ben alonso taken in for pericardial window surgery

[winniealonso]

Tuesday, May 7, was the very 1st good day for Ben since his mitral valve surgery on May 3. He was surprisingly in good spirits,
was talking a lot, had his sense of humor back, ate more, walked 4x's, and sat on the chair most of the day. It made the whole family so happy...

Wednesday, May 8 at 6:30am, got a call from the hospital that Ben's BP was 90/50; his heart rate was 150 (Tues., it was 89).
Doctor ordered I.V. meds to lower heart rate & ordered an echocardiogram. By 3 pm, Doctor said Ben's fine. BP and heart rate was regulated and is normal. After looking at the echocardiogram results, the doctor decided Ben needed a pericardial window surgery which was done at 5 pm. The surgeon took away 2 cups of bloody fluid accumulated in the pericardial sac. He believes this is what's causing the abrupt
BP and heart rate changes.

Ben is fine, not pale looking anymore but is still in the ICU.
We will keep you posted as often as we can.

All of your messages of encouragement is helping Ben and our family a lot. We printed out the notes you've sent him after May 3. It brings tears to his eyes but you could see the joy and love that he feels...

Again, for all your good thoughts, possitive messages, unending support, frienddship, love and prayers... We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts!

Sincerely,
The Alonso Family

 

[hensylee]

Oh, goodness - and he was scared of the whole thing. Good reason. Sorry he had to go through another surgery, but if it corrected the problem, then he will be ok. Thank you for letting us know.

Dear Ben - hang in there, friend. You have all of us pulling for your quick recovery. We know that your determination will make a difference. And you have family to help you along. My prayers go along daily for you. God bless. Hensylee

 

[Ross]

Thanks for the update Winnie.

I'll keep the both of you in thought and prayer.
Ben should be doing better, now that the fluid and pressure is off of his heart. Hopefully, the window will be his true turning point and he'll be back with all of us soon.

 

[Christian]

It sounds like the worst is over. Nowhere to go now but up!

Thanks for the update. We're all rooting for him.

 

[Bill Hall]

Winnie - Thank you for the update. Sorry to hear about all of Ben's complications. It is bad enough we have to go through the surgery without having additional problems. The ICU is the worst part, so I will say a few prayers that he gets out soon. Please pass my good wishes to Ben.

 

[Jean]

Winnie, thanks for keeping us posted. Such a bumpy road, but it has to smooth out here soon. Let Ben know we are sending love and prayers his way! You take care too. This is hard on you as well. Love

 

[Johnny Stephens]

Hang in There

Hang in There

Winnie, sorry to hear about this bump in the road for Ben. It sounds like the procedure had the intended result, so that's good news. I had a couple of unexpected bumps myself as have others here.

We're all thinking about Ben and pulling hard for him!

GO GET 'EM, BEN!!

 

[Scottie]

Winnie

Winnie

Sorry to hear that Ben had some complications ...this must have been an awful time for you ...so glad to see that he is on the road to recovery now ...please tell him we are pulling for him here ..and hope to hear that his recovery is continuing in leaps and bounds ....you are both in my prayers here
Scottie

 

[JenniferO]

Winnie:

The cases are rare that don't have a few unexpected turns in the road.

I had mitral valve repair in February and remember so well those first days after surgery. They are the roughest and yet, in the ICU one is getting the very best of care. Those nurses were like angels, in fact, one of my nurses in the ICU was actually named Angel and she was the best! I wanted to take her with me to the regular nursing floor, but she said she couldn't go.

It will get better. It is a big assault on the body, but the body has an amazing ability to heal and will to get well.

All of us here know what you are going through and our hearts and prayers are with you and Ben!

Just hold on and little by little, everything improves.

 

[Mb]

Dear Winnie:

Thanks for updating us. Sounds gruesome and scary, but that he is in the right hands.

We will keep you in our prayers this Mothers' Day weekend.

Marybeth and Wayne

 

[ALCapshaw]

CONGRATULATIONS BEN !

You've made it over TWO hurdles !

Keep that POSITIVE ATTITUDE

and stay focused on the FINISH LINE.

I EXPECT to hear from you personally
when you're home and on the road
to recovery. YOU CAN DO IT !

Do you hear us all cheering for you?

GO BEN !

'AL'

 

[greggo32]

I hope all is well

I hope all is well

Dear Winnie,

Ben doesn't know me; however, that is unimporatant. I hope and pray that he is well. I recently had an aortic valve replacement and I feel for my fellow patients. Just another person here who is thinking about Ben.

Best wishes,

Gregory Golden
Boca Raton, Florida

 

[sylviayasgur]

hi winnie!
thank you for updating us on ben's condition.
i'm so sorry you've both had to deal with these little (?) bumps in the road.
many of us go through this and hopefully this will be the last of them. it's hard when you want and expect everything to go a certain way and unexpected complications arise.
once ben gets past this, i hope it's smooth sailing all the way.
please wish him our best and a speedy, uneventful recovery from here on in.
you are both in our thoughts and prayers. be well,
sylvia

 

[John Cochran]

Dear Winnie,
I was sorry to hear about Ben's problem, but it sounds like he's got the worst all behind him. I recall that when my son Clay's valve surgery had complications, it was a very tough and frustrating time for the family. I hope you're doing OK through all this...soon Ben will be home and on the road to a great recovery!

Best wishes to you, Ben and your family,
--John