Trip to Little rock to get mom to the MRI department in prep for brain surgery tomorrow morning. Left the house around 7am with some yummy sandwiches and snacks from a friend to keep us nourished.

At a bathroom break somewhere around Clarksville I was helping mom put her legs into the van and thought her left leg felt funny. I pulled up her pants leg, and sure enough – it was swollen, and discolored. I had noticed her left leg looking a bit discolored yesterday afternoon when she was getting situated for a nap on the couch, but the swelling was new.

We got back on the road and I had Erin call UAMS to let them know about the leg, and ask for advice considering we have surgery set for tomorrow morning – blood clots and surgery don’t go well together. The neurosurgeon on call (Igor De Castro – isn’t that the greatest name???) said to bring her to the ER as soon as we were done with the MRI.

The admitting nurse got her right back into the ER after looking at her leg and foot – they were pretty purple. It took about 7 hours, and we almost died of hunger, but she finally got an ultrasound done on her left leg and they found two clots – one near her groin and the other near her knee.

Since she is scheduled for surgery in the morning, they couldn’t give her blood thinner to dissolve the clots. Instead, they put a little filter in her artery just above her groin to catch any clot that might break off and head toward her lungs. The surgery is still on for tomorrow, thank goodness!! We were afraid they might postpone it, and since she has discontinued her radiation until after the surgery… well, we didn’t think we had time to wait. And thankfully, neither do these doctors.

So, she’s at the hospital tonight sleeping and Erin and I are at the Guest House Inn on University about to sleep. I am totally looking forward to a FULL NIGHT of rest. Since mom’s been living with me I have been up several times a night to help her to the bathroom. I am tired.

On the bright side – 473 residents have been by to see mom, introduce themselves to mom, ask her questions, ask if she/we have questions, explain procedures, and just be residents in a teaching hospital. After the crickets we heard during the stays at the hospitals in NWA, this is a welcome relief.