339) My First Walk with Mordechai

March 11, 2009
Wednesday

NAMC: I wake up at about 8:30, barely conscious that they have already awakened me for vitals (and weighing... my first time out of bed!) and morning meds. Liz wakes up about the same time and we get ready for a new day. The new team is Nurse Luvi and Tech Nena (both from the Phillapines) and Nena is married to the assisting nurse during my transplant. Luvi explains that I can take pain pills 3x a day if necessary.

I am still a little Whacky and this day is confusing as to its agenda and what happened when. I have to walk today and count my farts! Counting farts in a preclude to my first bowel movement. Bernadette is here for teaching and gives us tons of info that we must read in the Patient Manual and then take the open book test over.

Sometime late in the morning Luvi takes me for my first walk, about 45 minutes after I take a pain pill... and the walk is up and down my side of the hall... probably not more than about 100 ft. I am winded afterwards but it feels good to walk.

<-- Resting after one of my walks] About lunch time I take another longer walk with Nena and we walk completely around out module (there's three of these modules on 4N). Afterwards I am out of breathe and yet I feel better than the last walk and realize the truth in what the staff all says: "The more you walk the better you feel". After I rest up a bit I do my Inspirato and get my score up to 2000.

Kim my Boss comes to visit and after the transplant story she says, "We need to name that kidney" and within a few minutes I come up with "Mordechai" who is Esther's <---Mordechai on right] cousin & co-savior of Jewish people in the Purim story, and then Liz quickly adds "the Miracle Kidney"! So the new addition's name is Mordechai the Miracle Kidney. Then we talk about business for about 20 minutes: the options; the ways to get my job done; the health of the office; i.e., how everyone always works while sick rather than stay home and recoup; etc.

Cheryl calls and reports she was trying to visit, but has been stuck in traffic so long she has to turn around to get to her next stop ... it has been RAINING since we came to the hospital.

Dr. Lewis stops in to change my dressing and Liz takes a quick pic of my staples before he dresses it up again. [My staples --->

Dinner is brought to Liz by Aunt Diane and Aaron and I eat quesadillas, beans, and brocoli... things I haven't eaten much of at all for 3 and a half years! We watch LOST and Tugboat Annie. Luvi hugs Liz when she leaves, telling Eric the Nurse that Liz is very helpful.

Notes: Creatinine 3.6; BP 135/60; two walks!