:D :D :beer: :thumb: :beer: :D :D

Good to hear the GREAT news, Els.:) Hope all the good vibes continue your way so you and your son can soon be back together at home, safe and happy.:joylove:

Good news, thank goodness!! I was beside myself with grief as I read this thread. :( I know it'll be hard, but try to stay strong for your son. Don't let old memories get the best of you.:)

I'm pulling for you and your son. I wish you all the luck in the world.

Sidhe

The brain is an amazing thing, ya know? Just yesterday morning I feared my son might be even more impaired as a result of his shunt revision, and tonight, I'm sitting in the living room with him watching The Simpsons and eating ice cream.

He's still a bit foggy, and seems to need rather a lot of sleep, but he is cognizant and oriented when awake, and rather curious as to just what the hell has been going on lately (he remembers pretty much nothing after a few weeks ago).

I want to again thank my Cellar family for all the positive vibes sent out. I sit here as a witness to tell you that it does, without a doubt, work, and my boy is living proof (this is twice, now, actually, in his relatively short life).

Next time anyone tells you prayer, or positive energy or whatever you want to call it, is a bunch of hooie, you tell them I said they are full of shit and can prove it!

Gods bless us, everyone!

WhooHoo Els, glad to hear Steve is home and doing well. Not sure if witches celebrate Christmas, but this recent turn of events must be the best Christmas present for you, ever.:) It seems as though you are correct about the prayer, vibe thing, along with the fact that you are a great dad who loves his son beyond anything else. I'm happy for you both, I hope my vibes helped.:D

Keep all those vibes coming, my friends...we aren't out of the woods yet. Steve has been back to have his shunt tapped a second time, and he is suffering some pretty severe swelling under his scalp, moving down his face (he looks like Popeye right now, with one eye swollen nearly shut). A mostly clear fluid oozes occasionally from his sutured incision, which is the approximate site of the VP shunt reservoir/valve.

We aren't sure if what is going on is just normal fluid to be expected from the post-surgery situation and the two shunt taps he's had (large-gauge needles inserted into the assembly to draw off cerebrospinal fluid directly from the brain via the shunt), or if there is perhaps a leakage of cerebrospinal fluid which is accumulating under his scalp. His whole face was swelled up this morning on the side upon which he'd slept all night.

His cognition has been mostly fair, but it slips during the day. He sleeps more than the doctor would like, and he has continual head pain (although it is hard to discern if it is from internal pressure or pressure from the swelling). What we are seeing has been stated as being a possible part of expected recovery, but it could also be the beginnings of signs of trouble. We simply cannot say at present.

He will be CAT scanned again on Monday. If his ventricles are still enlarged, it is likely he will have an entire new shunt installation. That means Xmas in hospital, and another post surgical adjustment period.

We fear he may lose his meager job, his apartment, his independence. We fear that he will be set back, instead of moving forward, something which we have all worked hard to have him do.

So keep the energies, the vibes and the prayers coming, please? We're all still a bit frightened, and he isn't out of the woods yet.

You know we will man. Try to find peace in your heart. blessings g

**grabs her goddess doll and does a good luck dance around it**

Wishing you all the best. I will be praying for you guys.

I'm in. We're with you.

Just back from hospital. Steve is on, like, four different antibiotics. The shunt site is badly infected, and the whole installation may need to be replaced. We'll know in a few days, after we see how the antibiotics are working.

Xmas in the hospital...

With any luck, someone from what most hospitals call the christmas jewcrew will be getting dressed up in a ratty santa suit and come around to everybody on the ward trying to cheer them up ... and don't forget the inevitable bow on the iv stand ... in fact, if they don't give your son one, you should take care of that yourself ... hang a stocking off the unused post.

We're discussing what else to try and do for him to make it a little cheerier. He's getting rather depressed, I'm afraid.

His mother is with him tonight (I spent last night until about 1:30 this afternoon), and she saw the doctor, who didn't make rounds until nearly 6:00. The neurosurgeon incised his abdomen and pulled out the lower portion of the shunt tubing (essentially, the output/drain end which runs into his peritoneum) and is allowing it to drain externally so that he can more easily sample the CSF and check its flow rate.

However, the neuro has pretty much determined that, once the infection is beaten back in a couple of days, he is going to remove the entire now-revised but possibly malfunctioning shunt installation, and implant a new one from scratch on the left side of his head.

Strange as it sounds, this is the more conservative approach as he will be operating with uninfected, untraumatized tissue, and will have control of the assembly from start to finish. It will, however, mean drilling another hole in his skull, and pullng another set of tubes subcue.

We're already pretty tired around here. It is hard to work full time and be in the hospital full time. Send strength, please. We all need it, especially Steve.

I hate to be a mojo beggar at this time of year, when people already have enough going on , but...well, I'll whore myself for my kid if I have to. Who wouldn't?