As promised a few weeks ago here is my NICU story......
I didn't wake up from the surgery, and all until about 5:30p in the evening on Tuesday. So, I didn't see Davis for the first time until Tuesday night. They wheeled me in the NICU up to his isolette . The nurse greeted me, and asked if I wanted to hold him. As soon as she touched him he began to cry. She said he preferred to be left alone. I knew that much was true because he was like that in the womb. He was crying when she put him in my arms, and I said " It's alright Davis". He immediately stopped crying, and gazed in my direction. It was like he was thinking "I know you. Where have you been?" I was instantly in love.
The first couple of days went great until that Friday morning when I called to see how his night was. His nurse told me that he had 4 out of the 6cc's of food left over from his last meal. They put a feeding tube in through their noses or mouths down to their stomachs, and feed them through a syringe. Before the next meal they "suction" I guess is how you would say it to see how much of the food digested. That morning he only digested 2 cc's. His breathing had also taken a turn for the worse, and he had to be put on a ventilator. That was a bad day. I spent the whole day crying.
That night he was in worse shape. His heart rate was dropping. His oxygen levels, even though he was on a ventilator, were low. He was turning gray. I cannot express in words the feelings, and emotions I felt when I thought my baby was dying. I had only known him for 5 days, but it was the most wonderful 5 days there ever was. When we left that night we didn't know if he would be there in the morning. I cried all the way home. I called my Dad, and told him what was going on, and he told me to pray. I took a shower, and as I getting out the doctor called. Come to find out Davis' pic-line IV came out, and he wasn't getting any of his medicines, or IV fluids. A pic-line IV is an IV that they put into a major artery, so that they don't have to keep sticking him. The possibility of that happening is so rare that they didn't even think to check for it. They only noticed it because his arm was swollen from the fluid going in his arm, and not the artery. My luck I tell ya. After they put it back in he was fine. He had weened himself off of the ventilator by that Monday.
Two days after our big scare my Dad came to visit. He arrived that Sunday morning, and we headed off to the hospital. He was so proud of Davis. We left the hospital, and went grabbed some lunch. Jay and Daddy then went to Wal-Mart, so Daddy could buy the carseat. I stayed home because who really wants to walk around Wal-Mart a week after a c-section? After we left from our second hospital visit we stopped, and grabbed dinner. I had just fixed our plates, and sat down when I heard my Dad yell "Cyndi come get this!" I turned around, and he was thrusting his plate at me. I grabbed it, and then he started feeling he had to vomit. Jay went and grabbed a trash can. He sat there hollering in pain, and I kept asking did I need to call an ambulance, he would say no. He told me he just needed to go lay down, but he couldn't muster the energy to stand up. I let him sit there for 30 mins before I finally got a good look at his face. He had had a stroke. I called an ambulance, and they took him to the hospital. While we were in the back he just kept apologizing for getting sick. I told him it's not like he planned it. When I thought he was going to get some rest I went home to take a quick nap. The hospital called and woke me up. The nurse told me he had had 4 more strokes while I was gone, and I needed to get up there. When I got there he seemed to be feeling better, and we waited for him to be moved upstairs to the ICU. I called my uncle to let him know what was going on. He and my aunt left, and headed this way. I hung out in his room until it was time for my doctor's appointment.
After my appointment I went home to gather my thoughts. My aunt and uncle arrived, and my uncle went to the hospital while my aunt and I went to the NICU. For the rest of the day I went back, and worth between the NICU, and the ICU. Later that night while I was at the NICU the hospital called, and said my Dad was coding. We rushed there, and thankfully they were able to bring him back.
The next few weeks my day was as followed: wake up at 3am and pump, wake up at 7am pump and get ready to go to the NICU, 9am come home and pump then go to the ICU, 12pm pump,eat, and go the NICU...you get the drift. I was on auto pilot. Seriously I was so tired I fell asleep with the breast pump on high for 3 hours. Yeah... This was suppose to be the happiest time in my life, but instead I had 2 important guys in critical care. One, Davis, was doing awesome while the other, my dad, was not.
Davis continued growing and doing great. He ended up being a feed and grow. We didn't have anymore health scares. He was just so tiny. You can not imagine how small a 3lb baby is. I had one, and cannot remember him that small. I still have one of his diapers from when he first got into the NICU, and it is the size of my palm. All the nurses were fabulous. They were so kind, and just.....there isn't a word for them. My friend whose wedding we recently attended was one of Davis' NICU nurses. I hold a special place in my heart for all of them. The experience probably could of been a lot worse if it weren't for them.
I also made another friend during our time in the NICU. She was a mom of a preemie as well. Funny thing was we were in childbirth classes together. On the last night of the class Jay noticed they hadn't been there, and said "they must of had their baby". I remember telling him that I had hoped not because she was due 2 weeks before me. I ended up giving birth a week later. That Tuesday night when they wheeled me into the NICU I saw a familiar face smiling at me. It was her. She had her little girl 2 weeks before I had Davis. We became good friends, and since we both stayed home the first year we would go walk the mall in the morning time. I think we helped each other make it through that first year. It was nice having someone going through the same thing as you. Her little girl is doing great. She is smart as a whip, and so pretty. She was always smaller than Davis, but did everything first. They are both little miracle babies.
On Friday March 20th, I signed the papers to take my Dad off of life support. He passed away at 4:30 in the morning on the 21st. That following Saturday Davis came home from the hospital. It's funny how life turns out. I never imagined my dad not being in my son's life. I always pictured him at the holidays, birthday parties, and baseball games. Now that he is not I think that is the hardiest part of it all. I am sad for me, but I am sadder for Davis. My dad was a wonderful man, and I just wished Davis would have had the chance to know him.
Well that is it. We were just really blessed. We had an excellent team of medical professionals looking after us, and we made some really great friends in the process. If you have any questions just feel free to ask me in the comment section.
Now if you would excuse me I have a load of clothes that despite all the pep talks, will not fold themselves.
Talk to you guys later.
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