Day 6 of life for baby Abraham

His ET (endotracheal tube, AKA: breathing tube) was replaced with a bigger tube because he has grown a little. Per the resident they are changed it at least every 7 days because they can be blocked, won’t work as well and can increase the risk of infection. His blood gases were a little abnormal today after making the ventilator and ET changes. However after Glenn and I got there he stabilized. He received blood again today because his hematocrit (the number of red blood cells and the size of red blood cells. It gives a percentage of red blood cells found in whole blood (healthline.com, 2009) was getting low. Adults can handle a drop in this ex: after major surgery with blood loss, however a premature baby can not. Glenn and I talked about donating our own blood so we know it’s safe however the resident does not feel that Abraham will need more blood. The resident assured us that blood given to premature babies is very safe and extra precautions are taken.
Current medical management; Hyper Al (vitamins, minerals and sugar) and lipids (fats) (Basically Intravenous,” inside the veins, nutrition), umbilical cord venous and arterial line (to draw blood gases without poking the baby), isolette (special bed to help regulate body temperature), photo lights (lowers bilirubin level, his is fine however the resident prefers to keep them on him), ventilator (assist with breathing), IV (intravenous, “inside the veins”, fluids additional sodium in his IV because he had a low sodium (salt level). Resident described this as due to possible (salt wasting) which occurs in brain injury such as concussion. The brain signals the kidneys to release more salt. The resident does not know this for sure however this is the best explanation. This upset me because it was another sign that brain damage has occurred. The resident said that they did not know for sure and do not know the outcome. He can not say that he grows, graduate high school, get a job and be able to pay taxes or not.
He might get to have breast milk thru an OG (orogastric) tube. This will be a small amount however because of oxygen deprivation all this blood was shunted away from his bowel and gastrointestinal tract. Green drainage is coming from his belly. They are not sure what it is. I questioned if it was bile (liver produces, gallbladder releases in response to eating fats) or it if stool. I also wondered if he had NEC, (necrotizing enterocolitis) however the resident said that this is not a concern at this point in time.
A care conference is scheduled tomorrow with the team, pediatric neurologist, cardiologist and neonatologist. The resident feels that his is doing better and is NOT recommending stopping life saving techniques in fact it will require review by the ethics committee if that decision is made so they are not recommending this. Sorry if anyone was confused on this because the doctors and Glenn/Karen are not ready to say stop any ways. We believe prayer and God’s touch will heal him after all Abraham means “Great Faith”. FYI his name was picked out even before we knew for sure he was a boy. So his plan was already made by God.
Glenn has been a huge support. I am truly thankful to have such a wonderful husband. He created the Blog today while I slept. He went to the store: got a stop watch to hang around my neck to kept tract of pumping time, little pen to hang off it (since I am always dropping it) and a drying rack for the breast pump supplies. He also has made food and did laundry. Since we are limited to 3 bins (one is already full) in the breast milk freezer he bought breast milk storage bags since they will take up less space. Our 3rd wedding anniversary is on Valentine’s Day and this will be our first one together. We have been thru some difficulties over the last 3 years however we have grown stronger in our faith in God and closer as a couple as a result. God has always provided support for us during difficult times.
Today I can do more for myself, wash my own feet and pain is being controlled with one dose of Motrin. This is good since Glenn will be headed to Bremerton some time this week to check in at this new ship and check on the birth certificate and enroll Abraham in Tricare and DEERs.
For those of you that don’t live in Washington be assured we have great support here despite having been in San Diego for the last two years. It feels like with never left Washington. Our pastor, his wife and two of our friends from Silverdale Baptist Church came to visit yesterday. They saw Abraham, prayed over him and brought some breast pump cleaning supplies which came in handy especially at 2AM. The breast pump wipes are so much easier to use then washing with soap and water or microwaving in the steam bag. Also the family that rented our house for the past two years have done many things for us including driving Glenn down to Madigan while I was en-route by ambulance last week. They also got me some clothes to wear and Leanna helped me to wash my hair when I could not. They even checked on our cats. Thank you so much. Wow God does provide for us exactly what is needed.
If you would like to contact Glenn his e-mail is Glenngoddard@gmail.com. He could use some encouragement and support. We are headed to bed now (well at least Karen is).