Slow ascent

I cannot think about what the ascent is to...normal?  Probably not a valid term.  What passes for normal here now differs vastly from normal last year.  Ascent to sanity...again what is sane in the absolute?  Around here?  Am I really feeling better about things or have I just gotten accustomed to the situation, accepting it and calming down.

Yesterday I started giving David an extra proton (acid) inhibitor to slow down his stomach activity.  I also told him to forgo exercising until the new feeing tube is placed because that seemed to generate lots of leaks.

This morning there was a small leak onto the bandage surrounding the sponge.  I changed it and his skin was irritated so I put some A&D around the opening and then three split sponges with loose tape across the bottom.  He did not leak all day through three full feelings, a trip to the temple and Target and another trip out to dinner.  He went to bed with the same feeding tube surround that seems more breathable and less irritating.  If this keeps up he should get all the nutrition from the Jevity.  He has lost a bit of weight and was down to 130.8 at this morning's weigh in.  His BP and heart rate are OK.  He is still coughing up globs of bloody mucous but seems more engaged, less irritated and more himself.  Tomorrow is Dsminus 3 for the devil drug.  It will be down to 10 mg for the next three days and then on our anniversary he will get NONE.  Whew!  The steroid is so terrible because it cannot be abruptly stopped once symptoms present or other, possibly worse, symptoms will occur.

Jeff and I enjoyed watching Homeland tonight.  I had the first three episodes of this season on the DVR.  He never saw it but got hooked with these three episodes.  Now I think he'd like to binge it.  I'm looking for something to binge with David once he turns that corner.  We binged Downton Abby up to the last two seasons and then watched them as they were broadcast.  We always binge House of Cards.  He did not care for Breaking Bad but I just loved it, despite knowing it would come to a bad end.  He lost interest in Orange is the New Black and I have yet to do last season's shows.  Tomorrow is his midterm exam:  the Sunday talking heads.  Fareed Zakari is his favorite and then there is Chuck Todd, Chris Wallace and others as time permits.  If he watches one two or three will tell me a lot about how much of David is released from steroids.  I have this week's Scandal to tempt him......and tomorrow will be a new Madam Secretary.  Both are loosely based on politics but nothing can match the West Wing.  Maybe I can find all of those for him for nostalgia-watching.