Sunday, September 7, 2008
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Sweet baby boy
Big goings on in the pod today for little man. His vent pressure was reduced to where it had been previously and his breaths per minute went down to 40. You heard me right, that is a four followed by a zero. This might not sound like a big deal, but for Rhys it's fantastic. His vent settings were never this low prior to the paint shaker. And, his O2 was slightly less than 50%. Again, amazing for Rhys.
He got more kangaroo today as well, nearly three hours worth. He was mostly good though he desatted a few times, but I think his tummy is bothering him a little. And, nurse was able to suction up a good amount of gunk from his lungs. Overall a great day for us at the NICU. Tomorrow we are going to try to give him a bath if he is up to it. We went and bought him some lotion tonight. His Nonna (my mother) has reeeeally been wanting to lather him up with lotion since he has all his little crusties. I opted for the organic variety and got laughed at. The way I see it, at this point this is one of the only things I can control so nothing but the best for my baby boy.
Rhys also got some visitors today, cousins from Nacogdoches. They brought him a gift from Build-A-Bear. This is his TAMU ninja (really karate but ninja sounds better) bear! Cody has decided that at each of Rhys' milestones in the NICU we are going to upgrade his belt. Now he is a yellow belt and when he gets to come home he will progress to a black belt. Whoop! Also, he recently received TWO of his very own Zakys from SP (you know who you are). He says thank you, thank you, thank you!
Lastly, please pray for Olivia and Parker. Olivia recently underwent eye surgery and Parker is currently battling an infection. And thank you again to all who read and follow Rhys' blog, especially those we've never met who are sharing their similar experiences. Words can not describe the connection you feel with others who've ridden the NICU roller coaster. We've been amazed at the number of people logging in and blessed by your support. Keep the comments coming, we love to hear from you all.
He got more kangaroo today as well, nearly three hours worth. He was mostly good though he desatted a few times, but I think his tummy is bothering him a little. And, nurse was able to suction up a good amount of gunk from his lungs. Overall a great day for us at the NICU. Tomorrow we are going to try to give him a bath if he is up to it. We went and bought him some lotion tonight. His Nonna (my mother) has reeeeally been wanting to lather him up with lotion since he has all his little crusties. I opted for the organic variety and got laughed at. The way I see it, at this point this is one of the only things I can control so nothing but the best for my baby boy.
Rhys also got some visitors today, cousins from Nacogdoches. They brought him a gift from Build-A-Bear. This is his TAMU ninja (really karate but ninja sounds better) bear! Cody has decided that at each of Rhys' milestones in the NICU we are going to upgrade his belt. Now he is a yellow belt and when he gets to come home he will progress to a black belt. Whoop! Also, he recently received TWO of his very own Zakys from SP (you know who you are). He says thank you, thank you, thank you!
Lastly, please pray for Olivia and Parker. Olivia recently underwent eye surgery and Parker is currently battling an infection. And thank you again to all who read and follow Rhys' blog, especially those we've never met who are sharing their similar experiences. Words can not describe the connection you feel with others who've ridden the NICU roller coaster. We've been amazed at the number of people logging in and blessed by your support. Keep the comments coming, we love to hear from you all.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Day 51
He's eating and resting peacefully...
and then he starts crying and is just so upset.(and this was a very mild upset with no flailing arms)
It's getting really hard to sit here and watch my baby scream. I think it is worse that there is no sound that accompanies it. For the last two days he has been crying on and off for a good portion of the day. And this is the lip quivering, big gulps of air crying that makes him look terribly distraught. The doctors said everything looks good, his blood gases are okay, so they think he might be having "withdrawal" issues from having his sedatives decreased. They didn't wean any more today to "give him a break".
He received more blood today, although I'm not sure why. He just had a blood transfusion a few days ago and they are only doing labs once a day now so I was surprised he needed more blood already. At least this time the IV is in his hand and not messing up the other foot. I will have to pay more attention next time because I should have noticed his little foot tilted at the wrong angle and made someone fix it. The pressure is up a bit on the vent, but all other settings are the same. I guess we're starting to see the effects of discontinued steroids, though his O2 is in the 50s, which is great for him. He's still on scheduled doses of albuterol, full feeds and they are starting an oral steroid to see what that does for him. Yesterday they were able to suction a huge amount of what I will call gunk from his lungs. Hopefully the diuretics, albuterol and tummy time are helping to loosen some of the nasty stuff that is hindering his breathing.
He received more blood today, although I'm not sure why. He just had a blood transfusion a few days ago and they are only doing labs once a day now so I was surprised he needed more blood already. At least this time the IV is in his hand and not messing up the other foot. I will have to pay more attention next time because I should have noticed his little foot tilted at the wrong angle and made someone fix it. The pressure is up a bit on the vent, but all other settings are the same. I guess we're starting to see the effects of discontinued steroids, though his O2 is in the 50s, which is great for him. He's still on scheduled doses of albuterol, full feeds and they are starting an oral steroid to see what that does for him. Yesterday they were able to suction a huge amount of what I will call gunk from his lungs. Hopefully the diuretics, albuterol and tummy time are helping to loosen some of the nasty stuff that is hindering his breathing.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Day 50
Rhys hasn't been so happy today, he is acting fussy. His O2 right now is 61%. He sats 100 and then 5 seconds later he is in the 50s, only to come back up to 100 again. It could be because they are continually decreasing his versed and morphine - they had to give him a dose of ativan last night. But, maybe not, who knows? His weight is up to 2 pounds 11 ounces (1210 grams) as of the last weigh in, so he's moving in the right direction. They removed the IV from his foot, yea!, but now his little foot wants to turn outwards at nearly a 45 degree angle. Poor little guy can't win. I was told he got a very good bath last night, and as far as I know that was his first. His skin is nice and soft, and his hair is a little mussed but the cow lick/curl is still there. :o)
His vent settings are the same as they have been and the doctors just made the rounds and are pleased with where he is at. His x-rays are now scheduled for Mondays and Wednesdays only, instead of once a day. And, they have started what the doctor called chronic diuretics, instead of the occasional lasix which is used to treat acute conditions. He is also taking treatments of albuterol every six hours. We've mentioned previously that his last dose of steroids was yesterday, so please pray that he can handle everything without requiring more.
What else can I tell you...? Oh, there was just an almost emergency in the pod and it was very reassuring to see that (literally) a dozen doctors, nurses and respiratory techs made it into the room in less than 15 seconds.
His vent settings are the same as they have been and the doctors just made the rounds and are pleased with where he is at. His x-rays are now scheduled for Mondays and Wednesdays only, instead of once a day. And, they have started what the doctor called chronic diuretics, instead of the occasional lasix which is used to treat acute conditions. He is also taking treatments of albuterol every six hours. We've mentioned previously that his last dose of steroids was yesterday, so please pray that he can handle everything without requiring more.
What else can I tell you...? Oh, there was just an almost emergency in the pod and it was very reassuring to see that (literally) a dozen doctors, nurses and respiratory techs made it into the room in less than 15 seconds.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
7 weeks old today
Today Rhys is 7 weeks. That is quite an accomplishment for our little man. He now weighs 1170 grams (2 pounds 9 ounces), which is just shy of 2x his birth weight. His O2 is in the 50s this morning and his vent pressures are the same. He is still taking the feedings well, which the doctor said is a huge plus in his favor. His current calorie intake is about 120 calories per kilogram per day, but they are talking about possibly trying to bump it up a little to help him gain some weight. I really like this doctor, even though yesterday she called him Riss and today he was Ryan. :o) I understand they see a lot of babies (there have been +/- 100 babies on this floor since we've been here) and you can't expect them to remember all the names. She still gives it to you straight, but her delivery is more positive.
Oh, Rhys has been upgraded to the preemie-small diapers instead of the XS. They are a little big, but the others were getting a little tight.
Oh, Rhys has been upgraded to the preemie-small diapers instead of the XS. They are a little big, but the others were getting a little tight.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
New doctor rotation for Sept
It's tough being Rhys...
More time with the Zaky (he is going to be
dragging this thing around for the next three years)
Rhys is doing well today, though he is nearing the end of his steroid course. I am a little worried at what is going to happen when the steroids stop since he's been dubbed "steroid dependent". There is a new attending and fellow doctor on duty and that makes me nervous for the transition period where they learn their patients. This attending was there during their delivery so she at least knows of us (she remembered Cody).Today they decreased the pressure a small amount again and his O2 is up a bit to high 60s/low 70s. They continue to decrease his morphine and versed and he seems to be taking that well. He is a sensitive little guy and still doesn't care to be messed with, so I think it's good they are able to wean on his sedation. His milk is up to 20cc per feed, and he has little to no residual which is fantastic. Little man likes to eat! He had two really dirty diapers this morning so his tummy is feeling much better I'm sure. No kangaroo yesterday or today. He has an IV in his foot from his blood transfusion so I haven't asked about it. The IV makes me nervous. I know I didn't like anything touching my IV so I would rather not mess with him while he's got one.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Whew
Well, the nurse practitioner came to check little man out and she couldn't find anything. She said he was looking good, lungs were sounding good, etc. They switched out his O2 saturation probe, changed his diaper and repositioned him. That helped a little - he slowly started to creep back down a bit, but he was still on very high oxygen relative to what he had been the last few days.
Around 5pm he got fed again. After his feed was finished the nurse changed his diaper and it was a massive dirty diaper. I would say it could easily be considered a blow out in preemie terms, I think some even ended up on his blanket. His O2 is now in the low 60s and I bet his little tummy is feeling a lot better. He still has a little roly poly belly so I am thinking there might be more to come.
Around 5pm he got fed again. After his feed was finished the nurse changed his diaper and it was a massive dirty diaper. I would say it could easily be considered a blow out in preemie terms, I think some even ended up on his blanket. His O2 is now in the low 60s and I bet his little tummy is feeling a lot better. He still has a little roly poly belly so I am thinking there might be more to come.
Labor Day
Rhys was doing great when we came in today. His levels and vitals were good and his O2 was 55%. He was sleeping very hard and looked very relaxed. He received a blood transfusion over the night shift and his versed and morphine continue to be decreased.
Seemingly out of no where he started desatting and his O2 has continually needed to be increased. He is at 95% oxygen now, the highest it has been in days, and he is only satting in the 80s. Typically, even when he is resting well he stretches a lot and moves a bit. He has hardly moved since we got here, maybe only to wiggle his toes. The nurse says everything looks good and he doesn't act like he's getting sick. He is tolerating his feeds well (which are up to 19cc), and she says not tolerating feeds is usually the first sign of a baby that is getting sick. I am just nervous that he has had kangaroo for three days and I don't want him getting an infection. Here we go again....
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