The plan...for now

Last night...tossing around ideas with my sisters...trying to figure out what is the "right" thing to do. And not having a clue.

John has an NG tube because he is silently and not silently aspirating. He has had trouble eating and drinking since his head injury 20 years ago. He is miserable with the tube. His mouth and throat are dry. The wet swabs aren't cutting it anymore.

John has an appointment with Allegheny General Hospital June 23rd. The outcome may be the same, but it's worth a try. He still doesn't know about UPMC's decision. We don't want him to give up. I called his primary care physician this morning. Spoke with his nurse and gave her the latest news. I asked if we could remove the tube and let him start drinking and eating again. When I spoke with the doctor later in the day, he said he could remove it, but we have to understand he could aspirate which could cause other serious problems. We told him to go ahead and remove it. John understands the risks. Now we're praying he doesn't aspirate and get pnuemonia. So late afternoon it was removed and he was able to sip iced tea, broth, apple juice, ginger ale and some lemon ice. He looked so relieved. It perked him up quite a bit. The speech therapist will be able to more easily work with him and he will have another swallow study Tuesday. He was pretty weak with the first one and not that he's still not weak, but he is a little stronger. I hope we made the right decision.