11:30 pm on the 8th, Monica and I are allowed back to see Amanda in the PICU. Our friend Dr. Duncan is in charge of Amanda's case. There are at least 3 nurses fussing around Amanda, working to get her stable. Her condition is listed as critical but stable. Dr. Duncan gives us the run down on Amanda's condition. Amanda's lab work is all out of sorts. Her heart rate is up to 206, blood pressure is extremely low, and she is swelling because of the excess fluids that her body is producing. There are more IV's going then when she was coming out of transplant. A crash cart sits at the bottom of her bed. Dr. Duncan said they needed the extra meds and to ward off evil spirits.
12:05 am Monica and I leave the PICU and head to the transplant house which will be our home for several days while Amanda is recovering. We'll have to give up our beautiful room with all the cards and posters coming down tomorrow.
2:45 am We receive a call from PICU to confirm the use of a certain antibiotic on Amanda. They inform us that she is now on a cooling blanket because her fever went up to 106F which is extremely dangerous.
3:05 am Monica and I are back in the PICU to see Amanda and to get a full update on what's going on. Dr. Duncan leads us through all the IVs that are hanging (at least 10). She tells us that Amanda's labs are improving but that the fever is causing problems. There is also a lot of stress on the heart from the fluids in her body and the fever. Her blood pressure is stable but it had fallen. Amanda is on a dopamine and epinephrine drip to control her blood pressure. Amanda is completely out of it and is not feeling anything.
8:05 am My Father-in-law visited Amanda at 6:00am till now and wasn't allowed to stay in very long because Amanda's condition was changed to critical. He said there were nurses and doctors all around Amanda. He said it was hard to watch. Monica and I are on our way over. We'll keep you posted. We really need your prayers now.
Mike