Not a good day... Dad's accident

My Dad slipped on some ice on the road this morning while walking the dog.  He hit his head very hard, so hard that it caused a vein to bleed, and a major blood clot, besides hitting his elbow as well, and he has a huge swollen bump on it too, but they will deal with that after his head injury they said.

Dad said he passed out for a bit he thought, from the fall, but Lady, his dog, stayed by his side, and even licked his face, maybe helping him come to from the fall?  Dad took Lady into the house, and then drove himself to the local hospital (not a good idea to do it!).   He was x-rayed and had all sorts of tests, and they discovered a brain bleed and a blood clot, and transferred him by ambulance to St. Luke's Hospital in Milwaukee.

I, and several of my sisters went to the local hospital, then drove to Milwaukee and spent the day and evening there.  He has some great doctors, who have done a good job of reassuring Dad, and us, regarding the surgery he would be needing immediately this afternoon, which he did undergo.

This is one of the xrays they showed us of his blood clot ... the white area is the blood clot, and is growing, so surgery was very much needed.  The doctors said it was pushing the one side of his brain over into the other side, and it would be causing major problems.  They also indicated that there was still bleeding going on, and they needed to stop that.



Keeping Dad warm while waiting for
surgery.



Dad was alert, and talking (a lot!), and seemed in good spirits.   He was joking around a lot.  The only complaint we heard him voice was that his head was cold.. they did have some kind of fan or AC on, and so we took advantage of the sheets and blankets they had there and covered Dad up... he joked that he looked like a nun or something..*L*  I think Dad often jokes like that to ease the anxiety of the situation, which we all had much of, worrying about Dad and all.

 Unfortunately, Mom, who had an important meeting with her doctors today regarding her tests for cancer she had last week, couldn't be here before the surgery happened.  Mom found out good results, that the cancer had not spread, and it was a blessing to Dad to hear too, as he talked to Mom on the phone before he went in for his brain surgery.  Some of the other sisters, and brother, along with Mom, came to the hospital before Dad was out of surgery and we all waited together.

The surgery went very well, and within 2 - 3 hours after it, Dad was back to his room, he was alert and talking some, but tired.  We are all so thankful, and Mom too, especially for the prayers we knew were coming for Dad from all over!

We left around 8:30 p.m. so Dad could get some sleep... prayers for Dad are very much appreciated, and more updates will be coming in the next few days.  Doctors say Dad will most likely be there for at least 5 days or so.  Lord, in Your Mercy, hear our prayers!!