HELP?!

[dsp]

Thank you all so much. Luke is doing really well. He went on ventilation and was stable for a while before going on High Frequency ventilation as he went down hill a little.
Since then he has come on in leaps and bounds. He has been taken off ventilation and is now on CPAP. He is doing all his own breathing and is only getting a little positive pressure (to ensure his lungs don't fully collapse)and a small amount of oxygen (26% where normal air is 21%). He is a fidgety little * and will never sit still. He is already sick of the tubes and pulled his gastro tube out twice last night! Hopefully he can keep his strength up.
Cherie is a worry. Her blood pressure has slowly gone back up and she is nearly back to where she was when she came into hospital. Her ankles have also swollen up again and she is feeling ****house. I'm worried that maybe they didn't get all of the placenta out and will have to go back in (is this possible??)
Anyway, I'd better get back to work. Thank you all again for your very kind thoughts.
David

[jillmushet]

Dear David and Cherie:

Congratulations on your wonderful baby! It sounds as though he's doing great!!

When my baby was born, I had HELLP Syndrome. Before I left the hospital, my doctor told me to go home and rest. He said, "Your daughter will receive excellent care here. Go home and recuperate." It was exactly what I needed to hear.

I visited twice a day for about a total of 3 hours. Claire came home three weeks later. She was doing great, and so was I.

What should you do before your baby comes home?

1) Finish the nursery.
2) Cook a lot and fill your freezer with good food.
3) Rest, rest, rest. Especially Cherie :)


Jill
Claire, 34wks, 3lbs 3ozs
3/3/00, PE & HELLP

[gordon k]

It's not weird to think that there is "placenta left in there." My wife didn't have problems during pregnancy and an induced term delivery, she developed preeclampsia post-partum (maybe she had "placenta left in there"). If I were you (and I know I don't have to say this twice), just keep an eye on your wife and if she shows any signs or symptoms of preeclampsia, I'd get her medical help right away. Not saying this to scare you, just be vigilant. My wife's doctor and nurse were and are, and my wife is doing well today.

Glad to hear that you have a "fidgety little *." We'll keep praying that he continues to thrive, and also that Cherie gets healthy and stays healthy. Watch out for her and love her, get rest yourself, and be ready for the ride of your life being "dad"!

Gordon

Gordon (38),
DW, Norlisa (35)
essential hypertension diagnosed before pregnancy, successfully treated with atenolol, post-partum preeclampsia
Joseph/Josephine Our Angel in Heaven (9/16/02)
Twins Mary Frances and Samuel (a.k.a. Frankie and Sammy) 38 2/7 weeks, 5/26/03

[sarab]

David and Cherie,

First off, congratulations on the birth of your sweet little guy! Although you have ceratinly been through an ordeal, and there are still going to be "hard days" for the next several weeks, well-wishes are most definitely in order!

I want to echo what Gordon said, and encourage you to keep a vigilant eye on your wife. I know that Luke is your main concern right now, but post partum preeclampsia can and does occur, so if you have any question about her symptoms, even if she's just "not feeling right" (although who feels "right" after having an emergency c-section? [;)]), please be sure to get her checked out!

It sounds like Luke is doing wonderfully! My daughter (born at 29 weeks) also had a PDA, and although she had to go two rounds of the medication, it did close with no further complications.

That's great that he's off the ventilator! Sounds like you have quite a little fighter on your hands there. I hope that he continues to progress and will be off the CPAP before you know it.

Also, as several other posters have shared, the whole NICU experience can be such an emotional roller coaster. Please take some time for yourself and your wife. You have both already been through quite a truama, and you're not out of the woods yet. To be honest, the whole preeclampsia/NICU ride was the hardest thing our marriage has ever faced. Although things are great now, and I know we are so much stronger because of it, I would never wish that experience on anyone. I hope that Luke continues to progress so that he can come home and you two can just enjoy "being parents".

FYI, my little Maggie (was 2.12 at brith) is now a happy, healthy 21 month old. She was late to crawl and walk (don't know if that was her prematurity or just stubborness!), but other than that has no delays. You would never know how early she was, aside from being a little on the small side. These kids truly are miracles.

Please let us know how things are going when you get a minute.

Sara, 24
Local Coordinator, Utah
Moderator, "After Your Baby is Born"

DH, Scott, 26
Maggie, 6/9/03, 29 weeks severe pe
Logan, 1/19/05, 32 weeks severe pe/partial HELLP

http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/m/maggielylas/

[dsp]

Greetings everyone and thank you again!
Well the news is pretty positive so far. Cherie appears on the mend as her swelling has finally gone down and she is feeling better. Still not sure about her blood pressure, but on the whole she seems reasonably good.
Luke is also showing positive signs. His PDA appears to have closed with medication so no surgery (yay!) He is being weaned off the CPAP and is now running with 4 hours on and 4 hours off. He hates it when they put it back on, but he does start to struggle at the end of the 4 hours without it. He has also put some weight on! After dropping some weight early, he is now 80 grams above his birth weight (yes we are very proud!)
The only worry at the moment is the Brady's (heart rate dropping below 100 beats per minute) he is having. He seems to have a couple a day now, but thankfully corrects himself without help. It doesn't seem to cause him any troubles, it just scares the * out of mum and dad when the alarms go off!!!!!!
Anyway, back to work I must go, but I just thought I would relay the positive news to all those concerned.
Cheers
David

[fiona]

Thanks for the update David. Great to hear Luke is doing so well. I seem to remember that we were the only ones who panicked at Brady's too - the nurses just used to come over and turn the alarm off as if nothing had happened.

Gaining weight, coming off CPAP, no PDA - all brilliant news. And it's good to know that your wife is recovering too.

Take care.

Fiona
dh Tom
ds Nate 12/8/97 - 14/8/97 26 weeks severe pre-e IUGR 1lb
ds Jay 4/11/98 30 weeks pre-e 3lbs 11 oz
no 3 due 15/6/05

[gordon k]

Hi David,

I'm glad that everything is going so well, and it sounds fantastic. Thanks for posting and letting us know that everything is going well.

Gordon

P.S. When my wife and I were taking our childbirth class, some of the "visiting lecturers" had premature babies, too. Also said that it "scared the h*** out of them when the alarms went off," but told all of us if we were in the same situation, to just get used to it and try not to freak out. If anything were wrong, the docs would say something: from what they explained, the monitors erred on the side of caution.

Gordon (38),
DW, Norlisa (35)
essential hypertension diagnosed before pregnancy, successfully treated with atenolol, post-partum preeclampsia
Joseph/Josephine Our Angel in Heaven (9/16/02)
Twins Mary Frances and Samuel (a.k.a. Frankie and Sammy) 38 2/7 weeks, 5/26/03

[annes]

I am catching this topic late, but wanted to say Congratulations on the birth of your son. The NICU is a harrowing place, my son spent 4 weeks there after being born at 33 weeks. I spent all of my time with him and my dh came after work everyday. Eventually, as you get used to it, it becomes an OK place, not home, but OK. I loved 98% of Parker's nurses, and as we came towards the end of our stay there we even had some fun moments laughing about the funny faces he made, and still does. You will get used to the alarms, I used to count to ten, and they would stop, and I knew my baby was getting stronger! Keep an eye on your wife, as you can have preeclampsia and complications for a while post-partum. I still have High BP controlled with meds, almost 2 years later. The doctors feel that I would have had high BP when I was older (it runs in the family) and my pre-e "unmasked" it. What fun! It is easy to forget to take care of yourself whe your baby is in the NICU, but make sure she does all of her follow-ups! Luke sounds like a feisty little guy, hope he continues to do well.

Anne
DH Richard
DS Parker 7/6/03(severe pe)33wks
Miscarriage(14 wks, D&C) 12/04

[cassie05]

Congrats on the birth of Luke. I just read this post and was curious on how Luke and your wife are doing?

cassie is mommy to...
stephen...severe pre-e...delivered at 27+6...1 lb 12 oz
...and pregnant with kaitlyn

[lucy]

I just saw this post but wanted to add my congratulations, I hope your little strong guy can go home with you soon, good luck and keeep us updated.

Lucy (18) -Mom to Sebanna Sarine 6 lbs 7 ozs and 20 inches long born April 9 2005 at 37 wks following 3 1/2 wks of hosplization Diagnosed with pre-eclampsia again at 31 wks

Dh deployed until Dec or longer

Proud mommy to Sebastian Orpheus 1lb 9.9 ozs 12 inches long stillborn at 26 wks due to pre-eclampsia we will always love and never forget you beautiful baby boy!

Mom to Garet 8 Angie 7