Inevitable

We met a new doctor today....his name is Dr. Greer...but that is not fun so I will just refer to him by his first name...Frank. He is a tall lanky man who seems to be butt optional...so he is constantly pulling his britches up. This is his first day on Owen's case, but my first impression is that he seems pretty laid back, open to suggestions but overall decent. We will see. He did his initial exam on Owen today and he gained 34 grams! Which means he is still gaining weight so that is a plus. His spits are still quite large but we are beginning to see a trend. When he spits up it is usually one spit up and even if he eats more after that, he never seems to spit again. So we are going to continue to weigh the spits and then feed him that much extra during his feedings. This way he is still getting the full 35 cc's (which is where he was moved to today) and they will just continue to monitor his intake and behavior. They want to get him off the TPN which he is being given for nutrition because apparently prolonged use of this can cause liver issues. Hmmm...maybe mention that to us BEFORE you give it to him for a period of time? He has also been taken off him phenobarbital (the anti seizure medication) which was being used to reduce the severity of the seizures should he have them. That is great...but then I also worry what happens if he starts to seize? That's the good news...now the not so good news.

Frank said that Owen's head circumference has grown again. While it is not a substantial growth in the last day...it was too much over the course of the weekend. He felt that it was definitely an indication that a shunt would be necessary. Frank feels that there is enough fluid building up will certainly begin to cause issues and will need to be removed. Dr. Elmo is back and is planning on coming to visit us today so we will get his views on it then. Frank feels that the procedure itself is not overly risky (except they need to put him under for it and they would have to make sure he could handle that)...but the shunt has a risk of infection and of malfunctioning...so it would be one more thing to be concerned about. On the other hand, the sooner the fluids are gone, the blood dissipates and the brain swelling goes down...the sooner we will really get a handle on what is going to come next or the aftershocks of all of the issues. Right now there are things that we worry about that can be chalked up to the swelling (like his fluctuating temperature). We will get an idea whether things will stabilize or not.

Owen's behavior has been good and bad. When he wakes up, he is very alert. He tracks you with his eyes, listens intently when you speak. He has been staying awake longer (not so much today though) that he has been in the past. All good signs. But his arms and legs have not been as busy as before. They are certainly operating...but Frank said his legs seemed less active than they should be...and before he would kick your face off when you went at them. Sometimes his hands are very busy with his pacifier or sucking on his fingers...but today he is a bit more subdued. Perhaps it is because he is just feeling lazy...but there is no gauge so we just don't know.

What I would like to know is how much longer will it be before he can blow this Popsicle stand? I am tired of hospitals and might quite possibly be on the verge of a psychotic break...but then I again...I guess I am typically in that state. Working and living the hospital lifestyle is killing me...although I like the peacefulness of the evening/early morning hours because the phones are not blowing up. I just don't ever have any energy...but you are not on here to read about me now are you?

Brendan is having a much deserved mini holiday with his Grandma Ahlers today. He is at the Deer Park as we speak and was given his favorite ravioli for lunch. He is getting some sunshine and an excursion away from the hospital...and I think that will be a good thing. Plus for April and myself...a day of peace and quiet is certainly not a bad thing. We will be picking him up tonight and bringing him back with us tonight...so he will be returning before he knows it.

That's where we are for now...in our tiny little room...waiting for what comes next. We will keep you posted.