 |
| First Kangaroo Care |
 |
| After the first one it became a little less awkward getting him there! |
 |
| Just staring at the miracle that our son is! |
 |
| Family photo! |
 |
| Much more comfy without the CPAP! |
16 February 2012
Kangaroo Time Photos
15 February 2012
Tuesday, Valentine's Day 2012
Yesterday might not have been a very mushy Valentine's Day for Ben and myself, but that's ok! He had a very busy day at work and we had a somewhat busy day in the NICU. That is a somewhat GOOD busy day!
So lately Samuel has been protesting the CPAP rather vehemently. As in any time we had to readjust something on it he would start crying a little and we had to readjust things often! Why? Because Samuel wouldn't keep his hands off it! He would constantly be grabbing the head gear, undoing the straps, pulling on the mask or prongs (I don't know how many times over the weekend and on Monday we would find the prongs were in his mouth and not his nose, not helpful at all in his mouth!). So we were constantly going into his isolette to get the CPAP functioning again!
Well, to doctors and nurses had been talking about moving him off of the CPAP and onto something called Vapotherm. Vapotherm is not as high level of oxygen intervention as CPAP, which means they only move babies off of CPAP and onto Vapotherm if it seems like they will be able to handle it. Considering he's had a lot few A/B spells and when he does he brings his own heart rate and oxygen back up with no help, they decided to give it a go.
Overall he's been doing fine on it. He has been having more A/B spells again, but most of the time he gets himself out still. He has needed some extra stimulation a few times. They are going to keep monitoring this and if they feel he needs stimulation too much, Sam's beloved CPAP will be coming back. So please pray that his "device of torture" does not have to be replaced! I call it that because that's what he acts like it is... A device of torture...
This morning they took an X-Ray to make sure that the Vapotherm is keeping his lungs expanded just right. Well, it turns out they are slightly under expanded, but the doctor didn't seem too concerned about this. He wants to keep monitoring his spells and if things are work, back comes the torturous CPAP.
Kangaroo time was a little different yesterday. He kept lifting his head and moving it down my breast... We are thinking he smelled the milk, if that is the case, way to make that association! The other thing that made it interesting is we forgot to put the call button by me... The nurse and I both forgot. So I am sitting there kangarooing and by the point we'd been cuddling for about an hour and a half, I started thinking that I need to pump soon, I'm hungry and soon I'll need to make a run for the restroom...
So I texted my husband to ask him how he thought I should get out of this situation. His ideas were look for the call button and see if I could reach it and/or try to call out verbally and see if they hear me. Well, I had been looking for the call button, but I finally found it after he texted me back. Unfortunately it was on the floor and the cord was most definitely out of my reach. So I tried to say our nurses name out loud to see if she'd hear, the only problem is I didn't want to actually yell, as Sam's ears are still sensitive... No luck there....
So I texted Ben to call the NICU and tell them I'm ready to put Sam back. Which he did. My next step, if he was unwilling to call for me, was to unplug a cord. I was already quietly debating which cord I could unplug briefly to get the nurses attention, but not cause too much trouble. When our nurse came in she was extremely apologetic. I didn't blame her, because I could have easily said something too. With these little guys there is so much to be thinking about, that at times something like the call button slips your mind. The important thing was that I had other resources at my fingertips, so if there was a real problem, I could have gotten help. Our nurse yesterday was very good and I think she did a great job with Sam. So instead of getting angry about the one slip up, we laughed about it. :-)
Some notes to leave you with:
So lately Samuel has been protesting the CPAP rather vehemently. As in any time we had to readjust something on it he would start crying a little and we had to readjust things often! Why? Because Samuel wouldn't keep his hands off it! He would constantly be grabbing the head gear, undoing the straps, pulling on the mask or prongs (I don't know how many times over the weekend and on Monday we would find the prongs were in his mouth and not his nose, not helpful at all in his mouth!). So we were constantly going into his isolette to get the CPAP functioning again!
Well, to doctors and nurses had been talking about moving him off of the CPAP and onto something called Vapotherm. Vapotherm is not as high level of oxygen intervention as CPAP, which means they only move babies off of CPAP and onto Vapotherm if it seems like they will be able to handle it. Considering he's had a lot few A/B spells and when he does he brings his own heart rate and oxygen back up with no help, they decided to give it a go.
Overall he's been doing fine on it. He has been having more A/B spells again, but most of the time he gets himself out still. He has needed some extra stimulation a few times. They are going to keep monitoring this and if they feel he needs stimulation too much, Sam's beloved CPAP will be coming back. So please pray that his "device of torture" does not have to be replaced! I call it that because that's what he acts like it is... A device of torture...
This morning they took an X-Ray to make sure that the Vapotherm is keeping his lungs expanded just right. Well, it turns out they are slightly under expanded, but the doctor didn't seem too concerned about this. He wants to keep monitoring his spells and if things are work, back comes the torturous CPAP.
Kangaroo time was a little different yesterday. He kept lifting his head and moving it down my breast... We are thinking he smelled the milk, if that is the case, way to make that association! The other thing that made it interesting is we forgot to put the call button by me... The nurse and I both forgot. So I am sitting there kangarooing and by the point we'd been cuddling for about an hour and a half, I started thinking that I need to pump soon, I'm hungry and soon I'll need to make a run for the restroom...
So I texted my husband to ask him how he thought I should get out of this situation. His ideas were look for the call button and see if I could reach it and/or try to call out verbally and see if they hear me. Well, I had been looking for the call button, but I finally found it after he texted me back. Unfortunately it was on the floor and the cord was most definitely out of my reach. So I tried to say our nurses name out loud to see if she'd hear, the only problem is I didn't want to actually yell, as Sam's ears are still sensitive... No luck there....
So I texted Ben to call the NICU and tell them I'm ready to put Sam back. Which he did. My next step, if he was unwilling to call for me, was to unplug a cord. I was already quietly debating which cord I could unplug briefly to get the nurses attention, but not cause too much trouble. When our nurse came in she was extremely apologetic. I didn't blame her, because I could have easily said something too. With these little guys there is so much to be thinking about, that at times something like the call button slips your mind. The important thing was that I had other resources at my fingertips, so if there was a real problem, I could have gotten help. Our nurse yesterday was very good and I think she did a great job with Sam. So instead of getting angry about the one slip up, we laughed about it. :-)
Some notes to leave you with:
- Sam is a strong little boy! When on his belly he sometimes tries to lift up his body, I like to think he's practicing his push-ups. He can also lift his head for short periods of time. Not sure when most babies start lifting their heads, but he's ahead of the game I think!
- Sam does not like people messing with him and definitely does not like diaper changes! He hasn't realized that bending and stretching his legs CAN help it go faster, but not when he's doing the opposite of what is needed right then... When wiping his butt, stretching the legs is much more helpful than bending them! I've had to wipe off his little feet because of that....
- Sam knows when it's time to eat and will let you know that he knows. He's got a schedule and by golly, he wants to keep to it! Time to eat, give him food! Time to change position, move him before he gets completely tangled and himself completely out of alignment!
- Sam detests his food line while goes through his mouth down to his stomach. I wish our little boy would realize that pulling it out, just means he has to go through that awful process of having it shoved back down his throat again... He can sure get upset when it is put back in!
14 February 2012
Saturday - Monday February 11-13 - Life Has a Routine
So there really isn't a whole lot to talk about for the weekend and Monday. Which is a great thing! Life is starting have it's own new kind of routine. This routine is what life in the NICU means for me. Basically it includes activities such as pumping all the time, eating as much as I can (I just can never seem to get full!), helping with the cares that Samuel goes through (changing diapers, containing him while they take his vitals or change his CPAP from mask to prongs or vice versa), kangarooing with Samuel for at least an hour, sleeping at home, and doing it all over again the next day.
I think the hardest part of this new routine is the part that it is split in between being home and being at the NICU. When I am home and sleeping for the night I still have to wake up to pump and I don't even have Sam home with me! So I definitely feel like a typical tired new mother, I just don't have the baby to tote around with me... I do take naps at the NICU, if I have time (between helping with cares, pumping, eating and having visitors my time is quite short, oh and don't forget I am trying to go walking on occasion for some exercise too!).
Some positives over the last few days:
I think the hardest part of this new routine is the part that it is split in between being home and being at the NICU. When I am home and sleeping for the night I still have to wake up to pump and I don't even have Sam home with me! So I definitely feel like a typical tired new mother, I just don't have the baby to tote around with me... I do take naps at the NICU, if I have time (between helping with cares, pumping, eating and having visitors my time is quite short, oh and don't forget I am trying to go walking on occasion for some exercise too!).
Some positives over the last few days:
- Samuel is taking his feedings of 24mL of milk fortified with calories very well.
- He has had fewer A/B spells (apnea-breaks in breathing, bradycardia-drops in heartrate).
- He had another head ultrasound today which is looking even better! It will be repeated in a few weeks to make sure the ventricles are the correct size still (they sometimes have swelling when there had been bleeding).
- They are talking about changing him from the CPAP (which he's been trying to wiggle out of lately) to a vapo..... which is less intrusive to babies. We'll see if this happens this week or not, life in the NICU goes day by day!
- He continues to be a very good pooper! Well, he's just doing great overall!
11 February 2012
NICU Misconceptions
Ok, so I decided to depart from the usual posts that I write and write a post about things I have found that people think to be true about the NICU, but actually aren't. Really it's just 2 main things.
- "So how what weight does he have to achieve to be allowed to go home?"
- He has to be taking his feedings orally. Right now he has a tube that goes straight to his stomach and that is how he gets my milk, he does not actually go through the whole intake, swallow, digest process we do at this point. When he can do that, he is one step closer to coming home!
- He has to be able to regulate his own body temperature. Right now the incubator (actually called an isolette) aids him greatly in regulating his body temperature. His has a temperature probe that gives the isolette information and when he stops to drop his temp too much or raise it too much the isolette adjusts to get his body temp back to where it should be. When he can do that, he is one step closer to coming home!
- He has to be able to breathe pretty much on his own. Some babies get sent home with a little bit of oxygen, but most go home being completely independently stable. Right now he is on the CPAP and is receiving a little bit of oxygen, when he no longer needs oxygen, he is one step closer to coming home.
- He has to be able to keep a steady heart rate. Currently he will drop his heart rate on occasion. Now almost 100% of the time he brings it back up on his own with no stimulation, but we want him to not be dropping it at all. When he can do this, he will be one step closer to coming home.
- He also has to show weight gain. This does not come in a specific magic goal number. Babies used to have to reach a certain weight to leave, this is no longer the case. Simply showing that he is gaining weight is enough. When he does this, he is one step closer to coming home.
2. "I didn't think I would actually get to SEE him!" - Said when visiting me at the NICU.
Yes, if you visit me at the NICU you actually get to SEE Samuel! In fact, at St. Luke's, all the NICU babies have their own private room that the parents have access to 24/7, complete with a couch, sheets and pillows. This means when you visit the NICU you actually enter into the family own personal space and where I get to spend time pumping around the clock! No, I don't have to stay at night to pump, that's why I have one at home (with the help of health insurance covering part of that cost). As this space is the private space for each family in the NICU to have with their baby, when people come to visit a call in advance is preferred.
Think about if you were to visit someone at their house, most of the time you would let that person know in advance that you want to stop by. Same idea here. In fact it is almost more important here because I have to pump around the clock. That is why if you drop by unexpectedly you will probably not be let up to the NICU, especially if I am here by myself. When a person visits, they have to stop by the front desk down stairs and let them know who they want to visit. They call up to the babies room and make sure that Mom or Dad is there with the baby. Then they get a sticker with Samuel's room number on it. Next they go into the elevator, which upon entering the lady at the front desk hits a button and you may now go upstairs to the NICU. Without her hitting that button you are can't get to the floor that has the NICU.
Other amenities for the family of a NICU baby include free wifi, a whirlpool tub, showers, washer and dryer, refrigerator, microwave, and 3 meals a day down on the labor and delivery floor. It is because of the 3 meals a day down there that snacks are probably more helpful to families at the St. Luke's NICU than meals.
I hope this helped clarify some misconceptions you and others might have had about the NICU. This has been quite the learning experience for Ben and myself and through reading my blog about the experience I am sure it is for you too!
Friday, February 10 - "Bubble" Bath
Happy TWO WEEK BIRTHDAY Sam!!!
So I texted Ben and we slowly gathered up items and prepped Sam for the bath. Right as I was saying we could probably begin because Ben will show up any minute now he arrived. This was an exciting bath because this was his first bath with soap. So it wasn't a true bubble bath, but there were some soap bubbles in it! Once these preemies hit 2 weeks you don't have to be as worried about the skin. The nurse said his skin now is more like that of a full-term newborn, which is still fragile! When he was first born his skin was extremely thin and fragile. So YAY for stronger and thicker skin!
As we were prepping him for the bath we noticed that Sam had a nice breast milk poopy diaper. That means he's been able to work out all that nasty meconium stuff! We keep thanking God for things like poopy diapers. :-)
I talked to the doctor a little later that day and he said that Sam was still hovering on the border of needing a transfusion, which is a very normal thing for preemies to need. His blood count and oxygen levels have been just high enough to not need it, but it could still very easily need to happen this weekend or early next week. We are so thankful at how well Sam has been doing and knowing that transfusions are common place here in the NICU we are thankful for a hospital staff that is very well trained and know just what my baby needs to get strong!
After Samuel had his bath he was very alert and awake. He was wide eyed, squirming and looking at what was around him. Such a good sign that he is so active. I kangarooed with him as we fed him at 3pm and that was absolutely wonderful as usual.
That evening my friend, Rachel, stopped by. That was good to see her. I got to explain all the NICU baby stuff to her. It is always fun when someone new stops by because they have no idea what all the alarms mean. When people stop by they sometimes are surprised that Ben and I don't respond to the alarms at all. We might glance at them and comment that he's fine and continue conversation. This is because there are many alarms that go off in Sam's room. Some are cause for real alarm and some are just letting you know there was a change and by the time you look it is already resolved.
Sometime's there's an alarm because Sam pulled his temperature probe out (his incubator get's kind of mad when he does that). Only occasionally does an alarm sound that we actually have to worry about. That is when he drops heart rate and stops breathing and doesn't get it going very quickly on his own again. Generally he bring his heart rate immediately back up or he starts breathing right away again and that isn't a big deal. He's being a big boy and getting himself back on track!
09 February 2012
Thursday, February 9 - No More IV!!!
So today was really an extremely uneventful day when it comes to Samuel (praise God for that!), last night however was slightly more eventful (but only in good ways). As I mentioned yesterday his peripheral IV went bad and they replaced it with a new one. Well, that happened again last night! Only this time they decided not to replace it.
Yesterday I wrote about how that peripheral IV was really just replaced to keep it open while they made sure that he was taking the feedings well. Last night when the IV went bad, they decided that since he had been taking his feedings so well there was no real need to replace it, just keep going forward without it.
So today they starting fortifying my milk. Instead of just giving it as is they added calories. This means instead of 20 calories per ounce he is getting 24 calories per ounce. So far he has been taking to his feedings really well. We continue to be amazed and thankful that everything has been going so well!
This morning Samuel was being slightly fussy. I kangarooed with him during his noon feeding and he was just so cozy and loving it! We hardly heard him the rest of the day!
Today I got out and went the the ymca for a little while. I did a half hour walk using the fancy new gps/activity tracker my brother gave me for my birthday. It's really cool and I can't wait to get out and take advantage of more of the features, but all in good time I suppose. For now I just want to get over to the ymca and do some walking several times a week. Then if that goes well, walk longer and more frequently!
I decided after Samuel was born that it makes no sense for me to stop everything I am doing just because he is in the NICU. This school year I have been tutoring two students once a week, so after going to the ymca, I came home, did some chores and tutored for an hour. It was good to concentrate on something else!
This evening I have just been tired, Samuel seemed to be doing quite well, so I called it an early night and went home before 9pm!! Not that that helped too much as I still need to pump before going to bed and it is already almost 10:20. Alas, I am a slave to the pump! At least I am giving Samuel the nutrition he needs and that is all that matters. :-)
Yesterday I wrote about how that peripheral IV was really just replaced to keep it open while they made sure that he was taking the feedings well. Last night when the IV went bad, they decided that since he had been taking his feedings so well there was no real need to replace it, just keep going forward without it.
So today they starting fortifying my milk. Instead of just giving it as is they added calories. This means instead of 20 calories per ounce he is getting 24 calories per ounce. So far he has been taking to his feedings really well. We continue to be amazed and thankful that everything has been going so well!
This morning Samuel was being slightly fussy. I kangarooed with him during his noon feeding and he was just so cozy and loving it! We hardly heard him the rest of the day!
Today I got out and went the the ymca for a little while. I did a half hour walk using the fancy new gps/activity tracker my brother gave me for my birthday. It's really cool and I can't wait to get out and take advantage of more of the features, but all in good time I suppose. For now I just want to get over to the ymca and do some walking several times a week. Then if that goes well, walk longer and more frequently!
I decided after Samuel was born that it makes no sense for me to stop everything I am doing just because he is in the NICU. This school year I have been tutoring two students once a week, so after going to the ymca, I came home, did some chores and tutored for an hour. It was good to concentrate on something else!
This evening I have just been tired, Samuel seemed to be doing quite well, so I called it an early night and went home before 9pm!! Not that that helped too much as I still need to pump before going to bed and it is already almost 10:20. Alas, I am a slave to the pump! At least I am giving Samuel the nutrition he needs and that is all that matters. :-)
08 February 2012
Wednesday, February 8 - Kangaroo Care is AMAZING!!
So today has thankfully been yet another uneventful day. Last night I guess was a little bit more eventful (though not in the concerning kind of way). They have been checking and rechecking that peripheral IV with some surprise that it has been holding up. Well, last night, it finally went bad (as it doesn't work anymore). So they had to establish a new location, which worked and he's been doing great on the new site.
Which the new site is needed more as back up rather than out of necessity for Samuel's nutrition. Today they upped the milk intake to 18, which means (based on some elaborate formula that includes body weight and other things) he no longer needs the supplemental nutrition through the IV. However, they don't want to rely solely on the IV yet until they make sure he is taking the milk consistently well for a little while. Until then they are running what is basically sugar water through the IV to keep the spot live, until they can take it out. According to the staff here, hopefully tomorrow they can take out the IV and remove another piece of equipment from the room. Praise God for giving Sam the strength and health he needs to make all these "baby" steps. :-)
This morning and early afternoon Sam's been a little bit fussy, but then we kangarooed for his 3pm feeding. We kangarooed for almost 2 whole hours. It was amazing. Every time we kangaroo I just sit there with amazement. He sleeps real deep during our kangaroo care, but every once in a while he'll shift position and I can feel his little arms, legs, hands and feet move around a little bit. I sometimes look at him when he does that and just marvel at how he is a complete person despite being born so early. He has all the body parts we do and he can move them around, he just needs some time to make them stronger. This is truly amazing.
The other thing that amazes me about kangaroo care is how he immediately calms down and falls asleep as soon as I get him positioned on me. He was being somewhat fussy just before I picked him up and while I was picking him up. Then right when I get him positioned on me (before I even sit down, while I am standing by his incubator about to move to sit down) it's like the switch gets flipped and he's asleep. Now if it stays that easy to calm him from here forward that would probably be a miracle, but I am just loving it right now!
Really nothing else has happened, since kangarooing I've had a very peaceful baby all evening so far and hoping that this evening continues being peaceful. :-)
Which the new site is needed more as back up rather than out of necessity for Samuel's nutrition. Today they upped the milk intake to 18, which means (based on some elaborate formula that includes body weight and other things) he no longer needs the supplemental nutrition through the IV. However, they don't want to rely solely on the IV yet until they make sure he is taking the milk consistently well for a little while. Until then they are running what is basically sugar water through the IV to keep the spot live, until they can take it out. According to the staff here, hopefully tomorrow they can take out the IV and remove another piece of equipment from the room. Praise God for giving Sam the strength and health he needs to make all these "baby" steps. :-)
This morning and early afternoon Sam's been a little bit fussy, but then we kangarooed for his 3pm feeding. We kangarooed for almost 2 whole hours. It was amazing. Every time we kangaroo I just sit there with amazement. He sleeps real deep during our kangaroo care, but every once in a while he'll shift position and I can feel his little arms, legs, hands and feet move around a little bit. I sometimes look at him when he does that and just marvel at how he is a complete person despite being born so early. He has all the body parts we do and he can move them around, he just needs some time to make them stronger. This is truly amazing.
The other thing that amazes me about kangaroo care is how he immediately calms down and falls asleep as soon as I get him positioned on me. He was being somewhat fussy just before I picked him up and while I was picking him up. Then right when I get him positioned on me (before I even sit down, while I am standing by his incubator about to move to sit down) it's like the switch gets flipped and he's asleep. Now if it stays that easy to calm him from here forward that would probably be a miracle, but I am just loving it right now!
Really nothing else has happened, since kangarooing I've had a very peaceful baby all evening so far and hoping that this evening continues being peaceful. :-)
07 February 2012
Tuesday, February 7 - Bath Time
Today was a good day for Sam. But before I go into that, let me tell you about the last bit of last night. Ben got to the NICU before Sam's 9:30 check and feeding (they check his vitals and feed him apr. every 3 hours) and one of the things we do at these checks is to change his diaper. Since I had been changing his diaper all day, I asked Ben if he wanted to do this one. He eagerly declined (though he had already changed one diaper and then another today, making it 2 diapers).
Well, this diaper was a perfect diaper for the Daddy to change, because it was quite full. He got quite the poop out (and it is that stuff that full terms generally get out in one or two poops, if you've had kids, you know what I'm talking about). It was by far the biggest diaper all day! We were relieved that he was wearing the bigger size diaper because Samuel might have blown out his diaper otherwise!
This morning the doctor came in to tell me that Samuel's creatinine levels were a little high. The creatinine levels indicate how well the kidney is functioning. His kidneys are functioning pretty well we know by how wet or poopy his diapers are. However his levels were more akin to what they should be for an adult. That said, the medicine he was on can affect those levels. Now that he is off the medicine they did notice a decrease in the creatinine and we are expecting for those levels to continue to go down. If they don't Sam might have to get a renal scan to check the kidney for problems. So we are hoping and praying that the doctor is right that the medicine is what caused it and we will continue to see those levels go down!
All morning he was breathing great! In fact they kept turning the oxygen down until it was almost to the amount that we breathe in regular air. At noon our nurse for the day went and collected things to give Sam a bath, he had had a sponge bath last week, but this bath was with a little plastic tub. Preemies get bathed a little differently than full term babies (not that I would know as I never had a full term baby). What they do is they leave the baby wrapped in a blanket and then unwrap and rewrap as they wipe down different parts of his body.
Samuel did really good through the whole bath! During the bath I held up his arm with the peripheral IV so it wouldn't get wet. When they were done bathing him they wrapped him in a dry blanket to dry him off. We did this all in his incubator with the top up, that way he'd stay even warmer throughout the process.
This afternoon we had family rounds. Most of the goals from last week we either kept and want to do even more so or they were achieved and no longer need attention. Some goals for this week include: decreased creatinine levels, continued kangarooing with feedings, becoming stable enough to not need the CPAP, increased milk intake so he doesn't need the IV, Ben and I to continue helping contain Samuel during the different cares, and maybe a few more along those lines that I am not thinking of. Really Sam is doing great and there were no real negatives to discuss. :-)
Well, this diaper was a perfect diaper for the Daddy to change, because it was quite full. He got quite the poop out (and it is that stuff that full terms generally get out in one or two poops, if you've had kids, you know what I'm talking about). It was by far the biggest diaper all day! We were relieved that he was wearing the bigger size diaper because Samuel might have blown out his diaper otherwise!
This morning the doctor came in to tell me that Samuel's creatinine levels were a little high. The creatinine levels indicate how well the kidney is functioning. His kidneys are functioning pretty well we know by how wet or poopy his diapers are. However his levels were more akin to what they should be for an adult. That said, the medicine he was on can affect those levels. Now that he is off the medicine they did notice a decrease in the creatinine and we are expecting for those levels to continue to go down. If they don't Sam might have to get a renal scan to check the kidney for problems. So we are hoping and praying that the doctor is right that the medicine is what caused it and we will continue to see those levels go down!
All morning he was breathing great! In fact they kept turning the oxygen down until it was almost to the amount that we breathe in regular air. At noon our nurse for the day went and collected things to give Sam a bath, he had had a sponge bath last week, but this bath was with a little plastic tub. Preemies get bathed a little differently than full term babies (not that I would know as I never had a full term baby). What they do is they leave the baby wrapped in a blanket and then unwrap and rewrap as they wipe down different parts of his body.
Samuel did really good through the whole bath! During the bath I held up his arm with the peripheral IV so it wouldn't get wet. When they were done bathing him they wrapped him in a dry blanket to dry him off. We did this all in his incubator with the top up, that way he'd stay even warmer throughout the process.
This afternoon we had family rounds. Most of the goals from last week we either kept and want to do even more so or they were achieved and no longer need attention. Some goals for this week include: decreased creatinine levels, continued kangarooing with feedings, becoming stable enough to not need the CPAP, increased milk intake so he doesn't need the IV, Ben and I to continue helping contain Samuel during the different cares, and maybe a few more along those lines that I am not thinking of. Really Sam is doing great and there were no real negatives to discuss. :-)
06 February 2012
Monday, February 6 - Fussy Baby and Good News
Today has been a fairly uneventful day. Samuel's been kind of fussy off and on all day. They had switched his tube for my milk to a larger size, but as he kept fussing they switched him back and finally managed to tape it down in a way that he isn't spitting it right back out! But he was start crying a little for every little thing today it seemed.
Then I got to kangaroo hold him. After that he finally settled down. We also turned him on a different side, so it could be that too, but I'd rather think he settled down because of his cuddle time with his Momma. :-)
The exciting thing today was another head ultrasound. I know I said they weren't going to do it until Friday, but when I came in this morning they had changed their minds about when to do it. Apparently this morning was when they met with the neuro doctor and discuss all the babies in the NICU, when discussing Samuel they decided to run another ultrasound today just because of the big discrepancy between the first two. They wanted to hopefully confirm the second one. So they ordered the ultrasound to happen today after all.
They came in before lunch and did the ultrasound and as I mentioned Samuel has been a fussy baby today, so he fussed all the way through the ultrasound. I don't blame him, they were chasing his heartbeat down with that goop they use for ultrasounds on my belly all night, I don't think I would want anyone smearing that all over my head!
Later that day the doctor who's on today came to talk to me briefly. He said that the initial look of the ultrasound looked the same or possibly even better than the Friday ultrasound. He said I could come and look at the ultrasound pictures with him when I want, I told him I wanted to when I was done pumping. I got to see the pictures from last Monday and today and it is amazing the difference! Such a miracle! There was a doctor there that made a comment on how the blood vessels sometimes get in the way with these premies and are easily read incorrectly. So according to him there might have never been any bleeding problems. At any rate I consider how strong and well Sam's been doing as a miracle, regardless if that can be explained logically!
The peripheral IV they put in him has been holding up really well. Which is great because those kinds of IV's tend to not last very long and this one has lasted since Friday. We ask your prayers that it continues to do well!
Then I got to kangaroo hold him. After that he finally settled down. We also turned him on a different side, so it could be that too, but I'd rather think he settled down because of his cuddle time with his Momma. :-)
The exciting thing today was another head ultrasound. I know I said they weren't going to do it until Friday, but when I came in this morning they had changed their minds about when to do it. Apparently this morning was when they met with the neuro doctor and discuss all the babies in the NICU, when discussing Samuel they decided to run another ultrasound today just because of the big discrepancy between the first two. They wanted to hopefully confirm the second one. So they ordered the ultrasound to happen today after all.
They came in before lunch and did the ultrasound and as I mentioned Samuel has been a fussy baby today, so he fussed all the way through the ultrasound. I don't blame him, they were chasing his heartbeat down with that goop they use for ultrasounds on my belly all night, I don't think I would want anyone smearing that all over my head!
Later that day the doctor who's on today came to talk to me briefly. He said that the initial look of the ultrasound looked the same or possibly even better than the Friday ultrasound. He said I could come and look at the ultrasound pictures with him when I want, I told him I wanted to when I was done pumping. I got to see the pictures from last Monday and today and it is amazing the difference! Such a miracle! There was a doctor there that made a comment on how the blood vessels sometimes get in the way with these premies and are easily read incorrectly. So according to him there might have never been any bleeding problems. At any rate I consider how strong and well Sam's been doing as a miracle, regardless if that can be explained logically!
The peripheral IV they put in him has been holding up really well. Which is great because those kinds of IV's tend to not last very long and this one has lasted since Friday. We ask your prayers that it continues to do well!
Sunday, February 5 - I Know What I Need!
So pretty much since day one we have known that Samuel knows what he wants and he is determined to get it. As was evident when he pulled all the stuff off of his head because he was tired of it on him. Or his determination to take the tube out of his mouth constantly.
Today he showed a new determination. It start with him making the nurse run back and forth because he would drop his heart rate or stop breathing, just to bring it back up or start again right before the nurse reached the room. Occasionally we would have to encourage him some, but generally he figured out on his own that he needed to bring his heart rate up or start breathing again.
This afternoon he decided that enough was enough and he did not want to be on his belly anymore! I was grabbing my gear for pumping when I heard him cry. We weren't doing anything to him (normally he has just cried when he's tired of people messing with him), so I investigated. I looked in to see him squirming all over the place trying to (what seemed to me) get off of his belly and in some other position. So I went to go grab a nurse. I would turn him myself, but I don't think I should until he has less wired and tubes attached to him!
When the nurse came in we were laughing because he sure knew what he wanted and made sure we know it! Ben and I are sure going to have our hands full with this determined and strong willed child! :-)
Other exciting happenings included Ben's Dad, Dale, stopping by after going to the early service to say goodbye. It was good to have him here and he sure seemed to enjoy seeing little Sam (despite me often kicking the guys out to pump...).
I went to the late service at Church (my first time there since Sam was born) and got to talk to a lot of people. I was just sad I couldn't have Sam with me to show him off, but alas, that must wait for a while longer...
When I am out and about and I see new Moms with their babies I can't help but feel a little jealous that they get to have their babies home with them and I have to visit mine in the NICU. I know that's the best place for him right now, but that doesn't make it any easier that we didn't get the typical picture perfect have the baby then take him home a few days later when you are all discharged at the same time.
That evening we went over to a friend's house for some supper and to watch the Super Bowl. At half time I returned to the NICU to pump and to hold my little son. Ahh, that kangaroo care sure does us both good!
Today he showed a new determination. It start with him making the nurse run back and forth because he would drop his heart rate or stop breathing, just to bring it back up or start again right before the nurse reached the room. Occasionally we would have to encourage him some, but generally he figured out on his own that he needed to bring his heart rate up or start breathing again.
This afternoon he decided that enough was enough and he did not want to be on his belly anymore! I was grabbing my gear for pumping when I heard him cry. We weren't doing anything to him (normally he has just cried when he's tired of people messing with him), so I investigated. I looked in to see him squirming all over the place trying to (what seemed to me) get off of his belly and in some other position. So I went to go grab a nurse. I would turn him myself, but I don't think I should until he has less wired and tubes attached to him!
When the nurse came in we were laughing because he sure knew what he wanted and made sure we know it! Ben and I are sure going to have our hands full with this determined and strong willed child! :-)
Other exciting happenings included Ben's Dad, Dale, stopping by after going to the early service to say goodbye. It was good to have him here and he sure seemed to enjoy seeing little Sam (despite me often kicking the guys out to pump...).
I went to the late service at Church (my first time there since Sam was born) and got to talk to a lot of people. I was just sad I couldn't have Sam with me to show him off, but alas, that must wait for a while longer...
When I am out and about and I see new Moms with their babies I can't help but feel a little jealous that they get to have their babies home with them and I have to visit mine in the NICU. I know that's the best place for him right now, but that doesn't make it any easier that we didn't get the typical picture perfect have the baby then take him home a few days later when you are all discharged at the same time.
That evening we went over to a friend's house for some supper and to watch the Super Bowl. At half time I returned to the NICU to pump and to hold my little son. Ahh, that kangaroo care sure does us both good!
Saturday, February 4 - Breathing is Hard Work!
This morning I woke up early to pump and decided to just get ready and head over to the hospital. I needed more sleep and figured with all the people staying at our house, I would have a better chance of sleeping more in Samuel's room than at home. So I left the quiet house full of sleepers that were sure to soon wake up.
I got to the hospital and grabbed some more breakfast, pumped and laid down. Sleep overtook me quickly. I woke up to talk to the doctor and hear more about the results of the head ultrasound. Yesterday they gave us some preliminary results and what the doctor told me was also not an official reading, but I think we can go with it pretty well. What he told us is that this ultrasound looked like there really wasn't much for bleeding. In fact the grade 3 now looks like a grade 1 and the grade 2 looks like a 0. The doctor said they might have been simply over zealous in the diagnosis the first time or they might have misread it too. He found it hard to believe that it would have gone down that much in so short a time. They will do another head ultrasound in another week and we are hopeful that it will match or be better than the one they did today!
The doctor also said that we would probably start giving Sam more of my milk at each feeding starting today. He has been getting 3 milliliters every 3 hours and now he should get 6 every 3 hours. They then starting doing this too with the 12:30 feeding I believe. He has been tolerating the upped amount great too!
This morning Samuel must have decided that breathing is just hard work! He would stop breathing enough, which would set off an alarm that would call a nurse over to check and help him. After doing this several times and not getting his oxygen level back up the nurse decided to give him a little bit more oxygen. He is doing great on the amount of oxygen he is given and actually only receives a little more than what we get breathing regular air.
Ben, AJ, Dale (Ben's Dad) and Anna all started showing up a bit before noon. A few of them were surprised that I was at the hospital they had thought I was at home sleeping until it was commented on while eating breakfast.
During the afternoon everyone decided they were finally ready for lunch (I had eaten the food at the hospital already) so we took a break and went to Jimmy John's. Then after finding out that Ben's Dad had never been to Cold Stone, we stopped there too.
This evening has been really uneventful. I got to kangaroo with him again, which I just always find absolutely wonderful. They have me pick him up and put him back and I am getting much more graceful at it, which means Sam gets less fussy during transition.
Now we are just kind of relaxing and getting ready to go home. Samuel's still doing great! He is gaining weight back now too, he is practically back to his birth weight!
I got to the hospital and grabbed some more breakfast, pumped and laid down. Sleep overtook me quickly. I woke up to talk to the doctor and hear more about the results of the head ultrasound. Yesterday they gave us some preliminary results and what the doctor told me was also not an official reading, but I think we can go with it pretty well. What he told us is that this ultrasound looked like there really wasn't much for bleeding. In fact the grade 3 now looks like a grade 1 and the grade 2 looks like a 0. The doctor said they might have been simply over zealous in the diagnosis the first time or they might have misread it too. He found it hard to believe that it would have gone down that much in so short a time. They will do another head ultrasound in another week and we are hopeful that it will match or be better than the one they did today!
The doctor also said that we would probably start giving Sam more of my milk at each feeding starting today. He has been getting 3 milliliters every 3 hours and now he should get 6 every 3 hours. They then starting doing this too with the 12:30 feeding I believe. He has been tolerating the upped amount great too!
This morning Samuel must have decided that breathing is just hard work! He would stop breathing enough, which would set off an alarm that would call a nurse over to check and help him. After doing this several times and not getting his oxygen level back up the nurse decided to give him a little bit more oxygen. He is doing great on the amount of oxygen he is given and actually only receives a little more than what we get breathing regular air.
Ben, AJ, Dale (Ben's Dad) and Anna all started showing up a bit before noon. A few of them were surprised that I was at the hospital they had thought I was at home sleeping until it was commented on while eating breakfast.
During the afternoon everyone decided they were finally ready for lunch (I had eaten the food at the hospital already) so we took a break and went to Jimmy John's. Then after finding out that Ben's Dad had never been to Cold Stone, we stopped there too.
This evening has been really uneventful. I got to kangaroo with him again, which I just always find absolutely wonderful. They have me pick him up and put him back and I am getting much more graceful at it, which means Sam gets less fussy during transition.
Now we are just kind of relaxing and getting ready to go home. Samuel's still doing great! He is gaining weight back now too, he is practically back to his birth weight!
Friday, February 3 - Head Ultrasound Update
So today was a very eventful day. As mentioned yesterday, my father-in-law made it into town late last night and after we all got up he and I headed over to the hospital together while Ben finished up doing a few things at the house. We got there just in time to grab some breakfast and head upstairs.
Sam was doing great! Well, he really did do great all day. Soon Ben also arrived. Our doctor came in and talked to us about a few things. One was to let us know that his blood count was low, because of that they wanted to do another head ultrasound in order to see if the ventricular hemorrhage had gotten worse and that was the reason for the low blood count.
The other thing he wanted to talk about was what to do about the IV line. Currently he receives most of his nutrition through IV and my milk only accounts for a small portion of it. The IV line that he was given originally was through his umbilical cord. This is a good location for a while, but then there are risks of infection, which is why our hospital tends to try to replace it either with a Peripheral IV or a PICC line.
As mentioned yesterday they attempted (but failed) in establishing a peripheral IV. The problem with those is that they tend to go bad quickly and can be hard to establish. PICC lines run risks of infections, but tend to be a more stable line that they could use until he no longer needs the IV. Ben and I talked it over and decided we would be more comfortable trying the peripheral IV and going from there.
Throughout the day I would kick the boys out so I could pump and that morning as I finished pumping they brought in the ultrasound machine to run the head ultrasound. That was good because that meant we had a better chance of finding out the results of it by the end of the day. Since they ordered the ultrasound that morning they weren't sure when it would happen.
That afternoon I went home with the intention of grabbing my knitting and going to knit at Church with the ladies, but I was so exhausted and started crying over the silliest thing, that I decided it was better for me just to nap.
Meanwhile back at the hospital lots of things were happening. As I wasn't there I am relaying as best as I can remember what I was told. The nurse was checking Samuel over when she noticed that part of his umbilical cord IV was missing. Not a good thing and she couldn't tell how long that had been the case. That meant that we had to go from talking about what we wanted to do about the IV to doing something about it right then.
They found a lady on staff that is really good with peripheral IVs and brought her in to do one on Sam. Ben said he and his Dad said a prayer while she was working and God sure answered it. She was able to establish one successfully on the first try! Thanks be to God!
Right at that point I was also feeling somewhat antisocial so I kicked the boys out again. My younger brother, AJ was also coming into town and they wanted to grab supper with him. I decided to stay and eat the food at the hospital (which is actually pretty good) so I could keep pumping on schedule. Thus I was able to settle into a nice relaxed evening. So about the time that they were getting supper, I was kangarooing with Sam. I just absolutely love that time with him!
Later that evening my cousin, Anna, stopped in for the night and we all headed back to the house. We then spent a bunch of time talking before finally heading to bed around 12:30. It was overall a good long day.
Sam was doing great! Well, he really did do great all day. Soon Ben also arrived. Our doctor came in and talked to us about a few things. One was to let us know that his blood count was low, because of that they wanted to do another head ultrasound in order to see if the ventricular hemorrhage had gotten worse and that was the reason for the low blood count.
The other thing he wanted to talk about was what to do about the IV line. Currently he receives most of his nutrition through IV and my milk only accounts for a small portion of it. The IV line that he was given originally was through his umbilical cord. This is a good location for a while, but then there are risks of infection, which is why our hospital tends to try to replace it either with a Peripheral IV or a PICC line.
As mentioned yesterday they attempted (but failed) in establishing a peripheral IV. The problem with those is that they tend to go bad quickly and can be hard to establish. PICC lines run risks of infections, but tend to be a more stable line that they could use until he no longer needs the IV. Ben and I talked it over and decided we would be more comfortable trying the peripheral IV and going from there.
Throughout the day I would kick the boys out so I could pump and that morning as I finished pumping they brought in the ultrasound machine to run the head ultrasound. That was good because that meant we had a better chance of finding out the results of it by the end of the day. Since they ordered the ultrasound that morning they weren't sure when it would happen.
That afternoon I went home with the intention of grabbing my knitting and going to knit at Church with the ladies, but I was so exhausted and started crying over the silliest thing, that I decided it was better for me just to nap.
Meanwhile back at the hospital lots of things were happening. As I wasn't there I am relaying as best as I can remember what I was told. The nurse was checking Samuel over when she noticed that part of his umbilical cord IV was missing. Not a good thing and she couldn't tell how long that had been the case. That meant that we had to go from talking about what we wanted to do about the IV to doing something about it right then.
They found a lady on staff that is really good with peripheral IVs and brought her in to do one on Sam. Ben said he and his Dad said a prayer while she was working and God sure answered it. She was able to establish one successfully on the first try! Thanks be to God!
Right at that point I was also feeling somewhat antisocial so I kicked the boys out again. My younger brother, AJ was also coming into town and they wanted to grab supper with him. I decided to stay and eat the food at the hospital (which is actually pretty good) so I could keep pumping on schedule. Thus I was able to settle into a nice relaxed evening. So about the time that they were getting supper, I was kangarooing with Sam. I just absolutely love that time with him!
Later that evening my cousin, Anna, stopped in for the night and we all headed back to the house. We then spent a bunch of time talking before finally heading to bed around 12:30. It was overall a good long day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)