"Jenny, wake up, baby!" Deanna called as she walked into Jenny's bedroom early one morning. Jenny looked up as Deanna began talking frantically. "Your son's sick, deathly sick, we're going to the hospital, get up!" she rambled. Jenny got up and began to get dressed as Deanna continued with the story. Deanna's 2 month old son, Cameran, had been gasping for air all night, and by then they knew it was an emergency. Deanna, her boyfriend, Eric, Jenny, and all 3 of their children arrived at the Marion hospital around noon on the 16th. The emergency room nurse did a RSV test as well as many other tests. Deanna couldn't stand seeing her child in pain so she asked Jenny to come and hold Cam as they drew blood. Jenny felt as if she were in a time warp. This all took her back almost 3 years, to when Zachary was just a little guy like Cam having blood drawn and doctors everywhere. One nurse even asked Jenny if she was a nurse! Jenny simply replied, "No, but I have a disabled baby, and have been through this stuff a lot."
The doctors assumed that since their RSV test came back negative, they should do an X-ray to see if he might have had pneumonia. Jenny explained to Deanna exactly what and how the doctors were doing all the tests. She told Deanna how they would place little bitty Cameran onto the X-ray table and that she would have to wear a lead vest while they took the pictures of Cam's lungs. Jenny held her sister's hand one last time as she walked behind the glass. She watched as her best friend looked forward in terror. After the doctor looked at the X-rays, he diagnosed Cameran with pneumonia and sent him to the pediatric floor to be admitted. The nurses came in and began to search for a vein to put in his IV. Deanna began to get furious when they stuck her son 3 times without getting the IV inserted. She asked the nurses to please send someone else in to do it. Another nurse came in and stuck Cameran another 3 times. After 6 sticks with no IV started, Deanna refused to allow them to try again. She requested his family doctor to come to the hospital and start his IV. His family doctor arrived around 7 pm that night, tried once, and successfully started the IV. Cameran began doing breathing treatments every 4 hours as well as taking 2 antibiotics every 6 hours. Deanna was horrified. She had never experienced so many medical procedures or equipment before. Jenny assured her that if she could go through everything with Zachary, Deanna could defiantly get through this. It was 3 days later and Cameran was getting worse. His breathing became even more labored and this beautiful little mixed baby looked more like an albino. By the 4th night the doctors decided it was time order another X-ray. The doctor explained to Deanna and Eric that Cameran had air in his stomach due to him inhaling deeply as he cried in pain. They put a large plastic tube down her baby boy's throat all the way into his stomach to release the air. Deanna held tight to Eric as she tried her best to gather some unknown courage from deep within. Her thoughts occasionally drifted to seeing Jenny watch her son being wheeled in the operating room, but as they inserted the tube into her child, the only thought in her head was seeing the paramedics stick a tube down her sister, Danielle's, throat as they tried to save her life.
The next morning a nurse came into the room to put Cam's antibiotics into his IV. As she flushed the IV she blew the IV line. Deanna watched as it happened and heard her son let out a terrifying screech. She jumped up in a frenzied panic. She screamed to the nurse to never come back into their room again. Later that morning their family doctor came back to the hospital. He tried another 2 times to start a new IV, but Deanna agreed with her good friend, Kim, that she shouldn't allow them to keep sticking needles into her child's body. She requested that her son be transferred by ambulance to a St. LouisSt. Louis, she would have to call and pay for an ambulance herself. So she did just that. hospital. The doctor disagreed and would not authorize the transfer. If Deanna wanted her son in
The ambulance made the 2 hour trip to St. Louis after picking up Deanna and Cameran. Eric rode with Kim and they all met back up together at Children's Hospital. Within 4 hours Children's Hospital had already gotten back a positive RSV test result for Cameran. After they began treatment for the RSV, they stopped the breathing treatments because it seemed to be making his breathing worse. On the 3rd day in St. Louis, they found that Cam had a bone disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta which is a genetic disorder causing his bones to be much more fragile than normal bones making it very easy for him to break a bone and harder for it to heal. They told Deanna that this disease worked in stages and that if they caught it early enough they would be able to retard its progress. Deanna asked, even though she already knew the answer, if Jenny would go to all of Cam's St. Louis doctor appointments with her. Jenny promised she would be with them for each and every one. Deanna had now entered Jenny's world of doctors.
Jenny's little man was making such great progress as February neared. Everyday Jenny held his hips and they walked around exploring the entire apartment! He was so amazingly proud of himself all he could do was grin and laugh as he took steps. Jenny firmly believed his progress was thanks to him spending time around Deanna's daughter, Gracie. He would try to chase her as she walked around the house playing and mimicked her as she talked gibberish. They took baths together every night before bed and just laughed as they shared bath toys and splashed the water together. When Jenny showed her ex-mother-in-law, Sheila, how good Zachary was beginning to walk, she burst into joyous tears. She was very proud of her grandson and his mother for the wonderful progress they had both made together.
Jenny decided to start using sign language with her son, but with the absence of his right arm, she had to come up with one handed signs instead of the proper 2 handed signs. Zachary could already sign the words 'finished' and 'tired'. Jenny was trying for the word 'mommy' next. Zachary had therapy 3 times every week. During therapy he now signed 'finished' on a regular basis so he wouldn't have to continue with the activity they were doing. One of his therapists, Kimberly, told him every week that if he didn't want to do his therapy, all he had to do was get up and walk away and he wouldn't have to do anymore therapy that day. Jenny was starting to worry that Zach wouldn't be walking by the time he would be fazed out of the Early Intervention therapy services at 3 years old, so she worked as hard as she could with him every moment of everyday. She made up songs that she could sing with him and so that she could use sign language with the songs as well to encourage his communication with either words or signs.
The doctors assumed that since their RSV test came back negative, they should do an X-ray to see if he might have had pneumonia. Jenny explained to Deanna exactly what and how the doctors were doing all the tests. She told Deanna how they would place little bitty Cameran onto the X-ray table and that she would have to wear a lead vest while they took the pictures of Cam's lungs. Jenny held her sister's hand one last time as she walked behind the glass. She watched as her best friend looked forward in terror. After the doctor looked at the X-rays, he diagnosed Cameran with pneumonia and sent him to the pediatric floor to be admitted. The nurses came in and began to search for a vein to put in his IV. Deanna began to get furious when they stuck her son 3 times without getting the IV inserted. She asked the nurses to please send someone else in to do it. Another nurse came in and stuck Cameran another 3 times. After 6 sticks with no IV started, Deanna refused to allow them to try again. She requested his family doctor to come to the hospital and start his IV. His family doctor arrived around 7 pm that night, tried once, and successfully started the IV. Cameran began doing breathing treatments every 4 hours as well as taking 2 antibiotics every 6 hours. Deanna was horrified. She had never experienced so many medical procedures or equipment before. Jenny assured her that if she could go through everything with Zachary, Deanna could defiantly get through this. It was 3 days later and Cameran was getting worse. His breathing became even more labored and this beautiful little mixed baby looked more like an albino. By the 4th night the doctors decided it was time order another X-ray. The doctor explained to Deanna and Eric that Cameran had air in his stomach due to him inhaling deeply as he cried in pain. They put a large plastic tube down her baby boy's throat all the way into his stomach to release the air. Deanna held tight to Eric as she tried her best to gather some unknown courage from deep within. Her thoughts occasionally drifted to seeing Jenny watch her son being wheeled in the operating room, but as they inserted the tube into her child, the only thought in her head was seeing the paramedics stick a tube down her sister, Danielle's, throat as they tried to save her life.
The next morning a nurse came into the room to put Cam's antibiotics into his IV. As she flushed the IV she blew the IV line. Deanna watched as it happened and heard her son let out a terrifying screech. She jumped up in a frenzied panic. She screamed to the nurse to never come back into their room again. Later that morning their family doctor came back to the hospital. He tried another 2 times to start a new IV, but Deanna agreed with her good friend, Kim, that she shouldn't allow them to keep sticking needles into her child's body. She requested that her son be transferred by ambulance to a St. LouisSt. Louis, she would have to call and pay for an ambulance herself. So she did just that. hospital. The doctor disagreed and would not authorize the transfer. If Deanna wanted her son in
The ambulance made the 2 hour trip to St. Louis after picking up Deanna and Cameran. Eric rode with Kim and they all met back up together at Children's Hospital. Within 4 hours Children's Hospital had already gotten back a positive RSV test result for Cameran. After they began treatment for the RSV, they stopped the breathing treatments because it seemed to be making his breathing worse. On the 3rd day in St. Louis, they found that Cam had a bone disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta which is a genetic disorder causing his bones to be much more fragile than normal bones making it very easy for him to break a bone and harder for it to heal. They told Deanna that this disease worked in stages and that if they caught it early enough they would be able to retard its progress. Deanna asked, even though she already knew the answer, if Jenny would go to all of Cam's St. Louis doctor appointments with her. Jenny promised she would be with them for each and every one. Deanna had now entered Jenny's world of doctors.
Jenny's little man was making such great progress as February neared. Everyday Jenny held his hips and they walked around exploring the entire apartment! He was so amazingly proud of himself all he could do was grin and laugh as he took steps. Jenny firmly believed his progress was thanks to him spending time around Deanna's daughter, Gracie. He would try to chase her as she walked around the house playing and mimicked her as she talked gibberish. They took baths together every night before bed and just laughed as they shared bath toys and splashed the water together. When Jenny showed her ex-mother-in-law, Sheila, how good Zachary was beginning to walk, she burst into joyous tears. She was very proud of her grandson and his mother for the wonderful progress they had both made together.
Jenny decided to start using sign language with her son, but with the absence of his right arm, she had to come up with one handed signs instead of the proper 2 handed signs. Zachary could already sign the words 'finished' and 'tired'. Jenny was trying for the word 'mommy' next. Zachary had therapy 3 times every week. During therapy he now signed 'finished' on a regular basis so he wouldn't have to continue with the activity they were doing. One of his therapists, Kimberly, told him every week that if he didn't want to do his therapy, all he had to do was get up and walk away and he wouldn't have to do anymore therapy that day. Jenny was starting to worry that Zach wouldn't be walking by the time he would be fazed out of the Early Intervention therapy services at 3 years old, so she worked as hard as she could with him every moment of everyday. She made up songs that she could sing with him and so that she could use sign language with the songs as well to encourage his communication with either words or signs.
No comments:
Post a Comment