Need help - Mom in ICU with pneunomia

Hi Jason...I do indeed have experience in this area.  I had chemo-induced pneumonia after my 4th AC at the end of 2005....It quickly progressed to white-out of my lungs and I was intubated for something called ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome)...probably what your mom is dx with too.  The ventilator is a life-altering experience...Your mom sounds like she has a good chance of surviving this.  I was intubated for about 12-days and like most people had a rough time with nightmares and dilerium....Have faith, they have improved the odds for vent survival....More and more people are coming out whole and well after the experience.  Feel free to PM me and pick my brain.

Jason, You have got to stand up to your insurance company...Don't let them get away with not paying for any of this.  My husband worked on this and it kept him involved in something he could do.  Watching someone you care about all tubed up has got to be an awful and helpless feeling.  My husband said that after a few days he asked them to give me a trach but they declined...The Docs were as usual, not very communicative.  As a matter of fact, the ARDS dx first became apparent months later, when I was well and peeking through my medical records.  I do believe it is quite common for most vent patients to start coming around after about a week.  I think you should google the acronym ARDS...You will find a couple of online groups that offer a lot of medical info and you can read the testimony of patients and family members.  I so feel for you and your mom....This is a life-altering experience for both of you....Have faith...I was a not quite 90 pound middle-aged wreck and I survived the vent and I have a strong feeling she will too!!!!

Hey Jason, How many days has she been intubated at this point?  I have to say, the fact that they even tried to remove the tube is kind of encouraging.  Is she a youngish or middle-aged mom, or is she now a senior?  Please make sure she is being turned...Bed sores sound funny but they can be very serious and can make her miserable.  Turn her yourself if the nurses aren't doing it enough.  Talk to her....She won't remember a word you are saying, but it is supposed to help.  They told me I was nodding as if I understood things when spoken to, so maybe there is some therapeutic good in the short run.  Recently, I read that some nurses are trying to get their ICU patients to walk, tubes and all...I know it sounds odd, but they feel it quickens the healing process.  After a week in bed, a patient loses the ability to walk.  So certainly physical therapy can help get rid of that problem.  When I woke up I was so weak, I couldn't hold a pen and it took over a month to learn how to walk again...so move your mom around as much as you can...speak to the nurses, they are your best friends now..ICU is their domain...The Doctors are okay, but sadly they just don't know that much about ARDS...that's why they tell you it's up to her and that's why they give us ARDS patients 50/50 odds...actually, more like 60/40 these days...But essentially those are odds that say to me"We are not going to commit to anything about this"....Go to www.ards.org  They have a penpal circle and you will read about people of all ages beating those odds.  I remind you I was barely a couple of weeks out of chemo and I beat the odds...Think positive...get to a good place and you will take her there with you....Best wishes, P   

Hi Jason, I left you a Private Message....P