Saturday, August 11, 2007

The Day After

Today has definitely been a bit more mellow. I got up this morning at 10am feeling guilty that I had gotten some sleep when I should have been at the hospital all night making sure Garrett was well taken care of. The rational part of me said I would be no good to anyone without getting some rest. So I gave my husband into God's hands and relaxed into sleep for a few hours. I didn't get to bed till 3am. Hevenlee is still sleeping restlessly so I had to get up with her once or twice around 5am. Finally from 6-10am I slept deeply. The other 3 kids seem to be on a regular sleeping schedule now and have moved into this time zone! Praise God! I still don't know what time zone I am in:)
I checked my email to see if anyone had any insights and was delighted to see so many suggestions! I know we hate how people give their opinions so liberally in the states, but here we are practically hanging on them, so keep them coming. I am now pretty much the Doctor of the family! I want as much education as I can get, so we will not be caught by surprise next time! I didn't like not knowing what to do! That was probably the most frustrating thing of all.
Before heading to the hospital this morning, I headed to the store to get bananas. It didn't dawn on me until then that I had a cell phone now and could call Garrett directly! I called and he answered! He sounded tired and groggy but so much more coherent! "He was ALIVE!" was all I could think. That helped my mind rest more at ease! This terrible thought kept trying to creep into my mind all night that I might go to the hospital in the morning and find his bed empty! Then they would have to give me the bad news that he had died in the night while I had gotten some sleep! I had to work extra hard to chase such useless thoughts away. No use worrying about things unknown right? So needless to say it was good to talk to him.
When Saul and I got to the hospital Garrett greeted us warmly. I gave him the bananas, salt and toast (thanks everyone). He ate a banana right away. The nurse was getting ready to start him on another IV. So before she could we helped him to the restroom so he could give a urine sample. The nurse said he had taken in at least 2 liters of solution (I think that is half a gallon) and had not peed yet. The pee was way too dark, so they determined to keep him there a few more days. Bad news for Garrett. He will miss our first day at church. I know he is bummed.
When we got back from the bathroom with Garrett, who was walking by himself just fine. A little slow but on his own. The nurse hooked him up to the IV again. When she was done the metal post that held the solution leaned sadly over to the right. It was in desperate need of being replaced. It is like, this hospital has all the things we would throw away in the States.
The interesting thing here is that the hospitals in Lithuania or overly cautious and will keep you several days longer than necessary. If you were to go to the hospital for a cold they would actually check you into a room for a week. When you hit your due date for pregnancy you check into the hospital and wait it out! Yikes! I get the feeling that even the Lithuanians avoid going to the hospitals even though the government pays for it.
The conditions at the hospitals are horrible! It feels very dirty. You can tell they are lacking in sterilization in a big way! One of the nurses that dealt with Garrett last night, put on rubber gloves to help him and then stuck them back into her pocket when she was done. I am sure, to reuse them later. I was trying really hard not to go germaphobic while we were there.
The halls and the rooms are old and concrete with old paint. At least it didn't smell musty. Or maybe my smeller just doesn't work so well. The place looks like something out of an old movie that you just know couldn't possibly exist anymore. And yet....
This evening Garrett asked if I would bring him a dvd player so he could watch some movies tomorrow. Now I know he is feeling better. He even called me a few hours ago to see how things were going. Thanks for all your prayers! He is doing rather well!
Okay, one funny thing: Last night I left the hospital to go get Garrett some clothes. He was talking but still a bit dazed. Saul stayed behind so he could get the blow by blow from the Doctor (no one spoke any English this whole time). While I was gone Garrett looks out the window from his bed and says to Saul ," Do you see that?" Saul says no. Garrett goes on to say,"It's Sophi, she can't get back in." Saul looks out the window and says that it was not me. It wasn't till today when we were at the hospital and retelling him that funny story that we realized that Garrett didn't know that he was on the 7th floor.....The look on his face was priceless. It was really funny. But how nice of him huh? Worrying about his wife....
Well we are anticipating that things will only get better from here. The kids are very much anticipating the return of their father. The boys are realizing just how fragile life is, that God answers our prayers and that you better watch what you say and how you act because you may not get a chance to apologize for it later. A good lesson don't you think.
I learned that Garrett and I are in a good place. With the unknown last night and thinking he could quite possibly die, I realized that I have no regrets with him and that I was proud of the relationship we have between us and that I was ready to accept whatever God had in store for me/us. I am so glad that death was not something we would have to face at this time. I pray we are as ready to accept his decision though when the time does come.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. I hope it has something encouraging to offer you!

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