Going into it we were pretty hopeful and not too worried.  Dr. Steinberg and his staff are really good.  The surgery went well and Dr. Steinburg said he easily increased the blood flow to the right side of her brain 50x.  BUT.... my wife is having a rare complication.  The sudden influx of blood to her right side is sort of exacerbating the low blood flow on the left side.  This has left her with some lack of mobility in the right side of her body.  She spent the whole night in the ICU and all of today.  Tonight she is there and I have no idea when they will move her.  I saw her today and she did not look so good.  They are having to keep her blood pressure elevated to force the blood into her left brain.  One doctor told me that he has only seen maybe 3 or 4 of these cases. 

If that wasn't enough to deal with, I have our 4 month old daughter along for the trip which is great but they won't allow the baby in the ICU.  So I have had to be very creative today to get to see my wife.  If any of you on here just so happen to be here at Stanford and wouldn't mind giving me a hand I would be forever grateful. 

I'll keep you all updated on my wife's progress.   

David

So sorry to hear your wife is having complications! I hope they can resolve this quickly. If I were in the area I would gladly help you, but I am in Phila! Hopefully someone on this board can respond and help you. Or, maybe someone at the hospital can refer you to someone who can help. Best wishes to you and your wife. I will keep her in my prayers.

Hello all,

I just spent some time with my wife and she is doing much better!  The blood flow has increased in her left brain which has had a positive affect on her mobility.  She still is having some difficulty speaking but it was so much better than yesterday.  The doctors are really pleased with all of this.

I do have one friend in the area who has been helping with the baby.  The only problem is that she has to work.  Today it worked out well.  Yesterday it was a real struggle.  Hopefully my wife will be moved to a regular room tomorrow.

Just a quick update:

My wife was moved to a regular room two days ago and she is almost back to normal.  Aside from the HUGE gash on her head and the swelling, I'd say she is back.  I was not at all prepared for the swelling or the incision.  But it's all looking better now.  Tomorrow she goes in for the other side, so we get to do it all over again!   

David,
Good Luck today. I hope everything goes smoothly.

Liz

Thanks!

Her surgery was completed around 10:30 last night.  It went very well and so far there have been no complications.  Just minutes ago I spoke with her on the phone and she sounded pretty good, in pain, but good.  It looks like they may move her from the ICU today.  Fingers crossed!

Daniel had his surgeries the same days as your wife.  He hasn't had the extent of issues that it sounds like your wife has had, but he has definitely had speech issues.  He has had periods of time when he can't get a coherent word out.  Last night he was lying in bed sleeping when he woke up and asked if we were at the motel?  He is very confused at times.  We too have been assured that it is a normal reaction of the brain after surgery on the left side.

I will be praying for healing for your wife.  Healing and restoration to the lively wife and mother that you are missing.

David,
I struggeled with my speach for a while after the surgery, not to the extent she is experencing. I got better, but she may need more time to get the blood pumping correctly in the surgical site. The more it heals the better things should be getting. 

Did she have a stroke before she was diagnosed? My stroke hit my language center but the MM puff vessels was developing around that area to help out so I was able to bounce back.

It could also be dependent on the type of surgery that was preformed, in that it may take more time to get the blood flow back to "normal" levels.

I hope this helps,
becky