Well, we're still here. Gavin is not cooperating with his blood pressure. So far it's not coming down, so we're still in ICU until that happens. It's impossible to say how long it will take him. Could be today--or a couple of days. The nurse had to give Gavin quite a bit of pain killers to make him comfortable. We share a room with a darling little girl, Gracie, who also had a hard night. (She's had her 3rd successful open heart reconstructive surgery but is fighting infections in her wound.) Apparently we wore the nurse out because the nurse who came on in the morning said, "I heard this room is a bit Crazy!"
It's so important for me to be here. I now realize first-hand the importance of the patient "advocate." It's important both for Gavin's comfort but also for his care. I felt good last night when it was me who first recognized the signs that Gavin needed more pain killers. After watching him struggle quietly to relax and throw his head from side to side, without improvement for several hours--I looked at his BP and realized he was in pain--but just being a silent sufferer! He has always been a patient baby. When I asked, "Are you starting to think about more pain meds?" the nurse looked at me in a way that I recognized as "good idea!" It's not like it's her fault or anything. Pain levels in a baby are hard to read. And that's what the "mommmy" is for.
Which brings me to a message I want to send home, which is:
THANK YOU again to those who are making it possible for me to be here. I know that the kids are in good hands at home. Gavin is actually having a better day today so we'll see--I'm sure we'll be home, putting this behind us before we know it.
2 comments:
We hope he's feeling better and wish we could be there to help. We're so glad you have so many people who can help you through this!
Nothing and noone can replace a mom.
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