day 12, noon update

Dear friends,
Today, Monday, brings a new week and a new intensivist (the icu doctor in charge of her care team). Many thanks to the Doctor who has cared for Sage for the past two weeks: his compassionate care of Sage since her admission to DHMC saw us through the early, terrifying days and more than a few bumps in the road since then. Sage welcomed the new intensivist to her case with a left pneumothorax early this morning (a left lung "air leak" which left untreated would cause collapse of that lung). Her team showed up and got right to work. They placed a left chest tube that reinflated her left lung. With time the "leak" will seal on its own. This is considered a complication of being on a ventilator—one of the many hurdles that Sage has cleared thus far, and most likely not the last in front of her. This complication will slow her weaning process from the ventilator; we will have to remain patient, steady, calm.
Other issues: her WBC is essentially unchanged—slightly elevated. She remains fever-free, which is good. We will be repeating the abdominal ultrasound today to reevaluate her liver and pancreas.
The essential short term plan plan is to hunker down, hold the line, remain patient, stay calm, and maintain her support after the pneumothorax of this morning.

The postal desk reports that Sage has received the most mail of anyone in the hospital, beginning last week with a massive sampler of ghiradelli chocolates from her cousin kira in san francisco, to a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the summer program she was attending at the time she took ill, to postcards, letters, get well cards, photographs of her dog, drawings and miraculous medals from Pepa. Thank you all, dear friends and loved ones, for your ongoing support and prayers. Thanks also to the staff here at DMHC, who have been unfailingly kind and gentle in their work with Sage, and phenomenally patient with the small (and sleep-deprived!) army of family members who have been in her room, camping out in the hospital, and wandering about the beautiful, soul-restoring grounds here. God bless you all.