Intensive Care Continues
Cyrus snuggling with Laura on 8.23
Update 8/24: Cyrus appears to be doing slightly better than a few days ago. His heart rate is okay, and his color is good. However, he’s got a severe infection with an antibiotic-resistant form of E. coli. He had to be intubated again and must be on heavy antibiotics for at least two weeks. He is in isolation and will be monitored by the infectious disease department to ensure it doesn’t spread to anyone else.
Laura and I are relieved that he’s doing okay despite the infection. We’ve also had some encouragement from scripture, friends, and family on our recent feelings of despair. We can see a little more clearly, and although we still don’t know how to process all the feelings we have right now, we have renewed confidence that God is able to meet us where we are, even if we’re staggering around in the darkness. We don’t need to see our way out. We need to keep putting one foot in front of the other, doing our best with what we can handle, and giving ourselves space and time to let ourselves heal. We don’t get to control our own healing, either physically or emotionally, but God has created us with a remarkable, involuntary ability to self-heal.
Thank you for your prayers and encouragement that helped us reset our thinking to be okay with what we can’t control.
UPDATE 8/23: They found out it was sepsis. Not sure what caused it yet but they think it was from a UTI/E. Coli. He’s starting to look a little more alert and moving around versus the comatose Cyrus yesterday with all sorts of antibiotics they’re giving him.
UPDATE 5:45 PM: Cyrus had to be reintubated with a ventilator to help him breathe.
It’s been a couple of weeks since our last update. Cyrus was doing a little better for most of the last two weeks, but during the last three days, he took a sudden turn for the worse.
He’s had frequent bouts of really low blood oxygen and currently has a fever. It’s gotten bad enough that the hospital is going to do a spinal tap to check for meningitis and a full panel of viruses. He will also be on antibiotics while they culture a blood sample to check for other bacterial infections.
We’re pretty scared about it, as it feels really familiar to how things went with Arthur. We want so badly for him to be ok and for all this to be over, and for all our kids to be back home with us.
We’ve been missing the girls so bad I decided to take a bunch of my family leave starting next week rather than waiting till we’re all back home. We’re planning to keep them at home with us for most of the remainder of Cyrus’ time in the hospital.
Laura will be at the hospital much of that time, but we’ll try to balance things out by bringing the girls to the hospital once per day and having Laura spend some time at home so I can go hold Cyrus.
We’re excited to be taking this step toward getting back to normal, but it will be difficult to manage, and we’re already sick with worry about Cyrus’ turn in health. I don’t know how this is all going to turn out, but please keep praying for both the physical and emotional health of our family.
Pray for our faith too. I’m never giving up my belief that God loves us and will do what’s best for us, but I also feel like I’m not going to be ok this time. This whole ordeal has hurt worse and gone on longer than anything I’ve experienced in the past, and while I believe God has a way out, I can’t see it from here and don’t know how to find it.
