More good news.
Tatay just passed his swallow test today. Yesterday Dr. Jen Alviar
asked us to prepare jello and instant oatmeal. This morning, she
dropped by to test Tatay's swallowing reflex. Tatay was able to swallow
a piece of jello, a half a teaspoon of oatmeal and a teaspoonful
of water. Which means he'll be ready to eat soft food pretty soon.
Which also means they'll be taking out the nose tube in a couple of
days. Goodbye meal milkshakes.
His post-nose tube diet won't be very exciting though...just oatmeal, mashed fruit,
lugaw or
arroz caldo. Definitely no Snickers just yet. But soft food will probably be a welcome change from the white glop they pour down his nose.
(Aside: we try not to eat in front of Tatay because we know it'll just
make him feel bad since it's been a whole week since he last chewed
anything. We eat in far corners of the room---out of his line of sight,
or out in the hallway. We eat in secret, as if eating vienna sausages
or wheat bread were illegal.)
Gani dropped by this morning for a visit, bearing gifts: vacuum packed
chesnuts (soft enough to chew easily). Tatay won't be able to eat them
yet, but his face lit up when he saw the packs of nuts. (He eats nuts
like a squirrel.) Something to look forward to.
Tatay's been talking a lot more lately. The past few days he's had a
pretty bad headache, so he wasn't talking much. Since they gave him
medication to relieve the pain, he's been a lot more glib. Dr. Alviar
and Maureen (the physical therapist) say that he's progressing very
rapidly for someone just out of the ICU. One of our nurses said that,
for someone who had a stroke, Tatay had an unusually short stay in the
ICU...few people leave after only four days.
Lolo, Lola, Uncle Bill, Tito Jojie, Tita Charisse and Tita Loi visited
this afternoon---the room was already crowded enough so we decided to
leave so they could spend time with Tatay. Plus we still had errands to
run in LB. We left around 2 pm, so we missed more good news. (Lola
updated me an hour ago.) Anyway, my dad had a PT session scheduled
around 1 pm. Lola said he passed all of the initial tests, and the
therapist says he's well enough to go home by tomorrow! Knowing Nanay
though, we'll probably stay in PGH for another week, just so Tatay gets
more rest. Good call. At the rate things are going, we'll all be
home after Holy Week.
Nanay's feeling a little
better---I took the early morning shift so she and Tita Alfin could get
some rest. (I was eating everything I could get my hands on: vienna
sausages,
leche flan, fruit,
granola, and guzzling Mountain Dew so I wouldn't fall asleep. Managed
to stay up until around 4 or 5, after which I conked out.) Nanay's
throat is getting better, as she's been able to rest her voice a bit.
We're all okay. Tired, but okay. And very happy.
We want to bring Tatay home.
