Sunday May 22 – Day 3 Post Op

We are so blessed!!!!! I know you all want to hear about Nicks surgery, but first I have to share the greatest blessing so far. Fener’s long time best friend Mike Nootbaar (Pooty!) and his AMAZING wife Jen have hooked us up with their trailer to stay in….in the hospital parking lot! Me and Nicks family now have a place to stay nearby, a place to rest during shift changes and in the middle of the night. All to be closer to Nick! Thank you for your selfless service Mike and Jen! I just can’t even believe it. Such a burden has been lifted, and now I can get to work helping Nick recover. In fact, I will not stop until Nick has his life back. That is my only mission in life right now. So, we got to see him this evening after surgery. Everything went according to plan. His vitals are stable and he’s sleeping peacefully. They put the rod in his back and fused his L4 and L5 (which I thought they were removing, but was wrong I guess.) There is visible damage to his nerves that extend below his spinal cord. Specifically to the nerves that control his bladder and bowels. Now I know it seems as though Nicks flatulence couldn’t possibly get any worse, but honestly, I don’t really know what this will mean for his future. They also reported that his nerves appeared to be so damaged that he will not have any motor/sensory function to any part below his knees. Fuck that! He was moving his legs yesterday, and had feeling everywhere except the big toe side of his feet and the bottoms of his feet. So I’m very optimistic that they’re wrong. They were also able to close up his abdomen incision from when they removed his spleen on Friday. The entire surgery took 13 hours! He is definitely MUCH more swollen than yesterday. His eyelids are puffy, his hands and arms are really thick, and of course his feet are pretty huge. But overall, things are looking pretty good, considering the severity of his injuries. Even though they had him heavily sedated, I spent most of my time speaking softly in his ear, encouraging him to relax, and planting the seeds of strength and courage and love in his mind. Just because he is unconscious, that does not mean his mind is not absorbing the stimulus of his surroundings. His nurse and respiratory therapist this evening were excellent! They both genuinely cared about our feelings and about who Nick is. Professional would be a gross understatement. They didn’t kick me out at 9:30pm like they were supposed to. I stayed til 10:45, and at that point they even said that I didn’t need to go yet. I’m very aware that right now is the “easy” time. I cannot express into words the love and gratitude I have for each and every one of you who have reached out to us. I appreciate every call, every text, every hug! Thank you!