Last week when we came in for surgery I did not think we would still be here 8 days later. Things are moving very slowly. We seem to be taking one step forward and two steps back.
Johnny got an NG tube put in on Tuesday. Wednesday night there was hardly any fluid draining out. So Thursday morning they took out the NG tube. We tried some clear liquids, he kept it down. Then a few hours later I nursed Johnny just for a couple minutes, he kept that down. A couple hours after that he was not showing any signs of being nauseous so we tried a little more nursing and....he threw up again. We stopped feeding him and he was fine through the night but threw up again this morning. They did a set of X-Rays to rule out a bowel obstruction, and then put the NG tube back in. And we are right back where we started.
We have to keep Johnny's belly from becoming distended. It will be harder for his intestine to heal if there is pressure on it. He will also begin receiving nutrition tomorrow through a PICC. (It's like a super IV that lasts longer. ) The only thing we can do is give it more time.
Johnny has been surprisingly sweet and happy today. He had even smiled at some of the nurses! But this hospital stay had been hard on all three of us and we can't wait to get home.
The hardest thing for me has been not being able to nurse Johnny. He is used to nursing all the time for everything, going down for a nap, when he's upset, going to sleep at night, when he wants to cuddle. It's been very emotional for me to have that part of our relationship put on hold. Johnny has been doing pretty well. It's hard to tell if he feels too yucky to want to nurse, or if he has resigned himself to the fact that he can't nurse. Either way it makes me sad. Now to fall asleep he sucks on his pacifier and holds my hand. I'm glad he's getting some comfort from the pacifier but I am incredibly anxious to get back to our normal.
Prayer Requests:
-Complete healing and restored function of the bowel.
-liquid draining from his stomach would decrease and be clear.
-he would make lots of poops.
-that there would be no complication or infections from the PICC
-that he would be able to keep food down.