It's Time for a Christmas Tree!
He's strong enough to hold up his festive little decorated evergreen!
First Full Day of Therapy
We're trying to adjust to a new schedule now with Bob relocated to Sea Pines. He had his first full therapy sessions today. He said he is shocked how weak he is and how little endurance he has. Once back to his room, he is in bed and asleep within just a few minutes of watching a little YouTube TV on his phone. I keep reminding him that his body needs to heal and rebuild, and his immune system is still on overdrive, keeping that belly wound free of infection and making new tissue. I keep reminding him how far he's come already, and that it's going to take small steps some days, but he's still moving in a positive direction.
Absorption
Bob's digestive system is doing very little absorbing yet. Most of what he eats is vacated very rapidly. They removed around 18"-22" of intestine overall, but his entire digestive system has to heal and re-learn to process food efficiently. They've added some additional probiotics to help those intestines function better. They're also giving him glutamine and arginine supplements, iron (he is anemic, only 8.5, and for men normal is 13), Juven (therapeutic nutrition drink) and Ensure (nutrition supplement) to improve his overall health. It's going to take time for his digestive system to start correctly absorbing essential nutrients again. He also has no appetite, which is largely due to his shrunken stomach. He'll eat a half banana and about 2 ounces of meat and then he's full. They're going to work on him having supplements during the day when it isn't mealtime, to try to encourage more nutrient absorption.
We'll see what tomorrow (Saturday) brings.
So happy to be able to look forward to another day!
Headphones in, TV on his phone...time for a nap!
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