Last night we kept Micah up until about 9:30pm and fed him Del Taco, the one thing I knew for sure he would eat and would fill him up since he wouldn't be eating until at least 1:30pm today. We thought for sure if we kept him up late, he might wake up later today, making him forget about his hunger. Not so. The boys woke up at 6am and the first thing Micah said was "I'm hungry, Mommy!" Martin did an amazing job of keeping Micah really busy until we left for the hospital at 9:30am. At that time, Micah did not want to get in the car. He was so scared, and we also had some trouble getting him into the hospital once we got there. But he didn't fight us too much and was very quiet once we got inside.
We had to wait about an hour and a half before surgery, and Micah played with the toys and got into his gown. We had bought him a new toy that he could play with while he waited, which he liked a lot (highly recommend that, by the way). A therapy dog that came to visit while we were waiting (sorry for the bad picture quality - all I had was my cell phone!)
At about 11:30am they finally took us back to the surgery room, and Micah was again holding on tightly to me and was really scared. Then I realized that my son is a lot like me: he fell asleep in my arms right before the surgery. He must respond to hunger and stress like me - SLEEP! We thought that was perfect, since he probably would sleep through the transition to the surgery bed. BUT he woke up right as Martin laid him on the bed, and he was terrified. For about 15 seconds he cried and then he was out. The anesthesia kicked in.
At about 11:30am they finally took us back to the surgery room, and Micah was again holding on tightly to me and was really scared. Then I realized that my son is a lot like me: he fell asleep in my arms right before the surgery. He must respond to hunger and stress like me - SLEEP! We thought that was perfect, since he probably would sleep through the transition to the surgery bed. BUT he woke up right as Martin laid him on the bed, and he was terrified. For about 15 seconds he cried and then he was out. The anesthesia kicked in.
Martin in his "outfit" to be with Micah
Micah holding onto me before surgery:
The surgery went great. The doctor said it went wonderfully and showed us his gigantic tonsils that he had removed. Soon after, the nurse came back and told us he was waking up, so we hurried into the recovery area. That is when I lost it. I saw my baby hooked up to monitors with tubes coming out of his arms and his feet and I heard his screams, and I broke down. He screamed and pulled at his IV, his wires, was tossing and turning and moaning, and it was the hardest thing I've ever had to see. The nurses were trying to get me to sit down and Martin was holding me but I just needed to cry for my baby. After a few minutes I sat down and held him, and he cried and screamed for about 30-40 minutes. They told me it was normal, and I had heard that I should expect this, but I guess nothing prepares you for it until you actually go through it. Some of it may have been pain, but most of it was him just coming out of the anesthesia.
After the 40 minutes was over, he calmed down and they wheeled us up to his room. There was another family in there whose son was getting discharged; he was 2 1/2 and had swallowed a penny the night before that got lodged inside of him. When they left, we had the room to ourselves. We had the BEST nurse who was so comforting and great with Micah. For the next 4 hours, we were there watching cartoons and snuggling. Micah never once complained of pain, and ate up Jello, popsicles, juice, and anything else they would give him.
This one just breaks my heart... In recovery:
Going Home!
When we left around 5pm and came home, he got upset that he couldn't have pizza. But other than that, it is now almost 10pm and he still has not complained of pain at all. I keep asking him "does your throat hurt?" and he says no! I have heard that the pain really hits in the middle of the night and the subsequent days, so that's why I entitled this "It is Over, and Has Just Begun." Not only has the recovery just begun, but hopefully a healthier future for him. Please keep us in prayer this week!
You know you have my prayers! I'm so glad he is doing well thus far! Keep it up Micah!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a trooper! I'll be praying!
ReplyDeleteHey Jaimie. Been praying for you all day. I have been keeping up with twitter but don't know how to reply. But I can only imagine crying myself during recovery. I have heard the stories but when it's your baby, ugh! Hope the recovery continues to go smoothly.
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