burnt out and pissed off.
8:26 PM Posted In gabby , open heart surgery 15 Comments »*NOTE* please forgive me for the lack of spacing...I have yet to figure out why this happens and it is SO annoying!!
Alright, first of all...WARNING. Not for the faint of heart: Helpless baby pictures ahead!
So today was a long, long, LONG day.
I was telling mom at 2pm that it felt like 7pm. Sheesh.
For the most part, things went well. Gabby was taken back around 7am and I assume they didn't start surgery until 8 or shortly after. By 12:30 Dr. Azakie was done with the operation so I was grateful for the relatively speedy procedure.
I don't know what came over me but I was very calm all day. Anxious...yes, but so much less than I thought I'd be. It's amazing how one can handle themselves during stressful situations. I even saw Gabby for the first time as they rolled her down the hallway and I wasn't shocked or even scared. I was really worried about how I would react at the first sight of her but it was fine...she looked fine and all was good.
Soon enough I was able to go back and see my girl. Right away she was being her feisty self, kicking and pulling at everything she could get her hands on. The nurse had to restrain her arms because every time they suction out her breathing tube she has an absolute fit. She showed the nurses just how strong she really is and this is when they made the executive decision to tie her little hands back.
After being in the room with her for about an hour, it was apparent that she was uncomfortable. She was administered Morphine and Dopamine and neither of these things seemed to make an impact on her pain. The nurse then informed me of something I had never heard. She told me babies, kids, and adults with Down syndrome are not relieved by pain madeication the same way "typical" folks are. She said she wasn't sure about the physiology behind that, but that is what she knew. So they gave Gabs a little more morphine and it still didn't seem to make a difference. It was pretty sad to watch her cry with no voice. Poor, sweet princess.
She seems to be doing okay now. She was given a suppository of Tylenol because she had a slightly elevated temperature and they wanted to catch it before it got any higher. Fine with me. I loved our nurse but about an hour ago was the first shift change. Here comes the "pissed off" segment of our show.
Our first nurse was sweet as can be. She talked to Gabby very sweetly and was extremely gentle which is how you should expect a nurse to treat an infant just out of heart surgery. The new nurse had different plans, apparently.
After nurse one gave her the report, she promptly ignored everything she was told and decided to re-do everything the first nurse had set up. There was absolutely no reason for this. I could just tell within the first two minutes of her being there that she had a stick up her ass. Gabby was EXTREMELY irritated with all of this and rightfully so. I was furious and had to walk out so I could sob in the bathroom.
I know I should have spoken up right then and there but at that point she had called in all of the nurses and none of them introduced themselves or said anything at all to me. They all seemed inconvenienced and I felt helpless.
By the time I returned (with both red eyes and face) I saw a slight change in attitude of our new nurse. I am sure she could tell I had been crying and she started speaking to me in a softer tone, asking me if I had a "long day." Yeah....you think?
So for now, I am giving her a break and hoping she was just cranky at the start of her shift. I am actually away from Gabby right now, sitting in the waiting room.
Now here are the pics you've been waiting for. She had not yet woken up by this point...
This picture shows her breathing tube, feeding tube, incision site, and heart catheters. The weird patches on her forehead are to measure oxygen saturation in the brain or something like that.
These tubes are draining her chest. You can tell the left side is much bloodier than the right.
And this is a pic of her poor little arm. Poor girl :( They must have tried to do the IV on the other side first because I see some bruises and blood over there. I am sure it was quite the ordeal.
That's all I have to report for now. The nurses tell me she is doing well. The fever is totally normal and they're watching it. They are slowly going to lower her oxygen through the night and if she tolerates it well, they will remove her tube in the morning. I am excited for that. I know Gabby hates it and I hate seeing her so mad.
I can tell she will be my spunky little girl in no time.
She is already demonstrating that it's not far off!
Thanks again for all of the thoughts and prayers. We SO appreciate them!!
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15 comments:
Sorry you had to go through the nurse ordeal. We definitely had our favorites in the week that Lily spent in the hospital. I did notice that they all had their own way of doing things. I didn't say a whole lot unless what they were doing was making Lily uncomfortable.
Get your rest.
I'm so glad she's doing well, Sheree! I've been thinking of you guys all day long! I hope the rest of the shift with this nurse goes smoother and Gabs can be extubated tomorrow!
So glad to hear things went well for your lil princess. Its tough dealing with the different personalities of all the nurses....some are sweet as pie and others just kind of harden up to it all since the do it everyday all day. Never hesitate to speak up if you feel something isnt right....they are used to it. Take care my sweet girl, try to get as much rest as possible..its necessary for your sanity.... kiss that beautiful girl for me.. love you ree ree. Sheri
Hi Sheree
Wow, how those pictures and your words can bring me back in an instant..(my son's ohs was 2 months ago) You hang in there. My son Wysdom didn't take the pain relivers to well either and had to have his morphine upped and tylenol and other meds to calm him down.
If you notice she's uncomfortable stay on top of them to help her out. If you are unsure of the nurse you can alwasy speak to the charge nurse on that shift. It works out that you like some and others not so much.
Take care of yourself. Way to go
Gabby!!!
She looks fantastic, not as puffy as they can be after heart surgery. It really can ruin everything when you have a bad nurse. Praying she has a good night and can be extubated in the morning.
So so so glad all is going well... and, um, why didn't they tell you about the pain med thing ahead of time??? Gabby looks like such a trooper. Thank you so much for sharing the pics... I'm sure lots of parents who are facing this same surgery will appreciate your honest reactions. Keep your chin up... and let 'em know you're pissed when you're pissed. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. Love to you all. Kisses (and claps!) to Gabby.
Hey Sheree,
Happy to hear the surgery went well. I have been thinking about Ms. Gabby throughout the day.
Please give her our love and well wishes.
Glad surgery went well. It's always tough dealing with some of the medical team. Some just don't get it. Although, they think they know all. I think she looks really good! We'll be praying for Gabby and mama too!
Poor Mama and baby girl. I wish I was there to be your Starbucks girl and keep them coming. I hope you got some rest. Much love to you both
It must be really difficult for you to see Gabby with all the tubes not to add having to put up with such an insensitive nurse. Its good to know that she is doing good and would be out of these tubes soon.
Speak up against that nurse if she does it again! It is her *job* to make Gabby comfortable not perform unnecessary tasks to make her more uncomfortable. When I worked in OB sure there were times I didn't like the way another nurse put an IV In but did I take it out and redo it? No...I worked with what I had and never let the patient know.
I am so glad things are okay for the time being, hang in there, I know the road ahead is daunting but it will all be okay!
Oh wow sweetie, i'm so sorry you had that horrific experience with the nurse. I think sometimes they forget that they arent just treating patients but have people involved... super big hugs coming to you! It's so great that you felt God's peace and love surrounding you throughout the day! I just know thats what it was! I have to confess I scrolled down to see the pics first then back up to read your post, I had to get my Gabby fix! I cant wait to see her back to her normal self, and I'm so thankful that she came through it with flying colors! Did the nurse tell you what would be affective for babies with downs in pain?????
Hugs!
Dawn
You and Gabby are amazing.... I can't imagine going thru all of this. I'll pray for her recovery and for your sanity while dealing with the crazy nurses. I'm so thankful everything went well!!!
Big hugs. Gabby looks great, tho!
Blogger gets weird with the spacing sometimes when you put pics in your post. I put a period (.) between paragraphs when this happens.
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Like that, so at least it's readable.
Sorry you had to deal with difficult nurses. Hugs to you. Glad to hear that Gabby is showing her fiesty self. I bet that means that she is going to heal quickly!
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