Rough Night, Home sweet Home

Last night I felt I could almost identify with Jesus on the cross. The suffering was so intense! My bed was so uncomfortable. Every time I would get comfortable the stupid bed would inflate on its own. I would undo the inflation, but it would inflate again. They said it was an automatic feature on the bed to prevent blood clotting. I didn't give a lick about blood clotting. I just wanted to be comfortable, and the inflation inevitably happened right under my incision which drove me into incredible pain. So, I tried the chair. The chair was a little bit better, but I woke up after just 30 minutes with my lower back spasming again. I was literally standing for 2 hours last night because sitting and laying down were so painful. I texted Ady at 5:30 am and told her to come as soon as she could after she got up so we could push for a discharge. This morning she showed up and as I was enjoying my Starbucks the doctor came in and asked me how I was doing and I told him I wanted to go home. He said i could. YEAH! So, I am in the process of being discharged now. Home sweet home, here I come!

Kev

Up to My Old Tricks

Hi everyone! It's 3am and I am up to my old tricks again. As many of you know I am quite the night owl. It is not uncommon for me to be seen (or more often than not - not seen) jogging the streets of Smithtown in the wee hours of the morning. Well, at 2:30am I got up to, as we instruct our dogs, "do my business" when suddenly the urge to exercise hit me. So, I unplugged my machine and began running sprints around our suite. I turned in a 4.0. OK, maybe that's going a little far. I looked more like an old man - but I was exercising. I feel like I am getting stronger by the hour, so let's pray that they'll let me out of here soon.
KEV

The Pain is Excruciating!

But I'm not talking about my back. I am talking about the fact the North Carolina Tarheels just went down to the Kansas Jayhawks. This makes me want to drink my bag of morphine. Just Kidding! I was doing so well on my bracket, but now I am out. I had UNC and UCLA in the final, but now it's Memphis and Kansas. So close! Oh well.

My Name is Kevin and I Enjoy Walks with Physical Therapists

Hey everyone! Sorry I didn't blog yesterday afternoon. After a tremendous start to my recovery, yesterday I went for a walk around the suite with my physical therapist. It was quite romantic. Me with my pretty gown on, and him with his handsome white robe. Very special. lol When I returned I felt good and sat in a chair for the first time. Just after I got situated, Adriana and her sister came to visit bearing a Starbucks Caramel Machiatto. I was very excited. After chatting for a while, I decided I was no longer comfortable in the chair and went to get in the bed. As soon as I moved, however, I felt what I can only describe as a tear at the top of my incision. The pain was sharp and incredibly intense. Then I saw them ... stars and spots. I started sweating, and I told Ady I was going bye bye, and sure enough, the next thing I knew, I was on a beach in Hawaii. There were children laughing, my mother was riding a tricycle, and there were ducks running around my hammock. An emergency call went out, and the next thing I knew about 20 people were on top of me hooking me up to wires and tubes. I was awake, but then I started experiencing intense back spasms. I received some medicines which after about a half an hour kicked in and the spasms subsided. A couple of hours later, I walked to the bathroom and back, and sure enough ... 2 hours straight of spasms. That's the bad news. The good new is that they increased my doses, and i slept quite well last night with the exception of one spasmatic episode. I also spent almost the entire day sleeping today. I have been able to stand to go to the bathroom, and I did go for another walk around the suite ... this time with a beautiful Mexican woman. Don't tell Adriana. No, wait, it was Adriana. lol Hoping and praying to be home in the next day or two. Thanks for the prayers.
Kev

Locked Down In The Hospital Bed

Hi Friends! It is 11:30pm and I am blogging from my hospital bed. So cool! I went into surgery today at about 1:30. It was a 3 hour procedure which I remember nothing about. The first thing I heard when I woke up was my surgeon telling me that everything went great. As soon as I came to I instantly noticed a remarkable change in my body. Not only did my lower back feel better, but also my legs, my shoulders, and even my neck pain is gone! Thank You Lord! Amazing how one pinched nerve can cause so much pain throughout the body.

I'm sore where the incision was, and the muscles are sore, but it's tolerable. The meds have worn off quite a bit now, but I have not hit the morphine drip yet at all. The nurse is surprised that I haven't. Here's the best way I can describe it: The pain that was once inside of my lower back is now on the outside.

Ady and the girls were there when I woke up. As you can imagine, the girls were nervous and concerned seeing me with wires and tubes all over me and in me. I made some jokes to try and put them at ease, but my oldest daughter (as mentioned in my blog the other day), is very caring and sensitive, and she teared up a few times. After moving me to my room I again assured her that I was OK and asked her why she was crying. She said, "I don't want you to die." How sweet and innocent! I called her over to myself, told her I had something to tell her, then I keeled over and pretended I was dead. No, just kidding! I didn't do that! I'm sick, but I'm not that sick! April Fools! Ha Ha! Please continue to pray for my healing, and for my family as they walk through this with me.

Much Love,
Kevin

Don't Forget to Put in the Crystals

This is about how my back has felt for several years. Tomorrow morning I head in for back surgery. Hopefully the surgeon won't forget to put in the crystals (a quote from Napoleon Dynamite)! Appreciate the prayers!
Kevin

Shepherding My Daughter Through My Pain

My 10-year old daughter was crying before bed time last night. In fact, she's done this a few times over the past couple of weeks. It's not that she has something wrong. It's that she's extremely caring. She can't stand to see people in pain or the thought of someone going through a painful experience.

Thursday I am going in for back surgery. It's a fairly common and routine surgery - a disk fusion, but my daughter is dreading the thought that someone is going to cut me open. For her, that's the most aweful pain imaginable. I've explained to her that I need to go through this pain to end a much more significant pain that I have been experiencing for years. Sometimes things have to get worse to get better. That's why I am going through with the surgery. I am actually, on some sick and morbid level, looking forward to the surgery. I am tired of being tired and in pain, so for me this temporary pain is actually freeing in the long run.

Pray for me as I undergo this surgery. But pray also for my wife and daughters - the oldest daughter especially.