Dad

I have been a little preoccupied lately. My Dad has been having trouble breathing. To make a long story short, he ended up at St. John's Hospital in Anderson & they sent him via ambulance to St. Vincent Carmel Heart Center in Carmel. It took them 2 days to figure out what was wrong & it turns out he had a pulmonary embolism (basically a blood clot that started in his leg & went up to the passageway to his lungs.) It was blocking the airway to his lungs & causing him to have severe breathing problems. They said the clot was so large that it had been there for awhile. Once they found it, they rushed him to surgery to put in a filter. That will stop any blood clots from entering his lungs & they are giving him shots to thin his clots & prevent future blood clots. It was quite scary seeing Dad unable to breathe or get up to even walk to the bathroom. I was so scared he wasn't going to make it through this. I am so thankful to God that they found the blood clot when they did because it was so close to cutting off all of the passageway to his lungs. He is feeling much better & is getting his sense of humor back now! It's good to see him smiling (and breathing!) again!!!

The lung doctor asked Dad if anyone in the family had problems with blood clots. My Dad's uncle died from a pulmonary embolism. I told him that I was on blood thinners for a short time & he asked me if I had ever had any miscarriages. It was so unreal that he knew that. I guess whatever is wrong with Dad could be the cause of why I miscarried twice. The doctor told me that if Dad tests positive for a protein deficiency, then we all need to be tested & if we are positive, our kids should be tested. I don't really know what this means, but his advice could save us from future problems. I am even more grateful for being able to have Gracie than ever before! Thank goodness the doctors had the suggestion for me to take blood thinners. So, I haven't blogged in awhile & will try to get to add more pictures soon. I have a ton from when my friend Ann came to visit. My mind has been on my Dad & I haven't thought of much else. Thanks to all of those who prayed for Dad & came to the hospital to visit. I know the emails from his friends greatly cheered him up!