First, thank you for all the notes either via email or posted on Facebook! The many, many notes that came in deeply touched my mother, sister, aunt, and father.
Dad was scheduled for a procedure/surgery this morning at 11:30am (EST); this was going to be an attempt at restarting the upper part of his heart (as of this morning that part of his heart was not working).
After only 2 hours of the predicted 6 hours (at about 1:30pm) the doctor came out and said that they were not able to restart the upper part of his heart; there is nothing more that they can do for him.
In addition, they discovered that a total of 5 arteries are blocked; this is different then what we were told yesterday, that 1 artery was blocked. These 5 arteries are inoperable as his heart is too weak for open heart surgery.
My father will be released from the hospital sometime in the next few days. He will definitely have a change of lifestyle from this day forward. The doctors have said that his life expectancy can be 1 day, 1 month, or maybe another year. For those of you who know him and have gone through his many heart problems in the past; you will probably join us (his family) in that it won't be a surprise if he lived another 5 years.
The fact that he remains alive at this moment is ONLY because God has decided that my fathers life is not over yet.
This has been a good time for us as a family, being able to talk about things and making decisions that need to be made. God remains in control... no matter how much we try to plan what tomorrow may bring... God remains in control!
As for me....
My health continues to provide some entertainment as it's never the same from one day to the next.
In regards to finances... God has allowed me to stay in the home that I am renting; He has allowed this by providing for my needs one day at a time, and usually to the penny.
With my Lord's help I have been able to hold 2 yard sales in the last month. Both have been very successful and God has given me the strength to pull them off (that in itself is nothing short of a miracle). A third yard sale is planned for this coming Saturday, another on Monday, and yet a fifth on the following Saturday.
If you haven't realized it yet, the God I serve asks that we walk by faith and not by sight.
2 Corinthians 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.
I wasn't really able to grasp that scripture until a few months ago when my youngest grandson was learning to walk. When he had hold of someones hand he would run; it didn't matter to him what obstacles were or were not around him. He trusted that whoever was leading him would take care of him. Sometimes he would fall, but he immediately looked up; once he realized that he was still holding on he would jump up and start running again.
Yet, when he was trying to walk on his own he would fall to the ground and start crawling. Even when he tried to walk around furniture he still wasn't sure of himself... he was walking in fear.
That's how it is with my Heavenly Father, as long as I am looking into His eyes and holding on to His hand I have nothing to fear (this means reading the Word of God daily; additionally having daily conversation with my Lord through prayer). Lately my Lord and I have been on an obstacle course with finances and health but He has NOT let me down.
Do I get nervous? Absolutely...
Do I wish that things would go smoothly; if even for a short time? Definitely...
But I do not fear what tomorrow will hold because my Lord already knows my future.
Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, YES, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Love to all,
Diana
Monday, August 30, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Update - My Father
There are few things in life that one can be certain of... but the one thing I know is that my God reigns, He is in control, and regardless of what this life brings He is good all the time. His ways are perfect and He is always worthy to be praised.
This update is primarily for friends and family... yes, you all are my friends, but the next few updates will be regarding my parents and those who know them.
I do apologize for the bluntness of this note but is seemed to be the easiest way of contacting everyone who knows my parents, both family and friends.
Those who know my father are already aware that he has had a heart condition for the last 30 or so years. Through his life he has had several heart attacks, two open heart surgeries, many bypasses, and angioplasties. For the last several years he has suffered from congestive heart failure, has a pace maker and a defibrillator.
This past Wednesday afternoon at 4:00pm (EST) I had a conversation with him on the phone; by 4:30pm he was calling 911 and complaining of chest pains. Today as I write this he is hanging on to life.
He currently has a blocked artery located behind his heart; this is inoperable due to the weakness of his heart.
The lower part of his heart is working with the aid of a pacemaker. The upper part of his heart is fluttering and not functioning. This coming Monday, at 2:00pm (EST) they will take him into surgery (6 - 8 hours) with an attempt at restarting the upper part of his heart.
The doctors are at a crossroads with keeping his blood thin enough to allow flow through the blocked artery and yet not to thin as to where he will bleed out (he is currently having constant nose bleeds).
The primary concern are blood clots and the possibility that he will stroke out... for our family and the doctors, this would be worse then his passing away.
Without going into further detail... it does not appear that my father will be coming home from the hospital; but instead passing on into eternal with His Lord and Savior.
My sister arrived in Florida this evening and my Aunt Shirley will be arriving their tomorrow (Sunday) morning. Please keep my aunt in prayer as well; she has dealt with the loss of many in her life to include her husband, mother, and most recently her son.
I'm sending this out to ask for a couple of things, the first is for prayer... in regards to my father, that God would extend his mercy and prevent my father from having a stroke; but most importantly, that God's will be done in my fathers life.
Then, prayer for my mother; please ask God to carry her through this; she is physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.
And finally, to those of you who know my parents... If you could take a few moments and write my mother and father a short note of encouragement I would personally appreciate it. Please email them to me at grandmadianau@yahoo.com and I will forward it on to them. Our goal is to receive them by Sunday evening so that they can be read to my father & mother before his surgery on Monday. Send whatever is on your heart... a scripture, prayer, or a simple note would be wonderful.
I'm sure this is confusing, so I apologize... I'm very tired at the moment but felt the need to get this out as I wanted to give everyone a chance to send him a note.
Please forward this information on to those who will pray and to those who you think might want to know.
Love to all,
Diana
This update is primarily for friends and family... yes, you all are my friends, but the next few updates will be regarding my parents and those who know them.
I do apologize for the bluntness of this note but is seemed to be the easiest way of contacting everyone who knows my parents, both family and friends.
Those who know my father are already aware that he has had a heart condition for the last 30 or so years. Through his life he has had several heart attacks, two open heart surgeries, many bypasses, and angioplasties. For the last several years he has suffered from congestive heart failure, has a pace maker and a defibrillator.
This past Wednesday afternoon at 4:00pm (EST) I had a conversation with him on the phone; by 4:30pm he was calling 911 and complaining of chest pains. Today as I write this he is hanging on to life.
He currently has a blocked artery located behind his heart; this is inoperable due to the weakness of his heart.
The lower part of his heart is working with the aid of a pacemaker. The upper part of his heart is fluttering and not functioning. This coming Monday, at 2:00pm (EST) they will take him into surgery (6 - 8 hours) with an attempt at restarting the upper part of his heart.
The doctors are at a crossroads with keeping his blood thin enough to allow flow through the blocked artery and yet not to thin as to where he will bleed out (he is currently having constant nose bleeds).
The primary concern are blood clots and the possibility that he will stroke out... for our family and the doctors, this would be worse then his passing away.
Without going into further detail... it does not appear that my father will be coming home from the hospital; but instead passing on into eternal with His Lord and Savior.
My sister arrived in Florida this evening and my Aunt Shirley will be arriving their tomorrow (Sunday) morning. Please keep my aunt in prayer as well; she has dealt with the loss of many in her life to include her husband, mother, and most recently her son.
I'm sending this out to ask for a couple of things, the first is for prayer... in regards to my father, that God would extend his mercy and prevent my father from having a stroke; but most importantly, that God's will be done in my fathers life.
Then, prayer for my mother; please ask God to carry her through this; she is physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.
And finally, to those of you who know my parents... If you could take a few moments and write my mother and father a short note of encouragement I would personally appreciate it. Please email them to me at grandmadianau@yahoo.com and I will forward it on to them. Our goal is to receive them by Sunday evening so that they can be read to my father & mother before his surgery on Monday. Send whatever is on your heart... a scripture, prayer, or a simple note would be wonderful.
I'm sure this is confusing, so I apologize... I'm very tired at the moment but felt the need to get this out as I wanted to give everyone a chance to send him a note.
Please forward this information on to those who will pray and to those who you think might want to know.
Love to all,
Diana
Friday, June 18, 2010
June 18, 2010
I'm really going to make an attempt at sending these out on a regular basis. There is so much to share about the day-to-day goings-on and how God is continuing to work in my life.
Most of you who are reading this already know my story. Recently God allowed me to see a scripture that I have read over and over again; but this time it applied to me in a different way. This specific scripture will allow me to more easily share how God has worked in my life over the last several weeks.
The scripture is the entirety of Psalm 116; but in an attempt at shortening this entry I am selecting just a few of the verses.
Psalm 116:1, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 19
Verse 1 reads
I love the Lord, because He hears my voice and my supplications.
I have cried out to the Lord daily over the past several years in regards to my health. I've gone from being in relatively good health to lying in a hospital bed not knowing if God was going to allow me to take another breathe. I knew my Lord heard me, but I also knew that His choice for me during those times was with the answer being no or not right now.
Verse 4 reads
I called upon the name of the Lord: "O Lord, I beseech you, save my life!"
My plea at times would be Lord, please heal my body and restore my health. Other times I would cry out to Him that I no longer wanted to live a life of constant pain along with a continued deterioration of my health.
Verse 9 reads
I shall walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
Most of you are aware that I have recently undergone one of the more serious of the multitude of surgeries that I have experienced over the last 8 years.
The doctors had given me a 50% chance of surviving this surgery. (If you are unfamiliar with my story then you will need to spend some time reading this blog to catch up.)
The surgery went extremely well and I was not put on life support. (It was fully expected that I would be kept on a respirator for at least the beginning of my recovery. This ended up being one of many miracles from my Lord over the last several weeks.)
And then the waiting began... Would the constant (almost every minute of every day) migraines continue? Would I regain the feeling and strength in my left arm?
When I first awoke from surgery I was furious... I was in more pain at that time then I was in prior to surgery. The problem was believed that my right shoulder had been dislocated during surgery (I will explain that later); that turned out not to be the case (thank God). However, the first 2 - 3 days after surgery were spent on pain management and determining whether I would ever have use of this arm again (and this was my good arm prior to having surgery). Eventually the shoulder pain went away and I regained full use of that arm.
The numbness and strength in my left arm didn't disappear immediately as I believed that it would. I still have occasional numbness and loss of strength in that arm; but this too is a story for another day.
But there was one thing that did change; and this change was huge.
As time has passed over the last several weeks I have continued to converse with my Lord asking, has this really happened... have you really healed me from these headaches? It was then that I began to realize that I hadn't had one headache since the day of surgery (April 19th).
Verse 12 reads
What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?
It is true! Lord, my Lord, you have healed me from the headaches I have had for the last 3 1/2 years. The same headaches that have kept me bedridden nearly everyday of those 3 1/2 years.
How do I begin to thank my Lord for all that He had done for me?
Verse 18 reads
I shall pay my vows to the Lord, may it be in the presence of all His people.
Well it's been 2 months now and I have been sharing this miracle with just a few of you. After reading this scripture I realized that not only did I have a desire to, but that I needed to share this great and marvelous miracle with all of you!
Verse 19 reads
In the courts of the Lord's house; In the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Praise The Lord!
Take a moment and Praise the name of the Lord with me!
********
The Lord had been prodding me to send out this update for some time now; publicly thanking and giving praise to the One who has begun a healing in my body. The following scripture verse has continued to come to my mind and heart as I continue to rejoice.
Isaiah 55:12
For you shall go out with joy, and be lead out with peace. The mountains and the hills shall break into singing before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Love to you all,
Diana
Most of you who are reading this already know my story. Recently God allowed me to see a scripture that I have read over and over again; but this time it applied to me in a different way. This specific scripture will allow me to more easily share how God has worked in my life over the last several weeks.
The scripture is the entirety of Psalm 116; but in an attempt at shortening this entry I am selecting just a few of the verses.
Psalm 116:1, 4, 6, 9, 12, 18, 19
Verse 1 reads
I love the Lord, because He hears my voice and my supplications.
I have cried out to the Lord daily over the past several years in regards to my health. I've gone from being in relatively good health to lying in a hospital bed not knowing if God was going to allow me to take another breathe. I knew my Lord heard me, but I also knew that His choice for me during those times was with the answer being no or not right now.
Verse 4 reads
I called upon the name of the Lord: "O Lord, I beseech you, save my life!"
My plea at times would be Lord, please heal my body and restore my health. Other times I would cry out to Him that I no longer wanted to live a life of constant pain along with a continued deterioration of my health.
Verse 9 reads
I shall walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
Most of you are aware that I have recently undergone one of the more serious of the multitude of surgeries that I have experienced over the last 8 years.
The doctors had given me a 50% chance of surviving this surgery. (If you are unfamiliar with my story then you will need to spend some time reading this blog to catch up.)
The surgery went extremely well and I was not put on life support. (It was fully expected that I would be kept on a respirator for at least the beginning of my recovery. This ended up being one of many miracles from my Lord over the last several weeks.)
And then the waiting began... Would the constant (almost every minute of every day) migraines continue? Would I regain the feeling and strength in my left arm?
When I first awoke from surgery I was furious... I was in more pain at that time then I was in prior to surgery. The problem was believed that my right shoulder had been dislocated during surgery (I will explain that later); that turned out not to be the case (thank God). However, the first 2 - 3 days after surgery were spent on pain management and determining whether I would ever have use of this arm again (and this was my good arm prior to having surgery). Eventually the shoulder pain went away and I regained full use of that arm.
The numbness and strength in my left arm didn't disappear immediately as I believed that it would. I still have occasional numbness and loss of strength in that arm; but this too is a story for another day.
But there was one thing that did change; and this change was huge.
As time has passed over the last several weeks I have continued to converse with my Lord asking, has this really happened... have you really healed me from these headaches? It was then that I began to realize that I hadn't had one headache since the day of surgery (April 19th).
Verse 12 reads
What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?
It is true! Lord, my Lord, you have healed me from the headaches I have had for the last 3 1/2 years. The same headaches that have kept me bedridden nearly everyday of those 3 1/2 years.
How do I begin to thank my Lord for all that He had done for me?
Verse 18 reads
I shall pay my vows to the Lord, may it be in the presence of all His people.
Well it's been 2 months now and I have been sharing this miracle with just a few of you. After reading this scripture I realized that not only did I have a desire to, but that I needed to share this great and marvelous miracle with all of you!
Verse 19 reads
In the courts of the Lord's house; In the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Praise The Lord!
Take a moment and Praise the name of the Lord with me!
********
The Lord had been prodding me to send out this update for some time now; publicly thanking and giving praise to the One who has begun a healing in my body. The following scripture verse has continued to come to my mind and heart as I continue to rejoice.
Isaiah 55:12
For you shall go out with joy, and be lead out with peace. The mountains and the hills shall break into singing before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
Love to you all,
Diana
Saturday, May 15, 2010
May 15, 2010
I'm doing pretty good.
Haven't had any headaches since the surgery.
My neck swells easily so I keep ice on it and continue with Motrin.
I went out for two hours with my mother yesterday and did pretty good; with the exemption being a very swollen neck.
The coughing is still pretty intense and I'm up most of the night with that. One day left on the current antibiotics and steroids. I will be calling the doctor tomorrow to let her know there isn't any change with the cough.
My neck swells when I do too much... My arm no longer gives me problems during the night. The only time I have problems with my arm is when my neck is swollen.
Haven't had any headaches since the surgery.
My neck swells easily so I keep ice on it and continue with Motrin.
I went out for two hours with my mother yesterday and did pretty good; with the exemption being a very swollen neck.
The coughing is still pretty intense and I'm up most of the night with that. One day left on the current antibiotics and steroids. I will be calling the doctor tomorrow to let her know there isn't any change with the cough.
My neck swells when I do too much... My arm no longer gives me problems during the night. The only time I have problems with my arm is when my neck is swollen.
Monday, May 10, 2010
May 10, 2010
Thank you all for your prayers! God is good and I am feeling great!
I haven't been able to respond to many of you, but please know that I appreciate the prayers, thoughts, cards, emails, phone calls, flowers, clean house, Facebook comments, and everything else that has been sent my way.
This update is from me; at least this one is... I can't promise that I will be the author of the next one, but I am taking this one day at a time.... so here goes.
The last few days have consisted of a little more pain then usual. I slipped and fell in the shower on Friday; I don't think additional injury was done but it has caused a greater amount of pain.
No more stand alone showers for me... for the immediate future it means that I will be showering supervised with a shower chair.
I'm not sure if life can get any more humbling then wearing diapers and now showering supervised with a shower chair... lol.
The COPD symptoms have been increasing; this means my mother and I have been getting up several times each night for breathing treatments and medications. Additional medications were added but they didn't make any difference. The doctor called today to tell me she is starting me back on antibiotics and steroids as of tonight.
My daughter spent a couple days in the hospital last week with a headache that just won't go away. They are sending her to UCLA for further testing... this will take place in a couple weeks. I'm trusting God that these are migraines that can be controlled with medication. Meanwhile, please keep her and her family in your prayers.
My father has been staying busy around the house getting many handyman projects done... this has been wonderful!
And last, I have a goal to meet! My little Nathanial is turning 1 on the 19th of this month... can you believe it? My goal is to make it to his 1st Birthday party!
Love to all,
Diana
I haven't been able to respond to many of you, but please know that I appreciate the prayers, thoughts, cards, emails, phone calls, flowers, clean house, Facebook comments, and everything else that has been sent my way.
This update is from me; at least this one is... I can't promise that I will be the author of the next one, but I am taking this one day at a time.... so here goes.
The last few days have consisted of a little more pain then usual. I slipped and fell in the shower on Friday; I don't think additional injury was done but it has caused a greater amount of pain.
No more stand alone showers for me... for the immediate future it means that I will be showering supervised with a shower chair.
I'm not sure if life can get any more humbling then wearing diapers and now showering supervised with a shower chair... lol.
The COPD symptoms have been increasing; this means my mother and I have been getting up several times each night for breathing treatments and medications. Additional medications were added but they didn't make any difference. The doctor called today to tell me she is starting me back on antibiotics and steroids as of tonight.
My daughter spent a couple days in the hospital last week with a headache that just won't go away. They are sending her to UCLA for further testing... this will take place in a couple weeks. I'm trusting God that these are migraines that can be controlled with medication. Meanwhile, please keep her and her family in your prayers.
My father has been staying busy around the house getting many handyman projects done... this has been wonderful!
And last, I have a goal to meet! My little Nathanial is turning 1 on the 19th of this month... can you believe it? My goal is to make it to his 1st Birthday party!
Love to all,
Diana
Friday, May 7, 2010
May 6, 2010
Staples removed today so hopefully itching will subside. Still not feeling tip top. The prescription cough syrup did help, however, so fewer night time breathing treatments. This helps Diana's mother get more sleep, too, as she administers the treatments. Diana's dad is going strong with household projects for Diana.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
May 4, 2010
Diana went to see her Primary Care Physician today. She was given a prescription cough syrup to try and squelch her cough instead of the steroids and antibiotic like before. Hopefully this will give her the rest she is not getting at night. One staple came out by mistake. Her scar is really itchy.
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