What a difference 8 weeks makes! TOP: Coming home day July 2, 2007 (4lbs 11 oz.) and BOTTOM: Aug 30, 2007 (> 9lbs -I'm not sure how much).Thursday, August 30, 2007
So big!
What a difference 8 weeks makes! TOP: Coming home day July 2, 2007 (4lbs 11 oz.) and BOTTOM: Aug 30, 2007 (> 9lbs -I'm not sure how much).
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Nick's due date is today!
Well today is the day Nick was due to be born...if he hadn't decided to grace us with his presence 3 months early! He's 6lbs 12oz. - not a bad weight for a newborn! He's caught right up so far.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
You know you're the parent of a preemie when...
Some of these are mine and some I found on the net...all are completely true.
You know you're the parent of a preemie when...
1) You can recite your baby's medical chart by heart backwards sideways and in pig latin but can't remember what you ate for breakfast.
2) You constantly get asked "Oh, are you a nurse?" when you spout off a string of medical terms.
3) Your friends get teary eyed when their babies get shots, and you can hold your baby down while they get a catheter or a new PICC line and not bat an eye or flinch.
4) Your "newborn stories" involve bowel sounds, desats, and a gross sound effect used to describe the air leak around your son's ET tube.
5) You realize that he will be 2 before he can fit into any of the outfits that friends and family gave you at your baby shower.
6) You cherish that stuffed animal that they used in NICU to place on your baby in the incubator to make him feel more secure.
7) You buy hand sanitizer in bulk.
8) When, as soon as you find out you're expecting baby #2, you quickly count the months to see if you'll deliver during RSV season.
9) You know what RSV is.
10) When the thought of a law that requires children to use a booster seat in the car until they reach 80lbs makes you wonder how they will ever let him get his license using a booster seat.
11) You can convert your babies weight from grams to ounces in your head.
12) People can't get over how small he is at 5lbs and you just laugh because you know he's gained 3.5 lbs since you first held him.
13) You actually know how many CCs make up an ounce.
14) You turn into Kung-Fu Mom when someone tries to touch your baby.
15) You want to scream when someone says that she just wants to have this baby already - at week 28, 32, or 34.
You know you're the parent of a preemie when...
1) You can recite your baby's medical chart by heart backwards sideways and in pig latin but can't remember what you ate for breakfast.
2) You constantly get asked "Oh, are you a nurse?" when you spout off a string of medical terms.
3) Your friends get teary eyed when their babies get shots, and you can hold your baby down while they get a catheter or a new PICC line and not bat an eye or flinch.
4) Your "newborn stories" involve bowel sounds, desats, and a gross sound effect used to describe the air leak around your son's ET tube.
5) You realize that he will be 2 before he can fit into any of the outfits that friends and family gave you at your baby shower.
6) You cherish that stuffed animal that they used in NICU to place on your baby in the incubator to make him feel more secure.
7) You buy hand sanitizer in bulk.
8) When, as soon as you find out you're expecting baby #2, you quickly count the months to see if you'll deliver during RSV season.
9) You know what RSV is.
10) When the thought of a law that requires children to use a booster seat in the car until they reach 80lbs makes you wonder how they will ever let him get his license using a booster seat.
11) You can convert your babies weight from grams to ounces in your head.
12) People can't get over how small he is at 5lbs and you just laugh because you know he's gained 3.5 lbs since you first held him.
13) You actually know how many CCs make up an ounce.
14) You turn into Kung-Fu Mom when someone tries to touch your baby.
15) You want to scream when someone says that she just wants to have this baby already - at week 28, 32, or 34.
Vampire nurses and such...
I can't believe I drank the whole thing! Now I need a nap. Oy!Weekly weight check and doc visit today - I guess getting up every 2 hrs to feed him has been worth it - he now weighs 5lbs 6oz! They want him to gain 1/2 to 1 ounce a day and he's gained a whopping 9oz. since his last appt 6 days ago! I'm telling you this kid has an iron grip - he's got some serious plans ahead of him for his miracle life.
Had to let the vampire nurse prick his heel again for a hematocrit level. It was a bit low so he's now on an iron supplement - otherwise Nicky Nick got another gold star on his health chart!
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Little firecracker
One thing I forgot after 9 yrs...babies don't sleep much! Well he sleeps well but he's eating 1-2oz. every 2 1/2 - 3 hrs - so I guess it's me who's not sleeping! :)
He's doing great. Sean thinks he's a doll to play with - he's always brushing his hair or wanting to feed or change him. He's a great big brother already! People ask how old he is and I never know whether to say 8 weeks or 36 weeks. Technically he was supposed to be born July 26 so he's really minus 3 weeks! He's just barely fitting into preemie clothes so another couple pounds and he'll fit into newborn.
He's doing great. Sean thinks he's a doll to play with - he's always brushing his hair or wanting to feed or change him. He's a great big brother already! People ask how old he is and I never know whether to say 8 weeks or 36 weeks. Technically he was supposed to be born July 26 so he's really minus 3 weeks! He's just barely fitting into preemie clothes so another couple pounds and he'll fit into newborn.
Wow!
Monday July 2, 2007 - Home Sweet HomeComing home day! Went to the hospital to feed Nick and watch a CPR video - then Sean and I had our last lunch with just the 2 of us at Chilis. We ran over to the bank to get a check to close mom and dad's house then went up to the lawyer's office to sign. All done! The house is theirs it's so cute. Then we went back to the hospital to pick up Nick. He was all dressed in the new outfit that Grammy gave him and we headed home. Still can't believe the ordeal is over and he's home!
July 1, 2007
Went to the hospital about 4 times today! He's awake so much longer now that it's hard to just feed him and leave. He passed his car seat test - they strap him in it for an hour to make sure he can breathe ok and has no issues with keeping his head straight. Thanks to the great people that work with Bri at BB&T for giving us gift certificates - we were able to get a very nice stroller/carseat! It even fits a 5 lb small fry very nicely.
June 30, 2007
Called this morning to see if he was eating at 8:30 and they said he did great...and to please bring in his car seat to test out because he's going home Monday!!!!!! He also got his NG tube out last night! No more tubes for good now, he's just on bottles. Had a very good day no desats or crazy stuff at all. 4lbs 10oz today.
Went to the hospital about 4 times today! He's awake so much longer now that it's hard to just feed him and leave. He passed his car seat test - they strap him in it for an hour to make sure he can breathe ok and has no issues with keeping his head straight. Thanks to the great people that work with Bri at BB&T for giving us gift certificates - we were able to get a very nice stroller/carseat! It even fits a 5 lb small fry very nicely.
June 30, 2007
Called this morning to see if he was eating at 8:30 and they said he did great...and to please bring in his car seat to test out because he's going home Monday!!!!!! He also got his NG tube out last night! No more tubes for good now, he's just on bottles. Had a very good day no desats or crazy stuff at all. 4lbs 10oz today.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Chunky Monkey
My little guy is a roly poly 4lbs 9oz as of last night! He was extremely sleepy when I got there for the 8:30 pm bottle. He was having desats around 85% (limit is blood O2 levels <88%) because he was taking shallow breaths or forgetting to breathe at all so I popped the bottle out to let him catch up and he wouldn't wake up after that so he got the last 10ml by tube. The nurse this morning said he took all bottles throughout the night and did well. So for his 8:30am feeding again today he was sleepy but finally finished it - I don't think he's a morning person he must take after Daddy! :) He was having really bad desats - like around 80% - so the nurse gave him a shot of oxygen. No idea why he started doing this now - I squeegee'd his nose but it wasn't stuffy. She thought maybe he was moving his feet and the monitor wasn't picking up very well because he hasn't been having desats like that and hasn't had oxygen in several weeks. Hopefully he will pull out of this desat trend today and get the NG tube out of his nose which would help!This is a picture of Nick's condo. Doesn't he have a great view of the beach? It was actually painted by Sean's 2nd grade art teacher Olivia Scott. And I used to work with her husband back in the environmental lab days- small world huh?
Thursday, June 28, 2007
4lbs 7.5 oz
Nick was 4lbs 7.5oz when I called last night. Sean had a swim meet 4:30 - 9:30 (and I thought soccer games were long holy smokes!) so I couldn't make the evening feeds. The nurse had given him a bottle at 8:30 which I think is the 1st one he's gotten from anyone else besides me. She said they were going to try a bottle at every other feed which is 8:30 and 2:30. I called this morning and he had gotten one at 5:30am (he was probably too tired at the 2:30am feed so they waited). Well we weren't sure he would be interested in a bottle at 8:30 for me...but sure enough he was! He drank 37ml in 5min flat (pass the Alkaseltzer). He keeps it down fine even though everyone is pretty surprised he's got such gusto when the bottle is about as big as his leg! That is 24 calories/ounce.
I came home for an hour and Nurse Kristin called and said Nick was wide awake if I wanted to give him the 11:30 bottle - heck yeah! So 20 min later I was parked in the special care nursery feeding him again...I could probably sit there all day rocking away. He took yet another bottle - 3 in a row. Very good job, baby!
I came home for an hour and Nurse Kristin called and said Nick was wide awake if I wanted to give him the 11:30 bottle - heck yeah! So 20 min later I was parked in the special care nursery feeding him again...I could probably sit there all day rocking away. He took yet another bottle - 3 in a row. Very good job, baby!
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
What do babies dream about?
I've got a long to-do list sitting in front of me and look where I am *sigh*. I'm busier now than when I was working - and I'm so good at procrastinating. Some days it just seems like the hospital will never end. Then some days I can't believe he's 7 weeks old (or minus 5 weeks from his due date!)! Since he's closer to home now I've been going over twice a day but not staying as long. I give him his 2:30 and 8:30 bottles and when he falls asleep I put him back. He's so funny he drinks the 1 ounce in like 5 minutes then he moans and looks like "Oh my God why did I do that!" Like that Alkaseltzer commercial I can't believe I ate the whole thing! I'm thinking it'll be 1.5-2 weeks til he's home. They aren't pushing him too hard so he's still only getting 3 bottles a day (NG tube for 5 feedings to let him rest) . So he's got a ways to go. He did get his big boy bed today how exciting! That means he meets 1 of the criteria for him coming home (1. keep temperature steady 2. take all feedings by bottle 3. have no desats (apnea) and no bradys (bradycardia)The swim meet was cancelled last night due to lightning so I did go for Nick's 8:30 bottle. He was getting a bath when I got there...he loves that! He was 4lbs 5.5 oz. His eyes were swollen from the eye exam poor baby. I gave him his bottle (35 mls) then he fell asleep from exhaustion - it's hard work for such a little guy to master the suck -swallow-breathe skills (which usually happens at ~34 weeks gestation). He was smiling and dreaming - what do babies dream about?
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Out of the box!
Nick is getting 3 bottles a day now (35ml). I go the hospital for 2 of them (2:30 and 8:30) and the nurse tries to do 1 during the night - but so far he's been too tired to drink that one. Last night they opened up Nick's incubator like a DeLorean to room air and he has kept his temperature up just fine. So tomorrow he may get his very own crib like a big boy. He's 4lbs 4oz. now and actually has chipmunk cheeks - he's fair and looks like his mama and he's just now getting blond eyelashes. I went to feed him his bottle at 11:30 and the Dr. was there to give him his eye exam...good news - no sign of ROP (Retinopathy of Prematurity). He has premature blood vessels which is normal at his age (almost 36 weeks) and we'll get another exam in 2 weeks to make sure he's progressing. The blood vessels are in level 2 if you look at the diagram in the ROP link half way down the page. After that he was too tired to take his bottle so he got it by tube. Sean has a swim meet tonight so I won't be back to the hospital til tomorrow.
Friday, June 22, 2007
Good days
Friday June 22, 2007
Nick is 35 weeks old (adjusted) and weighs 4lbs 2oz. I went to see him at the 2:30 feeding (tube) and just held him. He was alert and hungry and looking for a bottle but they are only allowing 1 bottle a day to start. He had a few beeps from the pulse ox* but not too bad. He can't have any of those desats if he wants to come home. Sometimes he has those when he's tired or if his neck is tilted too far back or forward. The Duke nurses would say he was looking for chest hairs. :)
We're hoping to increase it to 2 bottles in a couple days if he does well and drinks the whole thing. Went back for the 8:30pm feeding - Bri wanted to feed him. He drank the whole ounce yay! He was in a very good mood after that and Sean got to hold him too. He's MRSA + on the 2nd swab too. He's not infected with it - he just has it on him. Who knows why. Especially after 4 weeks being negative?!
*(Pulse Oximeter - The "pulse ox" continuously measures the baby's blood oxygen. There is a tiny light which is attached to the baby's palm, foot, finger, toe, or wrist by a piece of adhesive elastic. A cord travels from the light to a machine that displays the amount of oxygen being carried by red blood cells in the baby's body. Each hospital is different but 85-88% blood oxygen is the cutoff from our experience. Ideally we like 90%+.
Thursday June 21, 2007
Decided Nick was more awake and alert when we went at 8:30 so I went at that time tonight. He was wide awake and raring to go. He drank almost the whole ounce in about 3 min! Then he got the hiccups and tried to drink a little more but choked so that was it. But he only had 6ml left. Unfortunately he turned up MRSA positive again :( I don't know how that happened as he was negative for 4 weeks in a row. So he's on contact isolation which is basically for the nurses (extra gown and gloves) it doesn't really affect us. He just had the bacteria in his nose he doesn't have an infection and we definitely hope it stays that way. Nasty bug!
We'll get the results of the 2nd swab tomorrow night. He's off the reflux medicine (zantac and reglan) and seems to be doing fine.
Nick is 35 weeks old (adjusted) and weighs 4lbs 2oz. I went to see him at the 2:30 feeding (tube) and just held him. He was alert and hungry and looking for a bottle but they are only allowing 1 bottle a day to start. He had a few beeps from the pulse ox* but not too bad. He can't have any of those desats if he wants to come home. Sometimes he has those when he's tired or if his neck is tilted too far back or forward. The Duke nurses would say he was looking for chest hairs. :)
We're hoping to increase it to 2 bottles in a couple days if he does well and drinks the whole thing. Went back for the 8:30pm feeding - Bri wanted to feed him. He drank the whole ounce yay! He was in a very good mood after that and Sean got to hold him too. He's MRSA + on the 2nd swab too. He's not infected with it - he just has it on him. Who knows why. Especially after 4 weeks being negative?!
*(Pulse Oximeter - The "pulse ox" continuously measures the baby's blood oxygen. There is a tiny light which is attached to the baby's palm, foot, finger, toe, or wrist by a piece of adhesive elastic. A cord travels from the light to a machine that displays the amount of oxygen being carried by red blood cells in the baby's body. Each hospital is different but 85-88% blood oxygen is the cutoff from our experience. Ideally we like 90%+.
Thursday June 21, 2007
Decided Nick was more awake and alert when we went at 8:30 so I went at that time tonight. He was wide awake and raring to go. He drank almost the whole ounce in about 3 min! Then he got the hiccups and tried to drink a little more but choked so that was it. But he only had 6ml left. Unfortunately he turned up MRSA positive again :( I don't know how that happened as he was negative for 4 weeks in a row. So he's on contact isolation which is basically for the nurses (extra gown and gloves) it doesn't really affect us. He just had the bacteria in his nose he doesn't have an infection and we definitely hope it stays that way. Nasty bug!
We'll get the results of the 2nd swab tomorrow night. He's off the reflux medicine (zantac and reglan) and seems to be doing fine.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
First bottle
Nick was transferred to Cary and did great on the ride. He's all moved in to his new pad and is settling into the new routine. He's getting 2 more MRSA swabs to be sure he's negative since this is a new hospital but other than that all is staus quo. We all went to see him last night and I got to give him his 1st bottle. He was very alert and when he started sucking his eyes got wide and I could almost hear him thinking "Wow nothing ever came out of my pacifier before this stuff is GOOD!" :)
He drank almost the whole 1oz which really surprised me. I thought he would choke or gag on the first bottle but he was a pro. He fell asleep toward the end so we put him back in his condo and nurse gave him the rest of his feed in his tube. He'll get 1 bottle a day to start - then we'll work up to all bottle feeds. He's 3lbs 10oz. tonight and should be going home in 2-3 weeks!
He drank almost the whole 1oz which really surprised me. I thought he would choke or gag on the first bottle but he was a pro. He fell asleep toward the end so we put him back in his condo and nurse gave him the rest of his feed in his tube. He'll get 1 bottle a day to start - then we'll work up to all bottle feeds. He's 3lbs 10oz. tonight and should be going home in 2-3 weeks!
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Road trip!
Since Nick is now MRSA negative and doing so well, he no longer needs a level III NICU so he's going to a level II. He's getting transferred to Wake Med Cary this afternoon - which is only 8 mi away from home as oppsed to Duke which is 25. So that is good news! He's almost what the nurses call "a feeder and a grower" - it means he has no health issues or problems, he's there just to grow big and strong enough to come home. Once he gets the hang of the bottle he'll definitely be ready to graduate. I held him for an hour then changed his diaper and put him in his preemie Elmo outfit for the trip to Cary.
Sean came home (after 6 weeks) at 4lbs 6oz. so we're getting close!! I remember taking Sean to his 1st Dr. visit and one lady looked at him in the elevator and said "He's so small!!!!!!!!!!" I'm like "What do you mean he's huge!" Well when you're born at 2lbs and a few spare ounces, 5lbs seems like a porker!
Thank you to all the doctors and nurses at Duke who were so awesome! Forgive me I don't want to miss anyone (I didn't start learning names until a couple weeks into the game): Kim K., Annette, Alicia, Lori, Michelle, Ashby, Kathleen, Randi, Rachel, Karen, Kaleigh, Julie, Lisa, Mary, Tana, Shanda, Nicole - you're great you made all the difference!
Sean came home (after 6 weeks) at 4lbs 6oz. so we're getting close!! I remember taking Sean to his 1st Dr. visit and one lady looked at him in the elevator and said "He's so small!!!!!!!!!!" I'm like "What do you mean he's huge!" Well when you're born at 2lbs and a few spare ounces, 5lbs seems like a porker!
Thank you to all the doctors and nurses at Duke who were so awesome! Forgive me I don't want to miss anyone (I didn't start learning names until a couple weeks into the game): Kim K., Annette, Alicia, Lori, Michelle, Ashby, Kathleen, Randi, Rachel, Karen, Kaleigh, Julie, Lisa, Mary, Tana, Shanda, Nicole - you're great you made all the difference!
Kick some MRSA butt!
Nick got a perfect score - 4 negative MRSA swabs in a row so he has moved out of the contact isolation room! He's doing well eating too. They started a few weeks ago with 2hrs on and 2 hrs off and he's now 1hr on then 2 hrs off. If he does well they'll do 30 min on and 2 off. They're getting ready to try a bottle so he has to be able to take the food faster than 1-2hrs! Things will be speeding up now...not sure if he'll go to Rex or not - it's up to them. I like Duke, the nurses and doctors are wonderful and they know him there.
He was 3lbs 9.5oz but he hasn't pooped in a day or 2 so that could be a bit off! I told you everyone spends a huge amount of time contemplating baby poop! :D
He was 3lbs 9.5oz but he hasn't pooped in a day or 2 so that could be a bit off! I told you everyone spends a huge amount of time contemplating baby poop! :D
Monday, June 18, 2007
97 degrees and no A/C :(
Our A/C units (yes both of them!) decided to konk out a couple days ago. I'm already dying and it's supposed to get up to 97 degrees today. Someone is coming out "sometime today" - who knows when - so I probably won't be able to get to the hospital. I'm bummed. Hopefully it'll be an uneventful day in the ICN.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Transfusion #2
Nick weighs 3lbs 7oz today! His hematocrit was a bit low so he had his 2nd transfusion today - so the blood might be adding to his weight a bit. They had to put an IV in and try a few times because his little hands were still bruised from the one on Monday (NEC scare). He did well with it but was a little puffy from the fluid so they upped his lasix (a diuretic). I held him for about an hour and a half today. The nurse had to give him a bath because she used the old glycerine chip trick and he filled 3 diapers. He was chilly after his swim so when I got there he was bundled up like an eskimo baby.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Father's Day
We all went up today. Bri held him for about 30 or 40 min (Sean and I went and had a snack) but they're restricting his "outside time" because of his feeding issues. He hasn't been gaining as much weight lately because of the formula change and all - so Sean and I didn't hold hm. Getting him in and out and handing him to different people uses calories...he is still around 3lbs 2oz - don't know what he is tonight yet. They'll weigh him before feeding at 9. The nurses made a sweet fathers day card with his footprints.He's keeping his temp up well. They started off with his bed detecting his temperature and it would go up or down as he needed. Then they set the bed at around body temp and he had to adjust his own body. Now they have the bed set to room temperature and he's still keeping his temp up well so next week he should be going to a big boy bed with lots of blankets. He's is now wearing a tshirt or onesie - so cute. Rosanne said she was going to mail me some preemie clothes so hopefully she will. I hate to buy a lot of that small size but he could use a few.
He's been there over 30 days so we could get a parking pass at least! So we get free parking whooppee. One more negative MRSA and he'll get moved out of that room and maybe even to Rex as early as next week. As long as he's MRSA negative they'll take him.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Whatta doll!
Friday June 15, 2007I wanted to get a picture of Nick with this doll to gauge his size in the future - they're actually about the same size right now. So I said "Nick pose like the dolly and we'll get you out of the hospital really soon!" and this is what he did!! Just kiddin...my kids don't listen to me that well...
Thursday June 14, 2007
As soon as I got to the hospital this morning the nurse was trying another glycerine chip routine and very soon the plumbing was fixed! Everyone was very happy. I'm sure Nick was happy also because when I held him he slept for an hour. He lost a few grams today which is no surprise - so hopefully he'll be on the road to gaining again tomorrow.
He got the nasal canula and the IV port out yesterday so that's 2 less wires to mess with.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
What's for lunch?
My breastmilk is dwindling...one of the hazzards of being hooked up to a plastic contraption vs. feeding the "normal" way. Nick is having digestion issues on the formula so the drs are trying to find one that will work for him. So far we had the NEC scare on Monday and he hasn't been pooping. One thing you wouldn't know if you don't have kids is that baby poop is a huge deal. We have a lot of doctors and nurses getting paid a wheel barrow full of money to find out why he's not pooping. Let's hope the plumbing starts working soon!
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
NEC...or not?
Tuesday June 12, 2007Good day at the NICU! Held Nick for an hour and 45 min. and he slept the whole time. He was one worn out baby today. After the IV/antibiotics and bowel xrays yesterday, today he had his eye exam for ROP (retinopathy of prematurity) and a head ultrasound. The eye exam left his poor eyes red but the results were very good...no sign of ROP. The ultrasound was also good...no sign of cerebral hemorhage. They dressed him in a way-too-big onesie. The size is "under 10lbs" so you could fit 3 of Nick in it...but it's so cute.
Monday June 11, 2007
I went up to the hospital this morning and found out that they had taken xrays of Nicks bowels because they didn't sound quite right and he had some residual in his stomach which indicates that he wasn't digesting as well as he had been. They were concerned about NEC - necrotizing enterocolitis which a large percentage of preemies can get. It's an infection of the intestines that can eat away the walls and cause perforations. The doctor said his first xray was borderline so they weren't really sure...in his words "it could be nothing or it could be devastating" Here is a link that explains it more http://www.hoinews.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=21913
I just turned around and came home because they had to put an IV in and a bunch of other needle sticks to do blood cultures and I couldn't stand to watch that. It would've been over an hour and I thought he could use the rest after all that. We waited all afternoon for the results of the 2nd xray and at 6:00pm -Bri called the nurse and everything is ok. He doesn't have NEC!
Even though formula is very good these days, breastmilk is easier digested in most cases so it could've been just the transition from breastmilk to formula or just a random thing - So another bullet dodged! He's 3lbs 2oz as of last night and eating 19.3ml/hr (about 7oz./day). He looks downright plump at this weight (compared to a few weeks ago!).
I went up to the hospital this morning and found out that they had taken xrays of Nicks bowels because they didn't sound quite right and he had some residual in his stomach which indicates that he wasn't digesting as well as he had been. They were concerned about NEC - necrotizing enterocolitis which a large percentage of preemies can get. It's an infection of the intestines that can eat away the walls and cause perforations. The doctor said his first xray was borderline so they weren't really sure...in his words "it could be nothing or it could be devastating" Here is a link that explains it more http://www.hoinews.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=21913
I just turned around and came home because they had to put an IV in and a bunch of other needle sticks to do blood cultures and I couldn't stand to watch that. It would've been over an hour and I thought he could use the rest after all that. We waited all afternoon for the results of the 2nd xray and at 6:00pm -Bri called the nurse and everything is ok. He doesn't have NEC!
Even though formula is very good these days, breastmilk is easier digested in most cases so it could've been just the transition from breastmilk to formula or just a random thing - So another bullet dodged! He's 3lbs 2oz as of last night and eating 19.3ml/hr (about 7oz./day). He looks downright plump at this weight (compared to a few weeks ago!).
Monday, May 28, 2007
And so it goes...
05/25/07
05/21/07
05/20/07
05/17/07
05/16/07
05/12/07
Going home day for mom! Up at 5:30. Called Bri and Sean at 8:45 to come up asap and those lazy bones were still sleeping! They got there around 10:30 and we rolled up to the NICU to see Nick. He's under blue bili lights for jaundice and has little black goggles on to protect his eyes. They took the vent out when the decided he was doing just as well with the CPAP and his chest xray is unchanged. Nick got his first feeding today! 1ml! They wanted to see how well he tolerated it and he did great so he'll get another 1ml later today. Had to wait while my paperwork was processing but finally got out about 12:00. Headed to Golden Coral and ate wayyy to much - I'm famished!
05/11/07
Getting restless now - I'd like to see Nick but by the time the nurses are done with checking on me, lunch comes, then I fell asleep and decide to wait until Bri comes tonight to wheel me up so I don't have to risk Wheelchair-Witch-Lady showing up. They decided to vent Nick to get some surfactant down to his lungs which will help them inflate better. He doesn't need it to breathe they just want to make him work less hard. He ended up getting a Pneumothorax - an accumulation of air between the outer lining of the lung and the chest wall, causing collapse of the lung.
05/10/07
10:00am Got moved upstairs to another room. It was about 1/4 of the size of the other one but the bed was much more comfy! I told Bri I really needed some rest after the crazy week I'd just had. So we decided he should take Sean to his tae kwon do class tonight and they'd come up tomorrow evening. I didn't get to see Nick until late afternoon. I called to get a wheelchair and it took awhile. Just as she got there the tech came in to get blood and vitals and I asked the nurse to unhook my IV so I wouldn't have to cart that around. That all took about 10 min. So we're finally ready to go to the NICU and I apologized to the wheelchair lady for having to wait (even though it wasn't my fault) and she kind of gave me an attitude. What was THAT about?? So she wheels me to the elevator and we go to the 5th floor. She starts to wheel me out the elevator and the wheel gets caught in the door track and almost dumps me out on the floor. I've just had a c section 24 hrs ago so that definitelty hurt and scared the bejeepers out of me. She says sorry and tries to wheel me out again and the wheel gets caught in the track and she almost dumps me out on the floor AGAIN!!!!! We finally get to the PICU and the nurses can't find my name on the register. She acts like she has no idea what to do and finally I'm like "He's in the ICN not the PICU!" I've just had a csection why would a newborn be in the PICU!!!??? By this time I was really ticked off. Once again she acts like she has no idea what to do so I ask someone "Where is the ICN"? He gives us directions and the lady huffily replies that she knows where it is...um...ok why are we at the PICU then?? Thank heavens I finally get to the ICN. I scrub my hands and arms for 1 min. per protocol and go in to see Nick.
I was prepared for small...but the actual smallness of a 2lb baby is still a shock. I, of course, start crying and curse myself for not carrying my box of tissues at all times. He is very pink...too pink. His skin is almost transparent. He has a cpap on with mininal oxygen, to give a little pressure to his lungs to inflate. He's doing well - better than anyone hoped. The steroids definitely helped! I'm starting to get very sore from standing so I need to get back to bed. I'm very glad to see someone else has arrived to wheel me back to my room I couldn't handle that other lady one more minute.
Just taking Motrin now. No pain at all unless I walk around and even then it's manageable.
05/09/07
Another night of little sleep. The bed was so uncomfortable and my hips were killing me from staying on my left side - the Ambien didn't even work this time. Around 3am I finally drifted off only to be awakened a few minutes later by 4 nurses and a doctor rushing in. The baby had decelerated to 50 again and, for a few seconds which seemed like an hour, they couldn't find his heartbeat. They put an O2 mask on me and were quickly taking vitals (BP, temp, etc.), then the ultrasound tech did a sonogram to make sure the baby was ok. Everyone was relieved when he said he was moving. At 7:15 the dr. came in and said we can't let that happen again because there is the chance his heartbeat won't go back up. We'll have to deliver this morning. I thought I was prepared for those words but really - who can be prepared for that? I was holding out hope for a couple more weeks - or even days - but everything is now crashing around me. The doctor asked how soon my husband could be here. I said about an hour...and he said ok we'll start as soon as he gets here.
I called Bri at 7:30 and he was probably more shocked than I was, but he took Sean to school and got to the hospital at 9. There was another emergency csection and she would be going first so we were looking to go at about 11:00. At 10:30 they wheeled me into the OR and got the spinal anesthesia going. My IV decided to blow out so they had to put another one in my right wrist. The spinal was not the most pleasant thing but I have to say it was marginally better than the epidural I had with Sean. I was freezing so they gave me a warm blanket which was wonderful but didn't really help my shaking. After the IV was pumping morphine we were ready to go, so the nurse went to get Bri who was waiting in my room. The nurse accidentally brought back the wrong guy - she brought the father of the other csection - so she had to go back and get Bri. Now Bri didn't know he was supposed to be getting gowned up while he was waiting...so all of this took a few minutes. They had to start the surgery and by the time Bri got to the OR we were already in progress! We were joking that everyone had masks on so we wouldn't know he was the wrong guy until he pulled out my baby boy (the other father was expecting a girl!). Bri did make it in time but he didn't have long to wait before Nicholas Robert made his appearance with a healthy scream! I was so glad his lungs seemed to be working fine from the sound of it. The neonatal team showed him to us then quickly whisked him next door for evaluation.
After a few minutes they brought him back, all snug in a cellophane wrap to conserve heat, for a quick glance again and said he was 1050 grams (2lbs 5 oz), 13.5" long and doing well. We were happy he was even a bit bigger than we thought! He went straight to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) where he got his IV and was put on Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) through a nasal prong. The CPAP does not breathe for him (like a vent does); the flow of air creates enough pressure when he inhales to keep his airway open. I was taken back to my room - my lower body was still completely numb from the spinal but I felt pretty good in general. I was amazed at how good I felt until I found out my last csection was complicated by the magnesium sulfate (the dreaded MAG) which was given to me to prevent seisures. That stuff will make you feel like a train wreck. So this time I was elated to find no trainwreck and actually very little pain (I only took Motrin).
Bri went home to get Sean and Jim and Dan came up about 3:00. I was given the ok for food...I had been so long without food I had pretty much lost the urge to eat. Jim and Dan went to the cafeteria and got me a parfait. Sean got to see Nick and took some pictures of him squeezing Sean's finger. He thought that was the greatest thing ever! After the boys left, they brought dinner up and I ate that too.
05/08/07
I slept about 15min all night because I was on constant monitoring. I was just resigned to lying on my left side because if I, or the baby, shifted positions his heart beat wouldn't register and the nurse would come in and move the belly monitor to pick it up again. Plus if I was on my back his heart rate would decel and they would rush in to turn us back on my left side. Boy does that hurt after awhile!! But as with everything - if it meant his heart rate would be steady I was up for it. I finally drifted to sleep around 3am and within 15 min was awakened by 3 nurses and a dr. rushing into my room. The baby's heart had deceled to ~50 but we readjusted me more onto my leftside and he stabilized. I think he was just seeing if the nurses were awake and on their toes out there! The dr. said if the baby is doing the same or worse than now we will have to deliver Thursday May 10 if not sooner. If he is somehow doing way better (no decels etc) we will wait and watch.
I had an hour long ultrasound and the tech was so great - she explained everything she was looking for and even gave me a 3D picture of Nick's face. She said he was about 2lbs 3oz and it's accurate to 0.5lb so I felt better...2lbs is micro small but it was still better than 1lb something.
Spent the day flipping channels and I got my 2nd shot of steroids at 5:00 . They finally took pity on me and said I could have broth and lemon jello. I swear it was the best meal I've ever had! Bri and Sean came up 7-9. Sean didn't want to leave but he wasn't as upset as the last time.
05/07/07
10:30 I had a regularly scheduled 28 week doc appt today and my gestational diabetes test (GTT). I hadn't eaten since last night's dinner and for breakfast at 9:30 I ate 2 eggs, toast with margarine and a glass of milk as suggested. After my last L&D visit ended in an overnight stay in the hospital, this time I decided to pack a small bag with my toothbrush and essentials but left it in the car. I figured if I had to go to L&D again I could go to the car and get it on the way. My BP was up - which we already knew would be the case. The dr. decided to hook me up to the fetal heart monitor to check the baby's heart rate. After about 15 minutes, the nurse came back to check me then went right out to get the dr. - the baby's heart was showing decelerations (decels) from 150's (normal) to the 50's (bad). The dr. said "I'm calling L&D you need to get over there right now - DO NOT STOP!" Her tone freaked me out - so needless to say I didn't go to the car and get my bag but went straight over.
The L&D nurse calmly came out to the waiting area to get me and as soon as I got my gown on everything went into warp speed. There were 3 nurses and my dr. hovering over me. One was putting in an IV, one was putting on wrist bands, one was checking vitals and my dr. (out of breath from running up to L&D for me!) was assessing me.
I was in shock at how quickly this progressed and I was not prepared for the urgency. After all, I had been to L&D twice before and we ended up ok! But then my dr. started talking about delivery/emergency c section/blood transfusions and I started to blur the words. I wanted to scream "I just came in for my glucose test not a c section! I'm only 28 weeks this can't be happening! I laid on the table for awhile and my BP came down (amazing after all that stress) and his heart rate was no longer dipping, so the "emergency" was downgraded to a "watch".
5:30pm After about 3 hrs they put me in a room and I got my 1st shot of steroids (to help Nick's premature lungs) and my Rhogam shot. Just as I was calming down the nurse told me they were transferring me to another hospital with a level IV NICU. So when I delivered the baby would already be close to the NICU and not have to be transported by amulance. Suddenly it really sunk in...I am 28 weeks, I am going to deliver very soon and I'm not leaving the hospital until I do.
The ambulance soon came and the super kind EMT ladies strapped me (clutching my half empty box of tissues) onto the gurney for the 30 min ride. They rolled me up to my room (which was very nice and roomy) and the nurse checked in on me. It was 9:30pm and I had been on this rollercoaster for almost 12 hrs. I was starving and thirsty but they didn't want to give me anything until the docs assessed us just in case surgery was still on the plan. At this point I didn't even care about food I just wanted the baby to be ok.
05/05/07
7:00pm I'm still here in the hospital waiting for my labs to come back so I can get released! Ugh I hate waiting! They're great here but I'm ready to go home!
05/04/07
Had to go to L&D today again! I had an appt for a BP check at 11:15 and my BP was 155/100 and wouldn't go down. So they sent me to L&D where I got hooked up for 3 hrs and of course once I got there it was a lot better. However they wanted to get a 24 hr BP profile and urine so they're keeping me overnight. I hadn't eaten since 8 this morning and finally got my room and ordered dinner at 4:30 (which takes an hour to come up) so I have a splitting headache. But the tylenol should kick in soon and they gave me Ambien too so I'm anxious to get some sleep.
Bri and Sean came up and we had snacks and played a card game then I got a sonogram. Everything looks great~! He weighs about 2lbs 3oz (+/- 5 oz) and is measuring right on. AFI (amniotic fluid) is 20ml and she said for someone with my BP they look for 16-26ml so I'm good. Cervix is still closed and 2.5cm. It was past visiting hrs but they were nice enough to let Bri and Sean go to the sonogram with me so they got to see him onscreen too. Sean was having such a blast riding the wheelchair that the orderly let him push me back to my room. The boys left at 9:45pm and Sean was just sobbing hysterically he's never really been away from me that much overnight plus being overly tired. It was rough I've never seen him so upset.
So I'll be home tomorrow afternoon. Long day!
05/01/07
I'm done. I'm on modified bedrest - meaning I can get up to eat and take a shower and that's it. I took in my 24 hr urine today and it was 157mg. The dx for preeclampsia is 330mg so I am inching closer and it's increased from my last test (a month or so ago) but I don't know by how much. My BP was still 140/100 so they had me lay down and took it 2 more times and it was 130/88 which was low enough to let me go home and not go to L&D again. Oh man I was so scared I'd have to spend another 3 hr in L&D!!!!
So I stopped at work and got a few things, and my disability paperwork, and told my boss. He's the best - extra super supportive. Then I stopped at the grocery store because we basically had no food here and I knew Bri is already freaking out and wouldn't be able to get anything for awhile.
Today he laid the whole back yard with sod and tonight he has to take Sean to putt putt with cub scouts. Last night was tae kwon do...so if anything he will definitely appreciate me more while I can't do anything!!
The Doc pretty well scared me about the bed rest. So I'm going to take it seriously. They say the average time from diagnosis of PE to delivery is 2 weeks. It could steam roll faster than that or I could limp along for weeks like this. My cervix was still long and closed so that is good...hopefully my water won't break this time. Everytime I sneeze or cough I freak out.
I go back Friday for a BP check and then Monday I have my GTT and a sonogram. It'll be a relief to see how big he is even though I've heard the weight (determined by ultrasound) could be off by 1lb either way.
04/30/07
I'm home today. I called the doc about my swollen glands... I didn't really want to as they probably would want me to come in and it would be just another annoying preggo thing anyway. So I had to go in. They weren't too concerned about the glands since I hadn't been sick (other than the nasal congestion I've had for 6 months) and said maybe I'm grinding or it's TMJ and call my dentist if it doesn't go away. :(
But they were concerned about my BP which was 140/102. So I had to lay on my side a few min and they retook it and it was like 145/90 or something but no protein yet. So I have to do a 24 hr urine today and go back tomorrow to recheck. If it's still high I might be looking at bed rest...If it's down I probably go back to work. Depends a lot on which dr. is there tomorrow...some are more conservative than others. One might say bedrest while one might say get back to work and we'll check in a week. I have an appt next Mon for an US anyway. I'm 27 weeks so in a way I'm not as worried as I was- every week is a bonus at this point. I went on bedrest at about 28-29 weeks last time. So I slept for about 2 hrs today I was really tired. I still feel like doodoo I don't know if it's the BP or just annoying preggo fatigue! I have no idea what we're doing for dinner. Sean has been making breakfast (he rocks!!) but when I hear stuff clanking in the kitchen I have to go see what he's making. He's very good with making stuff but he overflowed the coffee one day and I don't like surprises at 6:30 am!
05/21/07
05/20/07
05/17/07
05/16/07
05/12/07
Going home day for mom! Up at 5:30. Called Bri and Sean at 8:45 to come up asap and those lazy bones were still sleeping! They got there around 10:30 and we rolled up to the NICU to see Nick. He's under blue bili lights for jaundice and has little black goggles on to protect his eyes. They took the vent out when the decided he was doing just as well with the CPAP and his chest xray is unchanged. Nick got his first feeding today! 1ml! They wanted to see how well he tolerated it and he did great so he'll get another 1ml later today. Had to wait while my paperwork was processing but finally got out about 12:00. Headed to Golden Coral and ate wayyy to much - I'm famished!
05/11/07
Getting restless now - I'd like to see Nick but by the time the nurses are done with checking on me, lunch comes, then I fell asleep and decide to wait until Bri comes tonight to wheel me up so I don't have to risk Wheelchair-Witch-Lady showing up. They decided to vent Nick to get some surfactant down to his lungs which will help them inflate better. He doesn't need it to breathe they just want to make him work less hard. He ended up getting a Pneumothorax - an accumulation of air between the outer lining of the lung and the chest wall, causing collapse of the lung.
05/10/07
10:00am Got moved upstairs to another room. It was about 1/4 of the size of the other one but the bed was much more comfy! I told Bri I really needed some rest after the crazy week I'd just had. So we decided he should take Sean to his tae kwon do class tonight and they'd come up tomorrow evening. I didn't get to see Nick until late afternoon. I called to get a wheelchair and it took awhile. Just as she got there the tech came in to get blood and vitals and I asked the nurse to unhook my IV so I wouldn't have to cart that around. That all took about 10 min. So we're finally ready to go to the NICU and I apologized to the wheelchair lady for having to wait (even though it wasn't my fault) and she kind of gave me an attitude. What was THAT about?? So she wheels me to the elevator and we go to the 5th floor. She starts to wheel me out the elevator and the wheel gets caught in the door track and almost dumps me out on the floor. I've just had a c section 24 hrs ago so that definitelty hurt and scared the bejeepers out of me. She says sorry and tries to wheel me out again and the wheel gets caught in the track and she almost dumps me out on the floor AGAIN!!!!! We finally get to the PICU and the nurses can't find my name on the register. She acts like she has no idea what to do and finally I'm like "He's in the ICN not the PICU!" I've just had a csection why would a newborn be in the PICU!!!??? By this time I was really ticked off. Once again she acts like she has no idea what to do so I ask someone "Where is the ICN"? He gives us directions and the lady huffily replies that she knows where it is...um...ok why are we at the PICU then?? Thank heavens I finally get to the ICN. I scrub my hands and arms for 1 min. per protocol and go in to see Nick.
I was prepared for small...but the actual smallness of a 2lb baby is still a shock. I, of course, start crying and curse myself for not carrying my box of tissues at all times. He is very pink...too pink. His skin is almost transparent. He has a cpap on with mininal oxygen, to give a little pressure to his lungs to inflate. He's doing well - better than anyone hoped. The steroids definitely helped! I'm starting to get very sore from standing so I need to get back to bed. I'm very glad to see someone else has arrived to wheel me back to my room I couldn't handle that other lady one more minute.
Just taking Motrin now. No pain at all unless I walk around and even then it's manageable.
05/09/07
Another night of little sleep. The bed was so uncomfortable and my hips were killing me from staying on my left side - the Ambien didn't even work this time. Around 3am I finally drifted off only to be awakened a few minutes later by 4 nurses and a doctor rushing in. The baby had decelerated to 50 again and, for a few seconds which seemed like an hour, they couldn't find his heartbeat. They put an O2 mask on me and were quickly taking vitals (BP, temp, etc.), then the ultrasound tech did a sonogram to make sure the baby was ok. Everyone was relieved when he said he was moving. At 7:15 the dr. came in and said we can't let that happen again because there is the chance his heartbeat won't go back up. We'll have to deliver this morning. I thought I was prepared for those words but really - who can be prepared for that? I was holding out hope for a couple more weeks - or even days - but everything is now crashing around me. The doctor asked how soon my husband could be here. I said about an hour...and he said ok we'll start as soon as he gets here.
I called Bri at 7:30 and he was probably more shocked than I was, but he took Sean to school and got to the hospital at 9. There was another emergency csection and she would be going first so we were looking to go at about 11:00. At 10:30 they wheeled me into the OR and got the spinal anesthesia going. My IV decided to blow out so they had to put another one in my right wrist. The spinal was not the most pleasant thing but I have to say it was marginally better than the epidural I had with Sean. I was freezing so they gave me a warm blanket which was wonderful but didn't really help my shaking. After the IV was pumping morphine we were ready to go, so the nurse went to get Bri who was waiting in my room. The nurse accidentally brought back the wrong guy - she brought the father of the other csection - so she had to go back and get Bri. Now Bri didn't know he was supposed to be getting gowned up while he was waiting...so all of this took a few minutes. They had to start the surgery and by the time Bri got to the OR we were already in progress! We were joking that everyone had masks on so we wouldn't know he was the wrong guy until he pulled out my baby boy (the other father was expecting a girl!). Bri did make it in time but he didn't have long to wait before Nicholas Robert made his appearance with a healthy scream! I was so glad his lungs seemed to be working fine from the sound of it. The neonatal team showed him to us then quickly whisked him next door for evaluation.
After a few minutes they brought him back, all snug in a cellophane wrap to conserve heat, for a quick glance again and said he was 1050 grams (2lbs 5 oz), 13.5" long and doing well. We were happy he was even a bit bigger than we thought! He went straight to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) where he got his IV and was put on Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) through a nasal prong. The CPAP does not breathe for him (like a vent does); the flow of air creates enough pressure when he inhales to keep his airway open. I was taken back to my room - my lower body was still completely numb from the spinal but I felt pretty good in general. I was amazed at how good I felt until I found out my last csection was complicated by the magnesium sulfate (the dreaded MAG) which was given to me to prevent seisures. That stuff will make you feel like a train wreck. So this time I was elated to find no trainwreck and actually very little pain (I only took Motrin).
Bri went home to get Sean and Jim and Dan came up about 3:00. I was given the ok for food...I had been so long without food I had pretty much lost the urge to eat. Jim and Dan went to the cafeteria and got me a parfait. Sean got to see Nick and took some pictures of him squeezing Sean's finger. He thought that was the greatest thing ever! After the boys left, they brought dinner up and I ate that too.
05/08/07
I slept about 15min all night because I was on constant monitoring. I was just resigned to lying on my left side because if I, or the baby, shifted positions his heart beat wouldn't register and the nurse would come in and move the belly monitor to pick it up again. Plus if I was on my back his heart rate would decel and they would rush in to turn us back on my left side. Boy does that hurt after awhile!! But as with everything - if it meant his heart rate would be steady I was up for it. I finally drifted to sleep around 3am and within 15 min was awakened by 3 nurses and a dr. rushing into my room. The baby's heart had deceled to ~50 but we readjusted me more onto my leftside and he stabilized. I think he was just seeing if the nurses were awake and on their toes out there! The dr. said if the baby is doing the same or worse than now we will have to deliver Thursday May 10 if not sooner. If he is somehow doing way better (no decels etc) we will wait and watch.
I had an hour long ultrasound and the tech was so great - she explained everything she was looking for and even gave me a 3D picture of Nick's face. She said he was about 2lbs 3oz and it's accurate to 0.5lb so I felt better...2lbs is micro small but it was still better than 1lb something.
Spent the day flipping channels and I got my 2nd shot of steroids at 5:00 . They finally took pity on me and said I could have broth and lemon jello. I swear it was the best meal I've ever had! Bri and Sean came up 7-9. Sean didn't want to leave but he wasn't as upset as the last time.
05/07/07
10:30 I had a regularly scheduled 28 week doc appt today and my gestational diabetes test (GTT). I hadn't eaten since last night's dinner and for breakfast at 9:30 I ate 2 eggs, toast with margarine and a glass of milk as suggested. After my last L&D visit ended in an overnight stay in the hospital, this time I decided to pack a small bag with my toothbrush and essentials but left it in the car. I figured if I had to go to L&D again I could go to the car and get it on the way. My BP was up - which we already knew would be the case. The dr. decided to hook me up to the fetal heart monitor to check the baby's heart rate. After about 15 minutes, the nurse came back to check me then went right out to get the dr. - the baby's heart was showing decelerations (decels) from 150's (normal) to the 50's (bad). The dr. said "I'm calling L&D you need to get over there right now - DO NOT STOP!" Her tone freaked me out - so needless to say I didn't go to the car and get my bag but went straight over.
The L&D nurse calmly came out to the waiting area to get me and as soon as I got my gown on everything went into warp speed. There were 3 nurses and my dr. hovering over me. One was putting in an IV, one was putting on wrist bands, one was checking vitals and my dr. (out of breath from running up to L&D for me!) was assessing me.
I was in shock at how quickly this progressed and I was not prepared for the urgency. After all, I had been to L&D twice before and we ended up ok! But then my dr. started talking about delivery/emergency c section/blood transfusions and I started to blur the words. I wanted to scream "I just came in for my glucose test not a c section! I'm only 28 weeks this can't be happening! I laid on the table for awhile and my BP came down (amazing after all that stress) and his heart rate was no longer dipping, so the "emergency" was downgraded to a "watch".
5:30pm After about 3 hrs they put me in a room and I got my 1st shot of steroids (to help Nick's premature lungs) and my Rhogam shot. Just as I was calming down the nurse told me they were transferring me to another hospital with a level IV NICU. So when I delivered the baby would already be close to the NICU and not have to be transported by amulance. Suddenly it really sunk in...I am 28 weeks, I am going to deliver very soon and I'm not leaving the hospital until I do.
The ambulance soon came and the super kind EMT ladies strapped me (clutching my half empty box of tissues) onto the gurney for the 30 min ride. They rolled me up to my room (which was very nice and roomy) and the nurse checked in on me. It was 9:30pm and I had been on this rollercoaster for almost 12 hrs. I was starving and thirsty but they didn't want to give me anything until the docs assessed us just in case surgery was still on the plan. At this point I didn't even care about food I just wanted the baby to be ok.
05/05/07
7:00pm I'm still here in the hospital waiting for my labs to come back so I can get released! Ugh I hate waiting! They're great here but I'm ready to go home!
05/04/07
Had to go to L&D today again! I had an appt for a BP check at 11:15 and my BP was 155/100 and wouldn't go down. So they sent me to L&D where I got hooked up for 3 hrs and of course once I got there it was a lot better. However they wanted to get a 24 hr BP profile and urine so they're keeping me overnight. I hadn't eaten since 8 this morning and finally got my room and ordered dinner at 4:30 (which takes an hour to come up) so I have a splitting headache. But the tylenol should kick in soon and they gave me Ambien too so I'm anxious to get some sleep.
Bri and Sean came up and we had snacks and played a card game then I got a sonogram. Everything looks great~! He weighs about 2lbs 3oz (+/- 5 oz) and is measuring right on. AFI (amniotic fluid) is 20ml and she said for someone with my BP they look for 16-26ml so I'm good. Cervix is still closed and 2.5cm. It was past visiting hrs but they were nice enough to let Bri and Sean go to the sonogram with me so they got to see him onscreen too. Sean was having such a blast riding the wheelchair that the orderly let him push me back to my room. The boys left at 9:45pm and Sean was just sobbing hysterically he's never really been away from me that much overnight plus being overly tired. It was rough I've never seen him so upset.
So I'll be home tomorrow afternoon. Long day!
05/01/07
I'm done. I'm on modified bedrest - meaning I can get up to eat and take a shower and that's it. I took in my 24 hr urine today and it was 157mg. The dx for preeclampsia is 330mg so I am inching closer and it's increased from my last test (a month or so ago) but I don't know by how much. My BP was still 140/100 so they had me lay down and took it 2 more times and it was 130/88 which was low enough to let me go home and not go to L&D again. Oh man I was so scared I'd have to spend another 3 hr in L&D!!!!
So I stopped at work and got a few things, and my disability paperwork, and told my boss. He's the best - extra super supportive. Then I stopped at the grocery store because we basically had no food here and I knew Bri is already freaking out and wouldn't be able to get anything for awhile.
Today he laid the whole back yard with sod and tonight he has to take Sean to putt putt with cub scouts. Last night was tae kwon do...so if anything he will definitely appreciate me more while I can't do anything!!
The Doc pretty well scared me about the bed rest. So I'm going to take it seriously. They say the average time from diagnosis of PE to delivery is 2 weeks. It could steam roll faster than that or I could limp along for weeks like this. My cervix was still long and closed so that is good...hopefully my water won't break this time. Everytime I sneeze or cough I freak out.
I go back Friday for a BP check and then Monday I have my GTT and a sonogram. It'll be a relief to see how big he is even though I've heard the weight (determined by ultrasound) could be off by 1lb either way.
04/30/07
I'm home today. I called the doc about my swollen glands... I didn't really want to as they probably would want me to come in and it would be just another annoying preggo thing anyway. So I had to go in. They weren't too concerned about the glands since I hadn't been sick (other than the nasal congestion I've had for 6 months) and said maybe I'm grinding or it's TMJ and call my dentist if it doesn't go away. :(
But they were concerned about my BP which was 140/102. So I had to lay on my side a few min and they retook it and it was like 145/90 or something but no protein yet. So I have to do a 24 hr urine today and go back tomorrow to recheck. If it's still high I might be looking at bed rest...If it's down I probably go back to work. Depends a lot on which dr. is there tomorrow...some are more conservative than others. One might say bedrest while one might say get back to work and we'll check in a week. I have an appt next Mon for an US anyway. I'm 27 weeks so in a way I'm not as worried as I was- every week is a bonus at this point. I went on bedrest at about 28-29 weeks last time. So I slept for about 2 hrs today I was really tired. I still feel like doodoo I don't know if it's the BP or just annoying preggo fatigue! I have no idea what we're doing for dinner. Sean has been making breakfast (he rocks!!) but when I hear stuff clanking in the kitchen I have to go see what he's making. He's very good with making stuff but he overflowed the coffee one day and I don't like surprises at 6:30 am!
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