Sleeping Beauty

Lucy spent the last two days in a continued haze of blessedly strong medicine, eating very little and usually in pain if awake.

Her pituitary medicines have been challenging to regulate due to post-surgery changes, but merely complicated to manage, not dangerous.

Her nurses have been kind and attentive, bringing scheduled IV steroids and antibiotics, pain medicines when she asks, keeping her stocked with ice-water and gatorade, taking her to the bathroom, drawing labs through her port so quietly she hardly wakes up, and many other cheerful services. Her doctors continue to be excellent, respectful of us and caring to Lucy.

Today her lumbar drain (the tube in her back draining fluid from her brain) was clamped in preparation for its removal; since no cerebrospinal fluid leaked from her nose (through the surgery site) over the course of the day, she was considered safe to have the drain removed tonight. The neuro team will then regulate her to make sure her brain's fluid cushion is intact, and she can go home likely Thursday morning.

We expect her pain to markedly decrease with the drain's removal, and even this evening with it only clamped, she talked and ate in a way she has not all week.

Richard is there tonight while I try to sleep for the first night at home. When my word-retrieval goes, it's time to realize the shift is over...

Despite the disorientation of this experience, we feel at home in the love all of you have shown us this week.