Back into the Fast Lane

I have been home from the hospital now for just over one week. I am doing very well and
I am not experiencing any pain. It is good to be back to full speed again after being so in-
active for the twelve days I was under medical care. I had entered the Aberdeen Royal In-
firmary June 1st for surgery on my right eye June 3rd. I expected to be released from the
hospital one or two days after the operation. People who undergo the same procedure I
was scheduled for usually report to the hospital the evening before the operation and leave
the day after. But since I have a mechanical aortic heart valve, I am taking warfarin every
day to thin my blood.

I take the warfarin to prevent blood clots from forming. When blood clots break off and
are circulated to a vital organ, they can cause a stroke or heart attack. I am grateful for
warfarin because it helps keep me alive and healthy. Warfarin hinders the ability of the
blood to coagulate and form clots. People who take warfarin often experience bleeding
that is slow to stop, sometimes with tragic consequences. There is no place for that dur-
ing surgery. I  went into the hospital two days early to take medication to thicken my
blood for the operation. The operation on my eye was successful and the bleeding was
not a concern.

After surgery, I was put back on my medication to thin the blood. I expected that my
blood level would be back to normal after one or two days, perhaps three at the most.
But that was not the way it was. My blood's recovery was painfully slow. Perhaps it
was good that I was still in the hospital. Late Friday following surgery, my right eye
took a major step backwards. A doctor was able to observe what was happening. Sur-
gery was scheduled for the following Monday. Again I was put on medication to thick-
en my blood for the operation.

The surgery on Monday was successful. My eye appears to have been repaired, at least
for the foreseeable future. Not long after surgery, I was put back on the medication to
thin my blood. I cringed at the thought of more time in the hospital. But it was not to be.
The blood level quickly rose and I was allowed to return home two days after the second
surgery. I was stunned, but happily so. I was in the hospital for twelve days.

Whereas one part of me was anxious to get out of the hospital as soon as I could, a bigger
part of me really enjoyed my twelve day stay. I never was in any pain and I quickly recov-
ered from both operations. The medical care and the staff were top rate. I was actually im-
pressed with the Scottish meals that I could chose. I enjoyed talking with medical staff and
fellow patients on the Ward. I had time to read, journal, listen to podcasts, and chat with
people to my hearts content.

During my unexpected extended stay in the hospital, I was able to hand off the few duties
and commitments I had to other people. Because I actually felt good both physically and
spiritually, one voice in me really moaned and groaned about being inactive in the hosp-
ital for so long, but a more dominant voice was quite grateful for this time. It was a much
needed time of rest that the Lord had granted me. I felt a sharp sadness saying goodbye to
the staff as I left. I was still savouring the mince and tatties that I had for dinner just before
I left.  

As I write this, it has been just over a week since I returned home from the hospital. Agnes
and Jim next door have made sure that I am all right. My eye is doing very well and I have
enjoyed being back in the village and engaged in ministry again. The food at the hospital
was surprisingly good, but it nowhere begins to be compared with Agnes's  cooking. She
and Jim make sure that I am ok.  Even though I feel great, I must admit I have been thinking
of ways to take advantage of their neighbourly goodwill. Meanwhile, I am back in the fast
lane, as busy as was before the surgery. There is still a lot to catch up on, especially emails.
As usual, I ask for your prayers on my behalf.

Blessings to you and yours,

Finally! I Am Home!

This is just a hastily written posting to report that I am back at home in St Fergus after
being in the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary since Saturday, the first of June. That day I re-
ported to Ward 30 (the Eye Ward) for surgery on my right eye the following Monday.
I was scheduled for what is considered a fairly routine procedure: removal of a buckle
that had prevented the retina from detaching for over twenty-one years and replacement
of the natural gel of my inner eye with a silicone gel. It was expected that this simple op-
eration would stabilise my eye.

But in my case, this simple procedure was complicated by previous cardiac surgery. Sev-
en years ago, my defective aortic heart valve was removed and replaced with a mechani-
cal aortic heart valve. Since then I have had to take warfarin every day to thin my blood,
thus preventing life-threatening blood clots from forming and causing serious cardiac dam-
age in my heart, brain, or lungs. Rather than reporting to the hospital the night before the
operation, I arrived two days before to start the process of thickening my blood for sur-
gery. I was put on another medicine that had a short-term and temporary effect of prevent-
ing clots from forming while my blood grew thicker. Rather than leaving the hospital the
day after the operation, I was told to expect to remain several days longer in order to thin
my blood again.

The operation early Monday, the third of June, was successful. I am grateful that I was
not awake for the surgery. Upon examining the buckle directly, the doctor did not re-
move the buckle, but did inject silicone gel into the eye. She had told me she would not
make a decision about the buckle until she could examine it while I was asleep. I went
through surgery well and did not experience pain. Upon examining my eye in the days
after the operation, the doctor was pleased with the condition of my eye. I was pleased
as well.

In the days following the surgery, the primary issue was not the condition of my eye af-
ter surgery, but the restoration of the thinness of my blood to the level it was before the
operation. I started taking warfarin again the evening after surgery, hoping that the re-
quired level would be reached within a couple days. I was kept on the other medicine to
prevent blood clots from forming while my warfarin level got back to normal. But the
couple of days became longer and longer; two or three days became seven days. I had
not expected that I would have to spend more than a couple of extra days in the hospital.

But looking back now, it is fortunate that I stayed longer in the hospital. On the Friday
following Monday's surgery, the right eye went through a traumatic conniption. I re-
ported the situation to the ward staff and a doctor came quickly to examine my eye. He
was concerned about the eye and almost arranged for emergency surgery early in the
morning. But later in the morning, the doctor saw that the eye had stabilised. Taking his
advice, I made the decision to postpone necessary surgery until Monday. On Saturday
I again stopped taking warfarin in preparation for surgery on Monday. The condition of
my eye was serious.

On Monday, the 10th of June, a week after the first operation, I again had surgery on
my right eye. The doctor removed the buckle and patched up a hole caused by the
buckle over the years. The buckle had been the primary cause of the recent problems
with my right eye. The surgery was serious because the condition of the eye was ser-
ious. I quickly recovered from the operation and the next day received the good news
that the operation had been successful. My concern again turned from the condition of
my eye to how long it would take to get my warfarin level up to where I would be al-
lowed to go home.

I started taking warfarin again Monday night, the day I had surgery. The eye felt good,
but I was not looking forward to waiting a long time for the warfarin level to get back
to normal. On Tuesday I received news that the warfarin level was going in the right
direction, even if slowly. But Wednesday afternoon I was informed that my warfarin
level was at the point where I would be allowed to go home. Wednesday night the doc-
tor gave her consent for me to go home. I was both surprised and shocked. It happened
so quickly. By 7 pm a friend had picked me up to take me home to St Fergus. I was
home by 8:30 pm.

I will be sharing more about my time in hospital in blog postings to come. I am grateful
to the LORD God for God's gracious presence with me through trying times. I am also
grateful to those who undergirded me in prayer. I struggled to learn how to use my
iPhone to keep friends informed of what was happening to me. There were a good
number of people I could not contact regarding my situation. But I know that I would
have been lost if I did not know that people were praying for me and that God was
powerfully present with me during this time of challenges with my eye. I spent twelve
days in the hospital. It feels so good to be out and to be home.

Blessings to you and yours,