Parker's surgery was a success. It was hands down one of the most terrifying experiences of our lives. Nothing can prepare you for sending your child into surgery, especially brain surgery. We were beyond thrilled when he responded so well to the procedure.
A Physical Therapist visited while we were here in March and she assessed Parker. Because of his condition he is of course high risk for a lot of things and one of them is Cerebral Palsey. Naturally, we are terrified that he will develop that condition and he will need to be assessed regularly. This assessment was great! He tracked with his eyes and showed how strong he was. He also uses both sides of his body equally. So, at this point, we can breath a little..
We took Parker home just 4 days after he was admitted. There was a very small incident when we got home with a projectile vomit, but overall, he did great. Me, being neurotic, called the Neurosurgeon after the projectile vomit and he was not concerned. Parker went on to have two fabulous weeks with his new "hardware".
He was enjoying being home and it was like he was living for the first time. It saddens me to think he had been in extreme pain for the previous 6 weeks and wasn't able to enjoy the simple things that we all take for granted...like seeing. I felt so bad for him basically being robbed of life for 6 weeks that I spent $60 on an activity mat at Walmart. Mind you he already had 3 of them at home... He looks at it for about two seconds before he remembers that we do not live on a farm and he is terrified of farm animals making their "oink oink" noises. Oooh such a diva.
Everything was such a fascination to him! He had a mobile above his crib and he was so into looking at it I literally had to turn it off to get him to sleep at night! This child was exploring everything for the first time and what a blessing it was! Casey and I were enjoying watching him reach milestones he wasn't able to reach before. He even giggled for the first time a day after we got home! Such a blessing to say the least. Parker is now, however, a pure TV junkie.
I'm a reader and I basically study everything child development. I realize there are MANY studies that would suggest infants watching television is a "no-no" but those people have clearly never worked fulltime jobs and needed to shower. So we let the junkie have his fix when he needs it and when we smell. Parker's favorite show is The Real Housewives. He seems to prefer Atlanta. It has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that it's his mother's favorite show or anything.
Now that Parker could actually see us and track with his eyes we couldn't leave him. He needed to be where we were at all times. I do not think I've gone to the bathroom alone yet. This needs to stop or he will need therapy.
We went on to enjoy a couple weeks of Parker being happy and healthy! The third week of the shunt surgery we went for a follow up with his Neurosurgeon and Neonatologist. His MRI showed the shunt was working and his ventricles were way smaller. It was great to see. Just when the Neurosurgeon was ready to exit we were like, "Not so fast friend. We have questions."
When a diagnosis happens so fast like in Parker's case you do not have time to process it and ask questions. Like the important questions. The every day life questions. Casey is obsessed with all things Hydrocephalus and he is Parker's biggest advocate. My husband is ready to conquer the world and find the cure for our son. He's studies everything from risks and other procedures that wouldn't require a shunt. He. Is. Amazing.
We started asking questions and the Neurosurgeon quickly realized he wasn't going to escape so he took a seat. This was the moment I realized he really was the right doctor for our son. He was assigned Parker by chance during our ER visit at the initial diagnosis. We never requested him, but now I would request him every single time. He looks at Parker like a kid...not just a patient. However, like all doctors, he's busy as heck! Their time is super valuable, but so is our son.
I've literally had doctors sigh at me when I keep asking questions (his Neurosurgeon is not one of these people). Oh your pager is going off? Sorry not sorry. Sit down we aren't done here. End of story. This hospital has TONS of staff. In the event of an emergency of course I would want them to leave. I don't want to sound completely heartless, but I know better.
That same day we also had a Neonatal appointment. That appointment went amazing as well. The only concern she had was the fact that Parker still can't hold up that darn head. Um...his head is the size of two year old. I can barely help him hold that head up. I love that big ole noggin though. As his cousin Lindsey says, "He has a big head because he has lots of brains."
Yes, Lindsey, you are completely correct. His aunts also believe he is a baby genius. Did I mention he says mom? Like a lot! Parker no longer cries for attention he screams at me. It's just precious (insert sarcasm). I always wanted a dainty baby. Instead I got an old man trapped in a babies body. I just love him though. Every little thing about him! His grunts, toots and yells. Just love him!
For the first time, in a very long time, Casey and I were able to have a sigh of relief. It was exactly 8 hours after we got home that Parker took a turn for the worse.
No comments:
Post a Comment