Our 4th Spring at the Huntsman

This morning  as I drove Mark to an unscheduled trip to the Huntsman I realized this is our fourth springtime coming here.  I saw the familiar big field of daffodils as I exited off 400 South.  The trees are covered with dark pink, pale pink and white blossoms.  The tulips are in bloom along every street.  I also realized a guy in roller skates could maneuver down town SLC just as quickly as I could in my van. I think I see these details to prevent myself from focusing on the task at hand.

So here is the update on Mark's health.  Forgive us for not posting sooner, we had our reasons.  It's been a week now that Mark has suffered more pain in his lungs, greater fatigue and difficulty sleeping.  He went to Nevada anyway for a two day work trip, and his schedule was packed.  When he arrived home late Friday night and I saw his condition I was truly worried.  He couldn't breathe.  He ran a slight fever.  His cough was constant, and talking made it worse.  He couldn't lay down and needed to sleep upright in a chair.  This situation worsened over the next few days, a humidifier helped but a hot bath made it worse.  Our friends Johnnie and Ron came over to give him a blessing.  Our friends Todd and Nikki brought us dinner.  They can all attest to his extremely poor condition.  We assumed it was pneumonia.  All signs indicated so.

Mark did not want to go to the Logan ER.  We knew that in his high risk condition they would admit him and he absolutely did not want to stay there.  By Tuesday we both decided he needed to go to the Huntsman and run the tests and see if there was anything to be done to help.  Our nurse Katie took care of everything before we arrived today.  It's after 5pm and we've been in the acute care center all day running tests.  The doctor there asked many questions and correctly diagnosed the problem before testing confirmed it. It isn't pneumonia.  It's a Pleural Effusion of the right lung.  Mark had almost 3 liters of fluid in the lining around his right lung, compressing it to the point that there was almost no air circulation on that side.  They are now running tests and will do a follow up xray prior to letting us go home.

You've heard the phrase "sick with worry", well I consider myself a faithful, hopeful person but it doesn't change the fact that I worry about Mark.  I worry about his comfort, if his needs are met (immediate and the future that he won't be present for), I worry about the kids reactions and needs, I worry that I will never be ready to let him go, I worry about the conversations I must have with all those who love him, I worry that I'm not worrying enough!  Ugh.  I'm typing this from the underground parking garage because I needed a moment alone to process all of this.  I'm still not okay.  I haven't slept well in days (of course, neither has Mark).  I am so thankful for the emails, texts and all the prayers that have been offered in our behalf.  It makes a huge difference.   We love you all.  We are grateful that we don't endure this alone.  We appreciate the kindness and service you've shown to Mark, me, and each of our children.  Thank You.