To say these last few days have been difficult would be an understatement. We have been through heart surgeries and recoveries before, but this is a whole new kind of battle. Jake has fought through more than any person should ever have to, but we are seeing real signs of progress, and for that, we praise God!

Medically, Jake is doing really well and making improvements every day. However, as that happens, we land in this weird in between.  He is doing well enough to be less sedated, but not quite well enough to start removing supports yet. This means he is more aware of what is going on, but he isn’t lucid enough to truly understand or remember why we are here. It is a not an easy place to be, but it is a necessary part of this journey.

We have gotten some very encouraging news from our teams.  The liver team is happy.  They said his liver is doing beautifully, his belly is soft, his abdominal incision is healing nicely and his drains look “perfect.  He was able to clear over 3 liters of fluid in the past to days showing again that his kidneys are loving his new anatomy. His heart has made drastic recovery since surgery and it is behaving exactly the way they would expect.  His lungs have made huge improvements in the past few days.  Breath sounds have returned and today they plan on doing a low flow ECMO test and ECMO clamp test to see how he tolerates being off ECMO support.  We are hopeful, given all the signs he is given us, that this will be a somewhat smooth transition.  Once he is not reliant on ECMO, we can return to the OR to have ECMO removed and his chest closed. This will be a massive step forward in his recovery. Looking ahead, he is scheduled for a Cath on Monday to check his heart pressures and check for rejection. We are praying for lower pressures and no signs of rejection.

I don’t know how we would have made it through these days without the army of support behind us. All the kind words, extra prayers, meals, and help at home remind us we aren’t fighting alone. It is so humbling to be on the receiving end of so much grace. You are the hands and feet of Jesus to our family right now, holding us up when we cannot stand on our own.

Please pray for a smooth day, and specifically for a successful surgery soon to close his chest and remove the ECMO support.