Korea Update

I keep forgetting to put down the updates I get from RJ about Tita San! Apparently, Tita San has been in a pretty good mood, waving (as her tubes will allow her) and smiling, responding in however way she can to RJ, Robin, Tito Lito and Mom (who left the night of the Shrine Inauguration).

And then we get this message:

Mom hasn't really been that responsive for the past day and a half. She's reverted back to the groggy state that she was in 5 days ago. She hasn't been able to move around as much or respond (verbally or with her eyes) to our questions. She still has the oxygen mask and is still undergoing antibiotic irrigation (for a couple more days I think). We're hoping that this is only a temporary thing and that she'll be able to be more alert and awake soon. Father Ducoy also visited mom earlier today and prayed over her.

Hopefully, we'll see more progress during our second visit later today.

We just have to keep praying.

And this message later in the day:

Just came back from an uplifting visit to the ICU. Mom was fully awake during most of our stay, smiling and even making faces - although she did not say anything. She has regained her normal range of motion in her extremities (again, as "normal" as her condition will allow). She did acknowledge that she was in some sort of pain after we asked her if anything hurt (we noticed that she would periodically stare straight ahead while tightening her grip for a few seconds at a time). Other than that, she looked a lot better than she had for the past couple of days.

Vitals showed a heart rate range of 89-93, RESP of 18-20, and blood pressure was at 142 over 91. Her heart rate had been within that range for the past couple of visits as well, although her BP was the highest I remember seeing since I got here. Not sure what to make of all this, though. Her antibiotic irrigation treatment ends tomorrow or Tuesday and we'll be talking to the doctor again tomorrow. There might be a possibility that she could be cleared for discharge sometime this week. Hopefully that's the case.

I'll have more as soon as we get more information.

Thanks again for all your prayers.

How's that for a roller coaster ride? :) At least there is light at the end of the tunnel: looks like Tita San will be allowed to go home sometime in the next week. Someone from one of my message boards said that the medical system in Korea is one of the best. This has been proven as the Koreans have apparently taken good care of Tita San. And they have modern technology, not like here where some (not all, thank God!) hospitals take your blood pressure using sphygmamometers (sp?) and stethoscopes instead of the machine that is connected to your arm and pumps the arm band and generates your BP automatically.