Author: Ben Meredith

Well, they said to expect 4 hours, but it only took 2. Benjamin did fine, and the surgeon said the only thing that did not go exactly as planned was that he needed some blood. All else went well, and the surgery was a success! They are in the process of moving him to the recovery room, and we should be allowed to see him in 30 minutes or so. Thanks so much for all the prayers!

We haven’t traveled anywhere, but we sure have passed some significant milestones in the past 24 hours. Jacqueline and her Mom stayed here all night at the hospital while the rest of us got some sleep. This morning around 8:00 I got here and later my mom got here and Jacq and Brenda went to get some sleep. Shortly after we took over, the nurses came in with the great news that his hemoglobin had reached a good enough level that he could be taken off of all the monitors and later today be moved to a regular room. He was not a fan at all of them removing all of the stuff, but now he is resting and almost due for some more pain meds. We’ll keep you posted!

The doctor came in just a little bit ago.  The nurse just took out the last tube!!!!  Now if we want to we can walk around with him!!  Benjamin is steadily improving and we can go home today if we want.

Currently Ben is sleeping (yes, Jacq is posting this one:).  So, we have not discussed whether or not to stay another night or go home today.  When I say “go home” I mean go to Ben’s parents’ house.  Thankfully they live here in Winston Salem, so we will go to their house until we feel comfortable enough to head to Asheville.

To clarify…he did have to have the more invasive surgery (better known as the 180 degree switch).  BCBS did not reverse their initial decision.

It is comforting to know that so many people have been praying for him.  We have felt the results of all your prayers. I truly feel like you, as the “body of Christ,” have wrapped your arms around us through this whole journey.  Thank You!