Gestational Age: 33 weeks 4 days
Weight: 1685 grams
Today was another big day for Madelyn. They took out her nasal cannula and are letting her handle her own breathing for now. She struggled at times with keeping her oxygen in the 90s but was able to get it back up on her own each time that it dropped. She also had a heart rate drop but it wasn't long enough to count it as an official spell. I was surprised when I talked to Maddie's nurse this afternoon about them removing the cannula despite her recent spells but her nurse explained that there are two reasons for spells, respiratory and premature brain, and Maddie's falls under the premature brain. It is very likely she will need her cannula back at some point, maybe soon but maybe not until she starts doing bottle feeding.
I was able to hold her on my chest again today and she did well for most of an hour and a half. She struggled at the beginning and end with maintaining her oxygen saturation, but was good for over an hour in the middle. I read more of "The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty" to her and she slept. Then, when I finished the chapter, I fell asleep too. It is so amazing to be able to hold her all the time.
There hasn't been a decision made regarding her nutrition yet. The surgeons, primary and gastro doctors are all conversing and deciding on a best route of action. At this point, she is not getting a lot of nutrition from her milk. There are varying opinions with some wanting to mix my milk with formula that is already partially broken down for her and others who believe that she should just get a constant drip of milk to help her digest better. We're hoping for more answers and possibly a final decision on Tuesday.
A weird thing happened on my way to see the reproductive endocrinologist today. All of the doors from Ramp 4 all the way to the Women's Clinic had some sort of problem causing them to lock and no one could get in or out. It made me late to my appointment. During the appointment, we talked about the shape of my uterus, which was a concern when Maddie was delivered because it was partially bowed out where her placenta attached. The doctor is going to do an ultrasound in a week and a half to get a better idea of the shape, but does not believe that I will likely have a repeat of my pregnancy with Madelyn if I choose to (or am able to) have more children. She put the chances of another bad implantation in the corner at less than .03%. That made me feel really good. I am hoping for a good outcome from the ultrasound on the 10th of January. They also weighed me while I was at the doctor's office and I have lost another 12 lbs since I had Maddie! I am down at least 16 pounds since I got pregnant back in May. Pretty awesome news after all the drama and stress of the last year.
As some of you know, my only reason to ever go on Twitter is an account called "Honest Toddler". I've now found that this toddler has a facebook page as well, so I doubt anyone will see me on Twitter for awhile. On the bright side, as a result of not sleeping anymore (let's call it "Motherizing" myself in preparation for the rest of my life not sleeping since I now have a child to worry about) and discovering said facebook page, I was able to find a good description of what it feels like to have yeast in the breast. Thanks to Honest Toddler's family's Christmas card written by her mother for describing my current situation so clearly.
"My sweet infant and I are passing a very powerful yeast infection back and forth between each other via our nursing relationship. During this time of year I’d like to think that our strain of yeast goes all the way back to the baby Jesus and Mary. Maybe the holy mother also felt like little yeasty soldiers were entering her nipples and stabbing her breasts from the inside when she fed our savior. If you’re a bread baker feel free to come by the house with a petri dish for some leavening as I’m sure this stuff could raise a loaf."
This made me laugh out loud because I feel so similarly. It's like she gets me! Honest Toddler's tweets were what kept Renae, Mom and I entertained all summer at my very scary doctor's appointments and helped me forget that they just kept repeating that I would not survive till Christmas. Now I feel like Honest Toddler will be an important part of my life forever.
Since I am not likely to get my New Year Eve post up before 2014 starts, I want to wish all of you a wonderful (and safe) New Year! I, for one, am hoping for a smoother 2014. :-)
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| It was snowing this afternoon! |
Today was another big day for Madelyn. They took out her nasal cannula and are letting her handle her own breathing for now. She struggled at times with keeping her oxygen in the 90s but was able to get it back up on her own each time that it dropped. She also had a heart rate drop but it wasn't long enough to count it as an official spell. I was surprised when I talked to Maddie's nurse this afternoon about them removing the cannula despite her recent spells but her nurse explained that there are two reasons for spells, respiratory and premature brain, and Maddie's falls under the premature brain. It is very likely she will need her cannula back at some point, maybe soon but maybe not until she starts doing bottle feeding.
I was able to hold her on my chest again today and she did well for most of an hour and a half. She struggled at the beginning and end with maintaining her oxygen saturation, but was good for over an hour in the middle. I read more of "The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty" to her and she slept. Then, when I finished the chapter, I fell asleep too. It is so amazing to be able to hold her all the time.
There hasn't been a decision made regarding her nutrition yet. The surgeons, primary and gastro doctors are all conversing and deciding on a best route of action. At this point, she is not getting a lot of nutrition from her milk. There are varying opinions with some wanting to mix my milk with formula that is already partially broken down for her and others who believe that she should just get a constant drip of milk to help her digest better. We're hoping for more answers and possibly a final decision on Tuesday.
A weird thing happened on my way to see the reproductive endocrinologist today. All of the doors from Ramp 4 all the way to the Women's Clinic had some sort of problem causing them to lock and no one could get in or out. It made me late to my appointment. During the appointment, we talked about the shape of my uterus, which was a concern when Maddie was delivered because it was partially bowed out where her placenta attached. The doctor is going to do an ultrasound in a week and a half to get a better idea of the shape, but does not believe that I will likely have a repeat of my pregnancy with Madelyn if I choose to (or am able to) have more children. She put the chances of another bad implantation in the corner at less than .03%. That made me feel really good. I am hoping for a good outcome from the ultrasound on the 10th of January. They also weighed me while I was at the doctor's office and I have lost another 12 lbs since I had Maddie! I am down at least 16 pounds since I got pregnant back in May. Pretty awesome news after all the drama and stress of the last year.
As some of you know, my only reason to ever go on Twitter is an account called "Honest Toddler". I've now found that this toddler has a facebook page as well, so I doubt anyone will see me on Twitter for awhile. On the bright side, as a result of not sleeping anymore (let's call it "Motherizing" myself in preparation for the rest of my life not sleeping since I now have a child to worry about) and discovering said facebook page, I was able to find a good description of what it feels like to have yeast in the breast. Thanks to Honest Toddler's family's Christmas card written by her mother for describing my current situation so clearly.
"My sweet infant and I are passing a very powerful yeast infection back and forth between each other via our nursing relationship. During this time of year I’d like to think that our strain of yeast goes all the way back to the baby Jesus and Mary. Maybe the holy mother also felt like little yeasty soldiers were entering her nipples and stabbing her breasts from the inside when she fed our savior. If you’re a bread baker feel free to come by the house with a petri dish for some leavening as I’m sure this stuff could raise a loaf."
Since I am not likely to get my New Year Eve post up before 2014 starts, I want to wish all of you a wonderful (and safe) New Year! I, for one, am hoping for a smoother 2014. :-)
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