Okay...UNCLE!!!! UNCLE!!!

Wow...and the adventure continues.

Nate was admitted to Shawnee Mission Hospital for another angioplasty (the first one, done on Friday, failed). When we met with the radiologist, Dr. L, he basically said that we were just buying some time to review the surgical option by doing another angioplasty and that this was not a permanent solution. This kind of took us aback a bit because we have been praying that this would fix him and that surgery would not be needed.

After the procedure, in which they ballooned Nate's vein even larger than before, Dr. L came back and spoke to us and said that Nate did great but that they noticed an irregularity to his heart beat on the monitor. He sent Nate back to his room for an EKG which confirmed that Nate has a first degree heart block. This isn't a blockage per se but a longer than normal interval between the first and second electric signals. This condition doesn't usually pose a problem but needs to be monitored by a cardiologist (which we will of course introduce on this blog in the next few weeks...starting to be hard to keep all the doctors straight!). The other thing about this condition is that there is some concern when one is under anesthesia during surgery. So more of the heart concern may come into play if Nate needs to have his rib removed. It's just one more thing to worry about...and one more thing that is mostly found in athletes...it feels a bit unfair that all of this is happening because Nate is in such good shape and has taken care of his body...grrrr....

Please continue to pray...Nate feels beaten down...I'm not really even sure what to say...so please pray for healing, hope and joy in our lives and for us not to be pulled into depressing despair. We are once again inundated with doctors appointment and all that comes with that...please pray for patience with each other and lots and lots of grace in our home.

We don't know what we would do without each of you.

much love,

nate and erin

Why do something once when you can do it twice?

Soooo....over the weekend, my arm was doing well. The swelling went down and it was becoming a normal color again. Unfortunately, this morning, it reverted back to it's old habits (swelling and being purple). And I, being a good little patient, called my vascular surgeon, and Dr. C and being the good little doctor, he got me in today to do a sonogram to rule out blog clots (and, of course, pregnancy).

After reviewing the sonogram and looking at my arm, it was evident that the vein had narrowed back to it's original, problematic state. Much like myself, it is being stubborn (the vein must also be a Taurus). The solution that we came up with...well...more like Dr. C came up with and we followed was two fold: re-do the angioplasty on Thursday and get started on a couple of blood thinners/anti-coagulants. One of the meds, I get to stab into my stomach twice a day...the other is in normal/boring pill form.

What does this mean? Well, for a while, I'll need to give up MMA Fighting and other violent sports.

So the angioplasty is scheduled for early Thursday morning and please pray that it works this time. Dr. C said if it fails again the surgical option will be in play (i.e. removing my rib).

Please pray that this angioplasty works and I can keep my body symmetrical and in tact. Please pray for our attitudes during this time. Also, Carter has been sick this week again, please pray for his healing. When it rains it pours, right?

We will update again on Thursday!

95% is not always an "A"

Alright...after a VERY long day at the hospital here is our update. Nate went in for his venogram this morning at 10:30. The radiologist, Dr. L, gave us many scenarios with a lot of doctor jargon. Long story short, they saw that Nate's sub-clavian vein had 95% narrowing and in some places 99% due to Paget-Schroetter Syndrome (which is found mostly in body builders and weight lifters....go figure). He would have had some narrowing beforehand and many people with this syndrome never exhibit symptoms or even know they have it. In Nate's case, his vein issue was exacerbated by his port.

 It is a miracle that Nate did not have a clot...praise God. While in his vein, they were able to do an angioplasty which basically enlarges the vein with a balloon. That seemed to do the trick unless Nate raises his left arm over his head and then there is no blood flow.  The angioplasty can't fix that. So no more left-handed-up-top-high-fives from people over 6'5".

The recovery is to take it easy for a few day and not lift heavy objects for a few weeks, keep his left arm down (no more military presses) and watch for symptoms to return and if so, head to the emergency room. Nate will also be taking his very first daily medication...but it's worth it!
We have several follow ups appointments scheduled in the next month or two so people are keeping an eye on him.

That's all...thank you for your prayers and support. We feel that this was the best case scenario and thank God for his mercy!

Much love,

Nate and Erin

And our adventure continues...

Today we got some frustrating news. Blood has been pooling for some time in Nate’s left arm (same side he had his port put in) and there has been some discomfort and neuropathy along with that. Today Nate went to a vascular surgeon since this puts him at high risk for blood clots. The surgeon believes that there may not be enough room between Nate’s top rib and clavicle (collar bone) and so blood is not returning efficiently, hence the pooling. Sooo…they are considering removing his top rib to provide relief…yikes…right?

Friday, Nate will go in for a procedure to see if that is absolutely necessary since that surgery and recovery would be kind of a big deal. Nate will be sedated and a catheter will be inserted in his arm all the way through the vein in question. From there, they will be able to tell if the cause of the swelling/pooling is scar tissue, a blockage or because there isn’t enough from between the surrounding bones.

We need prayer…it feels like we have been running a marathon only to cross the finish line and be told that we have to keep running more than the 26.2 miles we had energy for. Nate is feeling crushed and frustrated as am I…Carter is awesomely unaware (although he has the stomach flu…making this week extra awesome J ) Please pray for healing, pray for hope, pray for faith and patience.

Much love,

The Heide's

Summit Success

You know when you get to the top of a mountain and there is such an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment and pride. Well I'm there!!!!!

I found the jar and put my name on the paper. The final leg of this journey was completed this last Friday. Dr J was the surgeon and he had the honor of not only installing the Port but also removing it. The answer to your question is no- I did not get to keep it. (he offered, but i declined) It would have been a great Christmas gift for Erin, right?

The nurses and the other staff were friendly as always. The procedure lasted about 45 min, and I took a "recovery" nap afterward. The picture is from me on the way out. They said I still have to stay off the weights for a little bit. Carrying around a 40lb child is good enough now.

Brag time- I have been so blessed with amazing friends, church members, clients, family, and, of course, my rock Erin. The positive thoughts and prayers, even from Conway, AR, have kept me pushing to reach the top.

There is a time when you get to the top of a mountain, enjoy the amazing Godly view, celebrate, and then realize that your journey is not quite over. The hard part is out of the way, but unless you have a helicopter to pick you up, there is still the trek down. So that is why we still need your thoughts and prayers (or a helicopter?).

*Prayer for my nasty cough- Radiating my throat seemed to cause a little irritation, causing some intensecoughing and thus less sleep for me but especially Erin.

*Prayer for my arm- My arm you ask? Yes my arm. Here is the back story.....

After Chemo, and before/during radiation, my arm every now and then had a funny numb-like feeling. If you want to know how it feels, remember back in gym class when the teacher told us to spin our arms in a circle, and you can feel all the blood rush to your fingertips. Yeah like that. Well this feeling has gotten progressively worse as the weeks have passed. It makes my arm a shade or three purpler and swollen (not that I mind that my arm is bigger, but just one side looks weird). It is not a clot, so no worries there, and the doctors surmised that it might be Thoracic Oulet Syndrome, possible caused by the port. Which means the port catheter took up room in my vein and thus does not allow for full blood flow, plus I am an athletic guy. This odd arm feelings started when I started working out again, so it makes some sense. I guess I am just too muscular for my own good! (just kidding)

*Prayers for my doctors as they continue to help my through recovery.
*Continued prayers for patience with all the curveballs that the mountain, life or cancer can throw your way.

As always- much love
Nate

Quick update

Hi there...I know it's been a while, but I wanted to give everyone a quick update on the happenings of Nate's journey. Most importantly, his treatment is OVER! That's right....he had his very last radiation session on Friday..praise God! On the flip side, he is feeling..well...terrible. He has an awful cough and a very sore esophagus and is extremely worn out. This is particularly frustrating since he is free and clear of cancer. The doctors said the radiation side effects could become worse this week before they get better...please pray that recovery will be swift.

On Friday, Nate goes in to surgery to get his port removed...hurray! This is so encouraging because this means that no one thinks he will be needing that port for anything anytime soon. Please pray that the surgery goes perfectly and that recovery is again, swift.

Follow-up appointments with all of his doctors will be going on in the next weeks and months and he will be rescanned probably in February.

Thank you for all your prayers and encouragement...Nate will be giving one of his much more entertaining updates in a few days. :)

Super Powers?

Happy Thanksgiving to all. I hope you ate too much, drank too much and laughed too much!!

Well I started my radiation treatments on Tuesday. Here is how it happens: I walk down the hall with the special "Radiation Signs" along the wall, and enter into the treatment room. I see in the middle a huge machine, similar to a CT or a PET Scanner with the name Tomo Therapy on the side. The nurses lay me down and bring over my mask......

I have to stop the scenario now to describe this mask. When I was fitted for this special contraption they took a flat piece of warm plastic that looked like a large fish net and put it over my face. They fitted it to the contours of my face and shoulders, let it dry and cool down. It stuck in the shape of my face. Once they took it off, i realized that my nose really is crooked and that I am going to be seeing a lot of the net mask in the following weeks.

Back to the story.. So they secure me down with my mask and proceed to move me into the big tube. I usually think about doughnuts when describing the CT, PET, Radiation Tubes. (Yum) They take a scan to make sure they line everything up correctly with my tattoo (which is just a tiny dot in the middle of my chest). Then the treatment starts- I lay there still for roughly seven minutes while something in the machine circles around me. After being in these tubes alot lately, the one difference during the treatment is the sound. Imagine when you get to go to a fancy Italian restaurant and the server comes over to offer some fresh ground pepper for your salad. It sounds like a very high tech pepper grinder! It goes around my body so that they can pinpoint and avoid hitting my lungs and heart as much as possible (which i really appreciate)  Then I get up and go!

I have a total of 17 treatments and I am done with 2. So, I'm scheduled to be done before Christmas. (didn't even have to wrap that gift)

Couple things that stink about this are that I get to go everyday (minus weekends) for treatments and my Super Powers have not appeared, yet. I tried to turn green and huge, but Erin said I just looked constipated. No jumping over buildings, except for the ones that Carter builds with his toy blocks.

Prayer requests and challenges:
I challenge you to come up with a Super Power that you would want to have! (Super Speed, Flying, X Ray Vision are some examples)
We are always needing prayers for patience with treatments, schedules, making sense of bills.

The end is in sight!!!
Love
Nate (formerly MM)