Jana Sat 7/5

I tried to see Jana today, but she wasn't able to take visitors this afternoon. Poor thing, she had to get a new IV put in, and it took 3 tries for the nurse to get it inserted properly! Afterwards, she was comforted by her parents, and she was able to get a little bit of rest too. It was a tough afternoon with pain, agitation, restlessness and response to the pain meds. She often needs Benadryl to counter the side effects of other meds, but the dosage frequency isn't matched (for the two) so basically she sometimes has to endure symptoms of an "allergic reaction" before she can get the next dose of Benadryl, and then there is truly physical relief. They also did another CAT scan today, but didn't have the results yet (at the time I left).

Backing up, Thursday night, I was there late. She talked to the doctor about her headaches, and he added a new pain medication which should give her some relief, though they are still working on determining the best dosage. She is still pretty coherent, but continues to struggle periodically with timelines and events. We're not sure how much and to what extent the meds are affecting her memory at this point. Thursday afternoon, a physical therapist came in to do some leg exercises, I'm assuming to prevent muscle atrophy. That night she was coughing, which is extremely painful both in her chest, and her head due to the pressure. The doctor said that was normal and to practice deep breathing to expand her lungs. They have given her a machine to assist in this treatment, though it hadn't arrived while I was there. She hasn't had any restraints for several days (just a precautionary measure so that she doesn't pull out tubing) when she is restless or in pain. Hopefully those days are behind us.
Jana is now taking food trays, but has primarily only been drinking juice and milk. She was complaining that it is difficult to chew. Today though, she had some graham crackers with peanut butter! Not only will this help her physically, it is also beneficial for her to take meds with food in her stomach.
On a side note (if anyone actually reads this, haha) the waiting room does have a refrigerator, but any food items you might bring for the family need to be inside a labeled plastic bag (like a Wal-Mart sack). Also, the family has a spiral in the waiting room for guests to "sign in" to keep track of visitors.