Loop de Loop

Darren and I love roller coasters.  We pride ourselves in being game for any ride.  This Children's Hospital ride in Graceland, however, we're ready to get off.  Today's ups and downs made the Tower of Terror look like It's a Small World.   And today has been a world of laughter and a world of tears...

It started off with some scary stuff.  Grace had trouble eating, had stopped peeing, was really laboring in her breathing, had mottled skin, a puffy face and screamed in pain like I've never heard her cry before.  Fortunately, the attending doctor really listened and took all precautions to determine what was going on.  He was particularly concerned with her breathing which takes a parent's mind to some pretty bad places.

He decided to get her pain under control first since that was clearly an issue and also was part of what might have been making her breathing labored, so she spent most of the day in a morphine induced sleep.  They did a chest X-ray and an echocardiogram.  Both showed some mild to moderate fluid in her right lung, which they said is very common after this surgery.  The location and amount of fluid does not require any direct drainage, but instead needs diuretics to help her get rid of fluids.  They had been doing this but last night had switched from an IV dose to an oral dose.  They put her back on the IV dose and she's been a terrific tinkler since.  Nurses weigh each diaper, including one that could have been used as a shot put.     

The echocardiogram showed that the valves were not too tight, something that could have also been contributing.  We haven't received the full echo report but the initial one was good news as far as the heart and the repair were concerned.  It also gave us our first glance at four separate chambers for the first time in Grace's life.  Pretty exciting stuff!

They did another chest X-ray tonight to make sure we are headed in the right direction (no results yet), but just looking at Grace tells us we are.  Her breathing is still labored but less so.  Her puffiness is decreasing and her skin is looking better.  Her pain seems more under control, and her appetite is increasing with each feeding.  

So the bottom line is that Grace has some fluid in her lungs and that, coupled with the fact that she has a fresh scar in her chest, is making her breathe a little differently.  They feel confident that they have it under control, and the ICU doctor has been made aware of her even though she's moved to the step down unit.   He promises to keep an eye on her all night.

Thank you all for continuing to remain hope-filled for us and sweet little Gracer.  We needed it today, and you didn't let us down!