User blog comment:Gideoncrawle/Writers Workshop update/@comment-1874924-20100326170558

MIL update: Yesterday she passed out and went into the ICU to have over 2 liters of fluid drained from her chest cavity. The incident was not immediately life-threatening, but it doesn't help her prognosis. She has had congestive heart failure for several years (apparently worsening greatly in recent weeks), and one consequence of CHF is this fluid buildup that further impairs heart function and restricts breathing. What she really needs is a new heart valve, but she isn't strong enough to survive an operation. At this point, the best-case scenario is that she improves enough to go into a nursing home. She has both LTC insurance and substantial liquid assets; so if she goes into a home, we'll be able to put her in a nice one, as opposed to an overcrowded Medicaid facility. All this has been harder on my wife than on me, as you might expect. Most of you have probably heard the adage, "A son is your son till he takes a wife, but a daughter is yours for the rest of your life."