Heart Cath
I'm sorry I couldn't get this updated earlier today. It's been a rather trying and uncertain day. They were supposed to take Blaze in for his heart cath at 9:30, but due to complications with the patient ahead of us, they didn't come for him until after 11:30. The poor little guy was so hungry...and a bit fussy, though not as angry as I would have been in his situation. He couldn't have milk past 3:00 a.m. so things seemed a little rough for him for awhile.
The doctor today performing the heart cath gave us a head's up regarding 3 areas today that she said made her "raise my eyebrows." It was good to have the warning, they ending up needing to do an angioplasty (or a "ballooning") on his aorta today, because of some blockage. The surgeons prefer that they take care of these types of situations pre-op. Because they had to dilate his aorta, they wanted him monitored really well today. So he did not return to his room on the regular floor, but went instead to the Cardiac ICU. He was NOT happy upon his arrival to the unit. They finally gave him some really great medicine which sedated him, but he could still wake up and have his vitals checked. Unfortunately, when they use that drug he can't eat for another four hours. It's just now 9 p.m. and he should just not be allowed to eat for the first time today. They're hoping to pump him up with a lot of food before it's restricted again in a few hours for his surgery in the morning. To keep his leg still, I held him for a long time. He slept better when he was held, rather than in the bed. What a sweet and precious time that was for me. I needed that time. When I needed a break, Grandma Cathy came in and took over, until it was time for us to leave him for the night. He's in terrific hands and we left our cell numbers with his nurse in case we're needed.
We are going to be back at the hospital at 6:30 in the morning. Rounds start then and we want to listen in. We get to go with Blaze down to the operating floor at 7:15 where we will meet with the team performing the surgery and sedation, then the nurses will go over everything with us again. We will then go to a private waiting room. They will call with updates from the operating room every hour. It is anticipated that his surgery will be over at noon, give or take an hour. Afterwards, Dr. Huddleston will come out and meet with us. The nurses will need an hour to get Blaze back to the CICU and settled in before we can see him.
The surgery they will be performing tomorrow is called the Glenn. There is an artery that takes the used, de-oxygenated blood from your head and upper body and returns the blood to your heart. This surgery moves this artery and makes it so the blood no longer returns to the heart, but flows directly to the lungs, where it can be oxygenated directly. No middle man, so to speak. By the end of the third surgery, his heart will only have one job, to be a single ventricle. The Glenn is supposed to improve overall quality of life. Tim & I are a little concerned about that. If our Blaze is only on "half power" now...my goodness! We are not prepared for full-powered Blaze! HA! I'm sure we'll be amazed at the difference we see in him. He is so full of life and energetic now, I can't wait to see what he'll be like in a month or so!
Things for Blaze will be very different from his previous surgery. The first surgery required his chest remaining open for three days. This time his chest should be closed when he returns. However, he will have a horrible headache for a few days. His body will not be used to this amount of blood going to his head. It takes the body and the lungs some time to readjust, and during that time he will be very uncomfortable. He will also be swollen and flush during this adjustment period. The nurses call this "the cranky Glenn." Fortunately the medicine they gave him today will be used after the surgery and it will help him to be sedated and somewhat more comfortable.
We have been told by the nurses to just leave Blaze alone tomorrow. We are to check on him after the surgery, then leave to get some rest. He will need us on Saturday and he will demand full attention and energy. But tomorrow he will be miserable and need to sleep.
We are not looking forward to the painful reality, but we do know it is time for Blaze to have this done. His oxygen levels were very low. His appearance was so healthy, but things were rapidly growing worse for Blaze. We are so grateful for God's perfect timing. We felt terrible today for our hungry, drugged baby...and we dread the next few days, but we look forward to the wonderful lifetime ahead. It won't be like this for long, and I'm so thankful for that!
We got accepted into the Ronald McDonald House today. Tim's staying there tonight, my mom & I are staying at the hotel for this last night and Tim's mom is sleeping in the parent lounge at the hospital, so someone is near Blazey.
Today was hard and a bit scary at times. Hopefully tomorrow will go smoothly, but we know during his last surgery he had some complications. They are prepared to deal with those issues tomorrow, if needed. In the midst of it all, we say, "Blessed be your name" and trust that God has Blaze in His hands. We didn't know how this day would go and we're not even trying to figure out tomorrow, but we know we can trust the One who does know.
Thank you so much for the encouragement. What a blessing to have you in our lives! It's so nice to know we're not alone. :)
Joy
The doctor today performing the heart cath gave us a head's up regarding 3 areas today that she said made her "raise my eyebrows." It was good to have the warning, they ending up needing to do an angioplasty (or a "ballooning") on his aorta today, because of some blockage. The surgeons prefer that they take care of these types of situations pre-op. Because they had to dilate his aorta, they wanted him monitored really well today. So he did not return to his room on the regular floor, but went instead to the Cardiac ICU. He was NOT happy upon his arrival to the unit. They finally gave him some really great medicine which sedated him, but he could still wake up and have his vitals checked. Unfortunately, when they use that drug he can't eat for another four hours. It's just now 9 p.m. and he should just not be allowed to eat for the first time today. They're hoping to pump him up with a lot of food before it's restricted again in a few hours for his surgery in the morning. To keep his leg still, I held him for a long time. He slept better when he was held, rather than in the bed. What a sweet and precious time that was for me. I needed that time. When I needed a break, Grandma Cathy came in and took over, until it was time for us to leave him for the night. He's in terrific hands and we left our cell numbers with his nurse in case we're needed.
We are going to be back at the hospital at 6:30 in the morning. Rounds start then and we want to listen in. We get to go with Blaze down to the operating floor at 7:15 where we will meet with the team performing the surgery and sedation, then the nurses will go over everything with us again. We will then go to a private waiting room. They will call with updates from the operating room every hour. It is anticipated that his surgery will be over at noon, give or take an hour. Afterwards, Dr. Huddleston will come out and meet with us. The nurses will need an hour to get Blaze back to the CICU and settled in before we can see him.
The surgery they will be performing tomorrow is called the Glenn. There is an artery that takes the used, de-oxygenated blood from your head and upper body and returns the blood to your heart. This surgery moves this artery and makes it so the blood no longer returns to the heart, but flows directly to the lungs, where it can be oxygenated directly. No middle man, so to speak. By the end of the third surgery, his heart will only have one job, to be a single ventricle. The Glenn is supposed to improve overall quality of life. Tim & I are a little concerned about that. If our Blaze is only on "half power" now...my goodness! We are not prepared for full-powered Blaze! HA! I'm sure we'll be amazed at the difference we see in him. He is so full of life and energetic now, I can't wait to see what he'll be like in a month or so!
Things for Blaze will be very different from his previous surgery. The first surgery required his chest remaining open for three days. This time his chest should be closed when he returns. However, he will have a horrible headache for a few days. His body will not be used to this amount of blood going to his head. It takes the body and the lungs some time to readjust, and during that time he will be very uncomfortable. He will also be swollen and flush during this adjustment period. The nurses call this "the cranky Glenn." Fortunately the medicine they gave him today will be used after the surgery and it will help him to be sedated and somewhat more comfortable.
We have been told by the nurses to just leave Blaze alone tomorrow. We are to check on him after the surgery, then leave to get some rest. He will need us on Saturday and he will demand full attention and energy. But tomorrow he will be miserable and need to sleep.
We are not looking forward to the painful reality, but we do know it is time for Blaze to have this done. His oxygen levels were very low. His appearance was so healthy, but things were rapidly growing worse for Blaze. We are so grateful for God's perfect timing. We felt terrible today for our hungry, drugged baby...and we dread the next few days, but we look forward to the wonderful lifetime ahead. It won't be like this for long, and I'm so thankful for that!
We got accepted into the Ronald McDonald House today. Tim's staying there tonight, my mom & I are staying at the hotel for this last night and Tim's mom is sleeping in the parent lounge at the hospital, so someone is near Blazey.
Today was hard and a bit scary at times. Hopefully tomorrow will go smoothly, but we know during his last surgery he had some complications. They are prepared to deal with those issues tomorrow, if needed. In the midst of it all, we say, "Blessed be your name" and trust that God has Blaze in His hands. We didn't know how this day would go and we're not even trying to figure out tomorrow, but we know we can trust the One who does know.
Thank you so much for the encouragement. What a blessing to have you in our lives! It's so nice to know we're not alone. :)
Joy
posted by Blaze @ 6:59 PM
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