Sorted out

I talked to Flara's doctor today to understand why Flara was still not eating considering both of her GI studies look 'good.' I received a very good explanation of how the studies have made her bowels look worse, and that they are actually more dilated than before. Normally, it takes a few hours to pass the contrast used in the studies. Flara has taken two days. The doctor explained to me that the developing nervous system of her GI tract is apparently developing very slowly, resulting in very slow and sporadic motility of her gut. That's fair. As I said to him, 'basically, the same way everything else is going with her.' He nodded in agreement. He felt it would be better for her to let her rest and go slowly rather than pushing her through quickly. His theory is that if her bowels are saying "stop, I'm not ready," it's better to let her progress at her own speed. So, today, she was restarted on a very tiny 1.5mL/hr continuous feed. Hopefully, this will be enough to help her body say "hey, start digesting!"

Flara is continuing to grow well. She's now 4 pounds, 2 ounces and was given the go-ahead to wean her to an actual open crib! That's exciting for the little bean! She's also been doing so well respiratory-wise, that she was also given the go-ahead to try to wean from her nasal cannula. It will be so strange to see her in a crib and without oxygen on her face! She's having her medication stopped that has been helping her to not have the apnea (quitting breathing) spells. It takes about 5 days for the medicine to completely exit her body, so we'll have enough time to see if it's going to be too early to wean her from it.

Her various cultures are still negative. Her labs were looking better today. Since she was given blood yesterday, she looked much, much pinker today. Her hematocrit was up to 36 from the low of 23 yesterday.

We had another short, time-split visit today. Mike and I both had about 45 minutes each to visit our sweet girl. She is definitely looking better each and every day. I've always said 4 pound babies are my favorite. They're not so scrawny and preemie-looking. Really, they just appear to be miniature versions of a normal newborn. So cute! Although we've had a rough road, and still have lots of days ahead of us, it's fun to see Flara grow and develop. Today, she is officially a 35 weeker. It's been a long 60 days!

Tomorrow marks my return to work. Even though I only work 8 to 16 hours a week, I'm a bit nervous about returning and actually taking care of little preemies. It's all going to be a little too-close-to-home now. I've really enjoyed my time off (even though under very stressful circumstances) and the focused time Mike, Noël, and I have been able to share with each other. I am hopeful, though, that work will be a good distraction for me, will help time speed along, and I'm looking forward to seeing a great group of gals whom I miss dearly!

Until next time, adios!