Resting Comfortably

A full day on the ventilator has reinforced the fact that he may not have been fully ready for extubation. While the two days were definitely good for his muscle development and breathing practice, he's much more comfortable now that he's got some extra support. He fussed for about an hour after they put the tube back in, mostly getting used to the feeling again. After that, he was far more relaxed.

In the last day, he's moved almost all the way back to his pre-extubation ventilator settings. He's down to 12 breaths per minute, which is the lowest they'll go for right now...yesterday, he was at 20. They've turned his oxygen down from the 50's (when he was extubated) to the 40's (yesterday after re-intubation) to the 20's...right now he's at about 26, which is only five percent above room air.

The doctors/nurses/respiratory therapists think that two or three days should be enough for him to take a breather and try again. There's no set date, but the doctors will make a decision whenever they think he's ready. I will certainly let you know and take more pictures when it happens.

On the feeding front, things are starting to look better in his stomach, but he's not quite ready. He still has some bile coming out of his stomach tube, though it's gotten lighter and less plentiful. They've taken the suction off his NG tube and are letting it drain using gravity...nothing has come out today.

Tired...going to bed...more late tomorrow night.