Dr.
Phillips came to see us this morning. He checked Spencer over and said that
everything was as it should be, but they are a little bit concerned about his
swelling. They wanted to try a different IV to help disperse some of the
swelling as it was starting to sit in places it shouldn’t. Of course, we agreed
and said whatever you have to do to make sure he is okay. So a few minutes later he was given a new IV
bag. Luckily he still had an IV needle in his arm so it didn’t mean any new
pokes therefore Spencer didn’t even notice them changing the bag. He was still
pretty much sleeping all the time so the doctors also recommended we get him
off the morphine. This again scared me. I was so terrified that he would be
more alert but yet in pain. They
explained that the morphine is such a terrible drug and they needed to find a
little bit of equilibrium as it is not good for him to be so doped up that he
is not awake at all. I liked him sleeping as I knew that if he was sleeping he
was not in pain and he wasn’t feeling frustrated with his lack of vision. But I also knew that the doctors know best and
said that if they find he is in pain they will give him an oral dose of
morphine without hesitation. I asked how they really know if he is in pain and
the explained that they can tell by his demeanor and also by his heart rate.
His heart rate would drop or spike depending on how he is feeling. Another sign
is his blood pressure which was also being constantly measured. Obviously
taking him off morphine did not mean taking him off pain killers altogether.
They were going to now put him on an Advil and Tylenol regimen meaning Tylenol
every four hours, and Advil every eight hours. I really hoped that this would
be enough to keep Spencer comfortable and to my surprise it totally was.
However, with this new drug regimen came new problems. There were so many drugs
being given to him orally that it set his stomach into a downward spiral. He
started to vomit every time I fed him and this upset me to no end because we
were doing so great. He was nursing
every four hours and he had even had a bit of cereal that morning but all these
drugs put an end to that. They decided to then give him some IV gravol to help
with the nausea and that seemed to work and it did allow him to keep in the
next few feeds of the day.
Dr.
Philips also felt that the Jackson Pratt drain would be able to come out this
afternoon which they said would help Spencer feel a bit more comfortable so I
was very happy with that.
After
the IV was finished they said they were going to weigh every diaper from now on
even if it had “presents” in it. They did this so they could see how much fluid
he was losing. (Swelling is all fluid therefore they want to see him filling
diapers to show that his body is starting to lose the fluid). He wasn’t doing a
great job of filling diapers just yet but we were hoping that tonight he would
start.
As
the day progressed he did start to become a little more alert. He still couldn’t
see but we could tell he was awake as he did sit up and he did respond to my
voice. He would turn his head toward me if I talked to him and likewise when
people would come in the room. Even though he was more awake he still would not
leave my arms. I sat with him and held him even though it became hard and even
painful for me at times.
The
Jackson Pratt drain did in fact get removed today. They asked Steve and I to
leave the room as it is not pleasant to watch. They said it was not a painful
procedure but we could hear him cry for a second as we stood outside in
anticipation. When we came back he was totally at ease and definitely not
uncomfortable in any way so I was quite pleased. He looked better without that “thing”
hanging from his head. I could also hold him better and was not so hesitant.
They also decided to take all lines out except for the one. This also made him
happy. At this point, because Spencer looked so big I asked if they would weigh him. They said sure so they brought in a scale. I was shocked by what they found. Spencer was 19 pounds prior to surgery and now he was 22 pounds. That was all fluid that he would need to dispell. That would be quite a feat.
The
day went by quite quickly and by evening one eye had started to open ever so
slightly. I was so excited. He still would not go in his crib at bedtime. Every
time I put him down he would immediately wake up and try and look around. I was
having such a hard time sitting in an uncomfortable arm chair. I needed some
rest as I hadn’t slept since Thursday. Finally I asked the nurse if they had a
chair like I had in the CCU. It was still an armchair but it was bigger and the
arm rests were more comfortable to lean Spencer against. The nurse said, “Oh I don’t
know what chair you had there but I can bring you a glider if you like.” I
accepted and that was the absolute best thing. I could hold Spencer
comfortably, put my feet up and actually get a little bit of much needed sleep.
 |
| Saturday evening Jackson Pratt Drain out and swelling subsiding a little bit |
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