MFM Reunion

Today I ran into Dr. LaMonica and Dr. Klein, two of the three MFM doctors who took care of me during my pregnancy.  It was the first time I had seen them since Joshua was born.  Dr. LaMonica is the man we called Dr. Buff.  Dr. Klein is Dr. Middle, the one who delivered Joshua.  Dr. Hollard is Dr. Pessimist, and I saw her for the first time a couple of days ago, and she gave me a big hug. So did Dr. LaMonica.  I sure got attached to all three of them.  Looking back, for seven weeks, they were my main link to the outside world since I only left the house to see them.  It was kind of a strange connection.  The first couple of weeks after Joshua was born, as I walked through the door of the hospital and continued past their clinic to go to the NICU, I felt sad that I couldn't see them.  Not only did I miss them, but it was yet another reminder that I should still be pregnant.  It's hard to explain.  I have never been a long term patient before, so I have never felt that attachment to my doctors until now.  I am so impressed with the care we have received from their clinic and in the NICU.  The doctors and nurses are all amazing.  It has really made me want to step up my game when I get back on the other side of patient care. 

Joshua is about the same today as yesterday.  He is now on a chronic diuretic since he responded well to the Lasix yesterday.  The cardiologist wants us to follow up with him two weeks after Joshua gets discharged from the NICU, and he'll do another echocardiogram at that time and determine how long the diuretic will be necessary. 

He is still breathing faster than he should be, with a respiratory rate in the 60-80 range instead of the normal <60.  I didn't get to feed him today because his breathing wasn't stable enough.  He needs to have a rate of < 60 and no signs of working hard to breathe.  Otherwise, he risks aspirating the milk or getting frustrated and not wanting to drink in the future. The key in these early stages of feeding is to make it enjoyable for him, so he'll want to do more.  I guess if I were having difficulty breathing, I wouldn't enjoy trying to suck and swallow on top of it, so I understand. Today a therapist working with Joshua talked to me for awhile about this.  I want us to go home so badly, and this is the last task to accomplish, but we have to make sure we go at his pace and not push him too much.

Tonight Joshua weighs exactly the same as last night, 1910 grams or 4 lbs 2 oz.  He has hit a plateau over the past 4 days or so.  The past couple of days, he's had nasal congestion, and the nurse tonight said he's had a greenish yellow discharge, so it looks like he had a cold.  This is how it started a couple of weeks ago when he had viral pneumonia, so we're praying it doesn't progress to that.