Medical Emergency

Son Jake is 35 years old, 6 foot 1 inch tall and 180 pounds of lean muscle. When he collided full on with another like body on the soccer field Sunday, something had to give. It did. It was his disfunctional kidney. It ruptured. Three years ago, when Jake, on his bicycle, encountered a pickup door in his bike path and landed in the emergency room, it was discovered that he had very high blood pressure. That led finally to the discovery of the congenital blockage of the ureter of his left kidney. That kidney now functions at only 7%, but since we can all live well with only one kidney, it was just being monitored. When it ruptured Sunday, besides hurting like hell, urine began leaking internally. Monday he was scoped and scanned, and given antibiotics. Last night he landed in the emergency room when he fainted. He called a friend to help him out. We found out this morning. We joined him this morning at about 8:30 at Harborview Hospital, where later this morning he underwent a scope surgical procedure to place a stint in the blocked ureter. We left him about 2:00 to sleep and recover. If all goes as expected, we will take him home tomorrow. When everything heals and settles down internally, he will have that bad kidney removed. When we got home, I found a message on my home phone from a friend of my mother's. She told me my mother had fallen last night and had called the life line, which brought medics to help her up. So then I called my sister, my mother, who didn't want us to know, and the friend who left the message. I think all is well enough for now, but I'm afraid we are soon approaching the time when my mother will have to move to a place where she can get the daily care she needs to keep her safe. She has been resisting this for a long time. It will not be an easy move for her, or for any of us. Tonight is the opening night of the MLS Soccer season, with a big match here in Seattle against the LA Galaxy. It has been raining off and on here, and there has been plenty to dampen our spirits, but we are going to the match. We hope we have something to cheer about. We only wish Jake could be there too.