One down!

Levi’s first surgery is over!  These last few days have been an emotional rollercoaster, but I’m happy to say that Levi is doing well.  Here’s a bit about Levi’s surgery and our time in the hospital.

We arrived at RUH at 6:30 am on February 13 and Levi was admitted into day surgery.  Despite being required to fast prior to his procedure, Levi was handling everything so well, and didn’t complain at all!  We met with the day surgery nurse, who got us ready, then we headed down to the OR where we met with the plastic surgeon, and the anesthesiologist.  After they explained the procedure, and we asked some questions, we gave Levi some good bye kisses and they whisked him away.  We were told the surgery would take approximately 2 hours (for both the lip repair and having his ear tubes placed, as well), he would be in recovery for about an hour, and then they would send him up to day surgery for another hour or so while the anesthesia wore off.     

We settled in the OR waiting room while Levi was in surgery, praying and hoping for the best during his two hour surgery.  Two and a half hours after being in the waiting room, we finally asked someone if Levi was doing ok.  Turns out he had been in the recovery room for 45 minutes already, without anyone coming to let us know that he was out of surgery.  That was a little annoying, but I chalked it up to a simple miscommunication and was just excited to see my son. 

The surgery went well, and the surgeon was very happy with the result.  He was still sleeping comfortably when he was sent out of recovery back to day surgery.  He was wearing off the anesthesia while Ryan and I sat beside his bed, waiting for him to wake up so we could feed our little man.  Before he was allowed to be discharged, we had to prove that he was able to eat.  So we waited.  And Levi kept sleeping. When the anesthesia finally started to wear off he was obviously in quite a bit of pain and had no interest in eating.  I felt so bad for him and I desperately wished I could do something to help him.       

Since we weren’t able to feed him for several hours, we were admitted to pediatrics, where we were hoping someone could tell us what could be done to help Levi.  After the nurses made some calls, it became apparent that there were no doctors that were willing to assess Levi.  Our plastic surgeon was gone for the day, and the plastic surgeon on call was no help.  The doctors on PEDs didn't want to see him either, because he was a plastic surgery patient.  It was very frustrating to see our son in pain, and not have a doctor to help us.  The nurses were wonderful though.  They believed that not only was he having trouble coming out of the anesthesia and was still very sleepy, that his throat was very sore from the breathing tube they used during the surgery and he was having trouble swallowing.  They administered an IV so he would be able to maintain his fluids, and gave him some morphine to help with the pain of his lip and his sore throat.  This helped quite a bit, and by the morning, his raspy breathing sounded much better and he was able to eat a little bit.  We were so glad to see that he was doing better. 

I’m honestly not sure which hospital stay was harder…  our stay in PEDs when he was an infant was much longer, but he was never in pain.  This time, we were only there for one night, but it was a very long night.  As a mother, it is very hard to see your child in pain and not be able to do anything.  My heart ached, and I cried right alongside him.  I definitely wasn’t prepared for this scenario, as we were told again and again that he would come out of the anesthesia relatively quickly, and we most likely wouldn’t need to stay for night.  This definitely wasn’t the case, and it was an eye opener for what might happen in his future surgeries.  I’m thankful for the nurses who were able to help Levi and that everything ended up turning out ok.

We have been at home for a few days now, and he is doing really good.  His lip is looking better and better as well, and we’re really happy with the result of the surgery.  He’s eating really well, and acting more and more like himself, too.  He still hates taking his medication, but I don’t blame him...  what kid likes taking medication?  He has to wear Velcro arm restraints that prevent his elbows from bending, so he doesn't pull out his stitches.  He gets frustrated sometimes when he can’t move his hands to his mouth, but they allow him full shoulder range of motion, so he is still able to play with his toys.  We feel bad laughing at him, but it's pretty funny watching him play with his toys when his arms are sticking straight out!  Despite us laughing, he is actually handling them pretty well!  We try to take them off as often as we can when we can closely supervise him, so he gets a bit of a break.  He gets pretty excited when he can bend his elbows!        

Levi with his Velcro arm restraints, playing with his toys

We are also very thankful for the prayer support that we’ve received.  It was a stressful few days, but it was a comfort knowing that we had many people supporting us, and ultimately that God was in charge. 

Our little man looked a little bit different for his four month picture this Saturday… but he is as adorable as ever and we love his new look!  Thanks for reading!

Happy 4 months, Levi!