, he is in good shape right now.  Oh that he would be like that when he is awake.

Hey, I found an interesting website.  www.allnurses.com, click on humor and check out some of the funny things that nurses experience.