Monday, Monday

Today (Monday) started a little rough. Mark started to get a fever about midnight and started to complain about a "heaviness" feeling on his chest. He mentioned the "heaviness" to the nurse right about the time I started to lay down, and this place sprung into action. Within about one minute, the tech brought in a scale to weigh Mark to see if he had sudden weight gain, which might mean he is retaining fluid (not a good thing). Good news is he is not retaining fluid. About 2 minutes after they weighed him, someone arrived from the 2nd floor with an EKG machine. They hooked him up while the nurse gave him pain medicine and checked his heart to make sure he was not having cardiac distress. Good news, his heart is perfect. They immediately called the oncologist at home to tell him what was going on. Dr. Holland, the oncologist this week, said everything was probably fine, but first thing the testing began again. The night without sleep continued at 3:00 am when I was woken up by the wonderful sound of Mark vomiting in his plastic bucket. I got up to help him and the nurse and tech also came in quickly to take care of him. It is truly amazing how quickly they respond to everything here - very comforting to know Mark is being taken care of so well.

Literally before we even woke up, Mark had an Echo of his heart to make sure it was looking good, followed by a chest x-ray and CT scan to make sure he did not have fluid in his lungs, and to check on the status of his pneumonia (the pain could have been his pneumonia worsening). Good news again, the nurse told us his lungs actually seem to be improving - Praise God!!! Once all those tests were over, the day became very routine and kind of pleasant, considering.

The pain went away during the day. Mark ate 2/3 of his lunch, which made me very happy, but none of his dinner (not so happy about that). Then we walked 6 laps around the unit. This is a big deal because Mark hates doing it, and he is supposed to walk 12 laps a day if possible. He did a great job. The laps are important because they help avoid pneumonia, muscle atrophy, and depression. We also had a nice visit from Roger and Mary (Ken's dad and his wife). They came by and gave us a beautiful devotional to encourage us. It was so nice to see them. They are such sweet and caring people. I look forward to the next time we go to Statesboro, and stop by to see them.

Overall, we had a good day. Mark did get a little irritated and feeling down later in the afternoon. He is not use to being sick, and he is tired of being here and feeling the way he feels. He does not want to take the medicine and he does not want to do things like pee in the plastic urinals. I told him tough. These nurses, techs, and doctors are doing everything they can to make sure he stays as healthy as possible and goes home in a few weeks. It is his job to do what they say. He knows all of this, but it is still a hard adjustment, and he is dealing with a lot of emotion right now. I know that. I am just working really hard at helping him stay focused and positive.

To close, I want to take just a moment to thank God for healing Mark's body today. He took the pain and discomfort away from his back and chest. He also gave Mark the strength to eat some food and walk some laps. Each of these are important steps in Mark's health throughout this process, and God is the only one who can give Mark the strength to get through this time. Thank you God for your healing, caring, comforting power during this time.

Amanda