Sussex, WI
Randy and I were married just 2 months shy of 21 years, 35 years of friendship and share 5 children and 7 grandchildren.
His poor body just couldn’t keep up. We Love you Randy.
Left To Worry
“We went to the ER at 10:00am and I had to leave.”
Randy and I were married just 2 months shy of 21 years, 35 years of friendship and share 5 children and 7 grandchildren. Randy became ill on Wednesday Jan 5th with a bad cough and flu-like symptoms. He went to the doctor on Thursday and was diagnosed with Covid pneumonia. The Dr. sent him home with steroids and a pulse ox reader. We were supposed to do this 3xs a day. Early in the morning on Sunday, January 9th, his oxygen went down to 72! We went to the ER at 10:00am and I had to leave. So I left and waited for a phone call! Randy would update me a little and said they gave him oxygen right away and went for a ct scan but that’s about it. The waiting game began. Nothing from the hospital! Finally at 7:30 I called, apparently they were getting him into a room to be admitted and to call back later. Of course I can’t see him (which is bs). His anxiety and panic attacks were making his breathing worse! So to make a long story short he had been on 15 liters of oxygen since Monday January,10th.
No Communication
On Tuesday Jan 11th they told him he couldn’t go to the bathroom because his oxygen would plummet down too much! So they gave him a commode. On Wednesday the 12th they told him he could no longer sit up, he had to eat while laying on his side. He had a half mask so he had to take it off a little bit to take a bite, put it back on and chew! This whole time I never get updates. I had to call and bug the nurses and sometimes they wouldn’t tell me anything because he was alert and they told him. Well, he didn’t want to know because it just causes panic attacks! It was so hard not being able to be with him! And I was left in the dark sometimes (depending on the nurse) I could even sleep! I think he would have gotten better faster if I was in there! I truly believe many of these Covid patients are not dying of COVID, but of loneliness and being scared! So on Wednesday he was on 55 liters of oxygen. He went into the ICU Tuesday night and his breathing just got worse.
Isolation
“Why couldn’t I have a Covid test and dress in the same thing as the nurses?”
On Wednesday Jan 19, he got out of the Covid restrictions for visitors but the hospital closed its doors for visitors, except for the people having babies could have 1 person and dementia patients could have a person along with kids under the age of 18. But the ICU couldn’t? What kinda crap is that? These are the patients that really need a loved one! Why couldn’t I have a Covid test and dress in the same thing as the nurses? It’s horrible! The rest of this is from my journal entries on Caring Bridge. They tried a BiPAP for about an hour but it kept getting worse, probably because he was having a panic attack. Then he called me for FaceTime and said “I love you and tell the kids that I love them.” Then the nurse came on and said she’s going to call me when he was intubated. That would be the last time I heard his voice. On January 20, 2022 (11 days in hospital, 2 days on vent). He started on 100% oxygen and was on his belly for 20 hours and back for 4 hours.The doctor said to expect this for at least 6 days and then go another 6 days from there, and so on and so on! This would be an unknown process that no one knows. We would get to see him at night when the nurse had time to.
Days Of Suffering
“Maybe if his wrists and ankles were tied down, he would not have freak out and had a panic attack and needed more levels of oxygen!”
On January 21, 2022 (13 days in the hospital, 4 on the vent), I talked to the Doc. and Randy is at 60% oxygen which is awesome to think he started at 100% on Wednesday! He was in stable condition. We waited all night for FaceTime! We were told they would do this every night between 7 and 10! 10:30 came and nothing! I finally called and the nurse said she didn’t know how to do it! Really?!?? So a bummer of a night, I looked forward to this all day! The next day the nurse called to FaceTime me with Randy and his oxygen was at 50%! It was so AWESOME to see him, even though it was a screen.
On January 25, 2022 (17 days in the hospital and 7 days on the vent) I finally got to see him. For an hour and a half I got to hold his hand and touch him!!! He opened his eyes for a split sec! I can’t tell you all how awesome it was!! That was a victory, if only for a day.
On January 26, 2022 (18 days in the hospital and 8 days on the ventilator). They
increased his sedation. He was awake and trying to push himself up and "tongue" his tube out, 60-70%! Maybe if his wrists and ankles were tied down, he would not have freak out and had a panic attack and needed more levels of oxygen! Why couldn’t they just take out the tube and see how he did?
This Was My Husband
On January 29, 2022 (21 days in the hospital and 11 days on the ventilator) He was back up at 75% oxygen! Every time they tried to wean him off of sedation because he did so well, he had a panic attack because he had a ventilator down his throat! He needed me! Holding his hand and telling him it’s going to be ok! I just don’t understand how they wouldn’t let me in there!!! I was so done with rules and it’s to protect the nurses!!! BS THIS WAS MY HUSBANDS LIFE!!! The longer on the ventilator the more critical! How could they not understand?!
On February 08, 2022 (31 days in the hospital and 21 days on the ventilator) I finally got in to see Randy again, but it wasn’t a good day. The nurses did not realize that his catheter bag got plugged, he couldn’t go potty and it backed up into his kidneys and ultimately caused kidney failure. He was put on dialysis. If I was there, I could have said something was wrong, this is the ICU. This is where they should have one on one with the patients. His kidneys continued to get worse while on dialysis.
On February 10, 2022, we were at the point where we were all saying goodbye to My best friend, husband, the best Dad a kid could ask for! A son, Brother, Grandfather and a friend that you would be proud to be a part of his life! His poor body just couldn’t keep up. We Love you Randy.
