My Introduction ^_^

Andrea - posted on 04/28/2009 ( 2 moms have responded )

Hi Everyone, and welcome to the newest group on Circle of Moms!

I am Andrea. I have a wonderful 11 month old son named Robert. He is my pride and joy. But oh dear how much trouble a little one can be, and cause for that matter. He simply gets into everything these days. Nothing is safe from the eyes and eager wanderings of the little explorer. However I wouldn't change anything about it. I love every minute of every new discovery and action.

I guess I will start by explaining what my child's first few weeks of life were like...

My son was born on the 20th of May, 2009. He was 9 pounds exactly and delivered via cesarean section. It was the happiest moment of my life, especially because labor was over. ^_^ However it wasn't until 24 hours after birth that problems began.

At 11pm I finally went to sleep. Still in a bit of pain from the surgery I wanted my son to room in with me that evening. The nurses agreed, however saying that they needed to weigh and check my son beforehand. I agreed and they took my son to the nursing station. I however fell asleep shortly after....

At 3AM I was awoken by two nurses who informed me that my son was being admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and that I was required to oversee the blood testing that was being done on my son at that moment. I was terrified. What was wrong? No one was explaining to me what was wrong with my son. All I knew is that my son was, for lack of a better word at that time, sick.

I oversaw the blood testing, with many tears I might add, as I watched my son scream as they poked his tiny foot with needles. Then after 2 hours he was wheeled into the NICU with myself and two nurses in tow. It was then that I was informed of his conditions.

My son had a severe case of Jaundice which had developed quite quickly. On top of that he was wheezing and squeaking every time he breathed and fed. He also did not feed properly for the first 24 hours after birth, not breastfeeding and vomiting the breast milk back up as soon as he did feed. It was very hard for me to take all of this in. I was a first time mother. Only 20 years old and it is hard for any mother to hear that their child is ill. I was no exception.

I was a nervous wreck. My husband arrived shortly through the admission into the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. I had quit smoking for my pregnancy however this was indeed the moment that I through that progress aside and proceeded to smoke not one, but two full cigarettes amidst the tears and fears of the moments ahead and before. It was truly a trying time.

Over the next few days we heard many theories pertaining to my son's wheezing and audible squeaking. Robert was given a feeding tube due to worries about him drowning on the breast milk. Every feeding was 4 hours apart, and delivered via the feeding tube and an electronic dispenser. I tried to breast feed him but he would vomit all the milk back up within 10 minutes. It was frightening. We were informed by his Pediatrician that Robert had Tracheal Malaysia.

The condition, Tracheal Malaysia, is a softening of the esophagus. Every time he fed the throat was too soft that the strain of feeding caused it to collapse slightly which caused the "squeak" when he was eating. Any strain would cause the throat to collapse slightly.

The doctors told us that he may be transferred to the Toronto Sick Kid's Hospital. We were told he may need to have a permanent feeding tube installed to his stomach. We were told he may require a tube inserted into his throat to strengthen his esophagus (throat). The doctors speculated many things regarding my son's health and wondered whether he would be able to live normally due to the "possible" complications that his condition often accompanied.

For 6 weeks my son remained in the N.I.C.U. My husband and I traveled to the Hospital. Every day we sat with my son in his incubator, with his small eye covers and his many wires from the monitoring systems. I remember the drones and beeps of the machines still so clearly.

The hardest part of him being in the hospital were the nurses. Many of them were very understanding and loving to my son and our situation. However there were two in particular that I became quite irritated with. One of the women told me upon one of our "shift visits" that we were better off not touching my son. She then somewhat moved in close to me to make me move and closed the porthole to my son's incubator....

I was appalled and quickly informed her that "I AM his mother. If you even tell me not to touch my child I will have no problem telling you where to go and how to get there! You have no business telling me what to do with my son!!!" it is about there that I became a nervous wreck and began crying. I was informed earlier that day of my son's possible surgeries and was not doing well as far as mental stability. *sigh*

It was after that event that I became very close friends with the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit manager. The nurse involved was quickly reprimanded and was put on suspension because of her words to me after that situation. I politely did not include her words because it does not have a place here. Either way I stayed with my son the entire day, and refused to move as she would have been my son's caretaker and I was NOT going to let "her" touch my son. As you can see I was very protective of him.

As of such it was on the 6th week that he was moved to the Pediatrics Ward. I was never so proud of anything in my life as I was at that moment. My son was doing well and the doctor was impressed with his progress. My husband and I were thrilled.

A week after his move to Pediatrics we told the doctors that we wanted him off of the feeding tube. It was the last thing we needed to do before the doctors would let him go home. So we removed the tube. After 72 hours of observation we were informed that "..even though your son is still vomiting we see no further reason for him to remain within the hospital's care. You may leave any time tomorrow". Joy! So much joy. We were going to be able to take our son home!

As the days went by at home we made a discovery. The whole reason my son was vomiting was due to a Lactose Intolerance! He was allergic to Milk! How did the doctors miss that??? As soon as we made the switch to Soy Formula he ceased the vomiting! And he began gaining weight as well!

Now my son has lost the squeak that everyone was concerned about. He is perfectly healthy and nearly walking now. I look back on those days and reminisce about our time there. The people we met, and how it shaped my early parenthood. Indeed the stress could have been less but in hindsight I wouldn't change anything. I love my son, and I am so proud of his strength and endurance. He is my pride. My joy. My son.

Well, that is my first few experiences of my new parenthood. I have plenty of experience regarding hospital practices, Tracheal Malaysia, Jaundice and with coping mechanisms. If you need any assistance what so ever do email me, or message me on the group. I will only too pleased to try and forward you to support sites or offer my own advice on the matter.

Take care and God Bless and Keep you.
Andrea.