Hi all,

Jason got his shunt placed today! We're so grateful they could get him into surgery without any delay.

The surgery involves two incisions, and he's dealing with extra pain from that, which means more meds than he's needed the last couple of days.

But that's normal after surgery, and I'm so relieved to see how he's acting. He's loopy from the meds, and he's been very silly, joking around with me. I'm seeing so much of his personality come through (in an extra-silly, medicated way). Until today, the IV pain meds were mostly just making him sleep. Joking around like this takes energy, and I suspect that's a sign that the shunt is working, allowing his brain to relax and the chance to feel something other than just fatigue and pain.

He's currently eating a breakfast taco for dinner.

We hope he'll be released sometime this weekend, but I'll probably know more tomorrow.

Thank you for your continued prayers, kind thoughts, and support. During the surgery, I had 9 friends and family members sitting with me (not all at the same time). It was so good to feel the love in the room.

Pic 1: a very special Thanksgiving dinner with just the four of us last night.

Pic 2: Illustration of the VP shunt he has. (Source: https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/patient-education/about-your-ventriculoperitoneal-vp-shunt-surgery)

-Beth and Jason

You're always welcome to look at past emails here. Just be aware this site includes my author and narrator newsletters as well as my emails about Jason; I can't split them up!