Let's get some more fluid off him

This is a phrase we hear at least every hour from nearly every person who sticks his or her neck
in the door or Elliott's room, "Let's get some more fluid off of him."

If I had a thousand dollars for every time I heard that, we might make a dent in the hospital bill. Haha

I think that waiting for Elliott to come off of he vent is taking it's toll. He has now been intubated for more of his life than not. We have not been able to hold him or hear his cry for over a week. This is immeasurably difficult for his daddy and me. We are managing, Mark more gracefully than me.

After 630 am surgical rounds and 830 cardiology rounds, we set out to accomplish our goal of the day: obtain Elliott's Birth Record (basically a sheet of paper with his footprints). Mark estimated obtaining this document would require the help of 6 people or fewer, while I estimated a minimum of 7 people. Guess who won? Of course, I did! It took at least 10 people, and we still didn't get the form we were looking for. Evidently, if your baby is sick and headed to Texas Children's after birth, they figure you don't want the sweet little Record of Birth with his or her original footprints, so they don't even make one for you. Isn't that thoughtful? Of course I don't want that! Just like I didn't want every other thing Elliott, Mark, and I have missed out on. I apologize for my snarky sarcasm, but I am presently at wits end. Luckily for all present, the ladies in St. Luke's medical records department were very, very nice and helpful.

After last night's recliner camping expedition, we broke down and rented a hotel room for tonight. With the latest issues, we aren't ready to leave the med center to sleep. We checked into the room at 3 and took a much needed shower and nap.

The take home message from the docs: "Let's get some more fluid off of him." Then they can make vent changes toward extubation.







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