Here's to a Better New Year

[Elspode]

For those of you keeping score, my son Stephen went into surgery at about 9:30 this morning, and it was completed around noonish. He has now been moved to a regular room for his recovery (out of the damn ICU, thank the gods...what an uncomfortable place to be).

The doctor characterized the procedure as having gone smoothly. Steve was pretty uncomfortable afterward, due to a combination of factors - his head hurt from having the internal pressure intentionally built up to enlarge the ventricles to make for easier placement of the catheter, it hurt from the incisions made for the procedure, and his abdomen hurts from the placement of the distal tube (they actually tunnel under the skin to insert this tube) and the incision made in his abdomen to incise the peritoneum for the drainage end of the distal tube to be placed. He was also quite nauseated, probably from a combination of the neurological symptoms and the morphine.

We now wait to see how he comes around. If all is well, his cognition should be pretty much normal by tomorrow at this time. There will be concern for infection for the next few weeks, and that is basically a 'wait and see' proposition.

Stephen's mother will be with him for the next couple of days. If all goes properly, he could be discharged on Monday or Tuesday, and will remain with us for a couple of weeks after that.

Keep up the good vibes...we're not done yet.