Tick, Tick, Tick

June 7, 2005 Bill looked over his shoulder and said "See Ya"!  We had anticipated this day for many years, not believing it would actually come; hoping it would not have to come.  As he rolled through those doors, I knew in my heart that our life would never be the same again; it wasn't. It took my breath away, but I had to keep cool.  As long as I was ok, he was ok.

We received the call very unexpectedly at 11:00 am. "Bill, we have lungs for you, if you are interested"; the voice on the other end of the phone stated.  "You need to be here in two hours".

Tick, tick, tick....a new clock had begun ticking away time.  Bill had always said that he would put off having a lung transplant as long as possible because once he took that step, he would have nothing to fall back on if he got too sick.  Having the option to pursue a lung transplant gave him a "fall back" option.  Tick, tick, tick.

Our daughter had moved there with us.  Everything worked out perfectly that she would be on summer break and could be there with us and help.  We were so thankful to have her there.  I'm sure it was more difficult for her than she is willing/able to admit even today.  We now sat together alone in the surgical waiting room through the night waiting for word from the OR that things were moving along well.  A call came about 9 pm that the surgeons were deciding what to do.  The lungs had arrived and they were discussing whether to replace his mitral valve or repair it.  All was well.  No other call came from the OR that night.  Finally, about midnight the surgeon came and told us that all went well and to wait in the ICU waiting room.  We would be able to see him once they got him settled into the ICU.  We stood waiting in the hall because there were people asleep in the waiting room.  One of my sisters had arrived with her daughter to support us.  No one came to tell us we could see him.  Hours went by and no word.  I walked back to the surgical hall and looked toward the door.  Just then I saw the lead transplant walk up to the doors surgeon glance at me, put his head down and walk through the doors without a word.  My heart sank; my soul cried out to the Lord.....please don't let anything be wrong.  In my heart of hearts I knew.

Awhile later the surgical fellow came out of the OR and said "We beat his heart up pretty bad".  He may have had a stroke.  We waited and waited.  Finally, at about 3:00 am we saw them roll Bill from the OR to ICU. He was alive.

Over the next several days so many things happened I can't remember them all.  Bill survived, but he had permanent heart damage and permanent kidney damage.  We didn't know these things initially. We only learned these things over time.  He may have had a stroke, he may have experienced an air embolus, he may have suffered a heart attack.  The list went on and on.  But by God's Grace and Mercy Bill survived.

Over the next few weeks, he was moved to step down and eventually to our apartment to recover and begin pulmonary rehab. When he was released from the hospital he was receiving five IV medications.  For the first two weeks, I was starting an IV medication every two hours around the clock.  His new lungs came with two infections that were unknown to the transplant team at the time of his transplant.  One infection is deadly to Cystic Fibrosis patients but Bill continued to survive due to aggressive treatment and the Lord's plans for him. He was limited in his rehab recovery because he had to go to hemo dialysis three days each week and clinic appointments.  After a month of hemo dialysis his kidneys had recovered enough to stop dialysis.  After almost six months we were able to move back home and begin a new life.

Bill savored every breath!  He couldn't remember a time when he could breath so easily.  In spite of all of the other complications he had to deal with, being able to breath again was what it was all about in the first place.

Tick, tick tick....the new clock had begun ticking away with nothing to fall back on.  The Lord gave him seven years with us and more blessings than we can fully know.  Much of our post transplant life continued to be complicated and difficult, but we trusted in the Lord's care to sustain us and carry us on eagles wings as He promised He would do.  To HIS honor and glory.

I praise the Lord for His Grace and Mercy that he so generously showered us with, over and over again.  Every need we had He met, every tear we shed He has kept. He continues to carry our family and sustain us.