My dad

My mom got a call Thursday morning about an hour after dad got to the office that he was having chest pains....and was driving himself to the hospital. Being the hard head he is, he refused to call 911 or an EMT.

Upon arriving at the ER, they ask about his pain level. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being an elephant sitting on your chest) he indicated a level 8. At about noon he had an angiogram where they basically took an insider's tour of his heart to see the blood flow and narrow down the problem area. He had 4 clots are severe and require rather immediate attention before he suffers a major heart attack.

Dad had quadruple bypass surgery last Thursday night. The surgery took several hours but was successful. His heart should actually be working much better so he can be active and have a higher energy level.

He was in extreme pain following the surgery. Partly due to the breast plate, the incision, and also he has several tubes that are inside his chest to help with drainage so he didn't develop pneumonia. As of today, 3 of the tubes have been removed. However, the most painful tubes remain as they are the most effective. Doctors think those can be removed tomorrow.

They finally found a pain reliever that actually helped so he got his first bit of rest today. (As much as you can actually sleep in the ICU.)

Interesting part of this recovery process - though it's scary and he was still connected to tubes, wires, and monitors, he was sitting up about 9 hours eating eggs and toast after his visit to the OR. He was sitting in a chair using the pedals of a cycle to get blood circulating about 11 hours after surgery. He walked up and down the hallway today. Can you believe it? He was in extreme pain for the majority of these exercises, but the nurses are pushing him so he doesn't let fluid settle in his lungs.

Dad should be in a regular room by Monday and will likely be there for a full week for observation. My mom and I will have our hands full when he leaves the hospital and it's just the two of us instead of a team of nurses and doctors.

We are truly thankful that he is going to make a full recovery. The doctors and nurses have been amazing.

Thank you for all your continued thoughts and prayers. I know my dad appreciates them as much as I do.