Things change everyday here in the NICU but because of all of your prayers and support the girls continue to head in the right direction. I know this may not always be the case but we are taking it one day at a time and will give praise for every advancement they make.
Jillian is being taken off of her high frequency ventilator and switched to a regular ventilator. Basically the difference is she will no longer receive constant low level shaking but will be able to lay still in her bed just like her big sister has been doing all along.
Britian will most likely be taken off of her ventilator completely in a day or two. I am feeling anxious about this because we do not have confirmation that her PDA (heart valve) is closed yet. But she is getting another EKG today to check for this. Both girls had slight heart murmur sounds this morning which is the first time anyone has heard murmurs from them.
Both girls are getting my breastmilk today. Britian is up to 3cc 3 times a day and Jillian is getting 2cc 3 times a day. No guarantee how long this schedule will last as they seem to take one dose fine then need to skip a dose or two then resume feeds again. But of course I am always hopeful that each new attempt will put them on the road to full feeds.
Mid-blog post writing update: I just got to speak with Dr. Dagle who is the Neonatologist taking care of the girls for the next 2 weeks and also the one that was on call the night the girls were admitted. He is in agreeance with me that we will not extubate the girls before their PDA closes, yeah! Also, at any time they are ready to graduate to a lower level NICU, it is all based on supply and demand at this point, if a more critical baby (or babies) come in then my girls can graduate. We are also looking at about a month or so before they can be transferred to the NICU closer to our home. I am happy with that. At least with a goal in mind I can stay a little more sane about the prospect of commuting back and forth between home and the hospital a little better as well as the need to have childcare/help with my older children.
Thank you for all of your prayers! Please keep them coming. I am humbled to my knees with the outpouring of love, support, and prayers that my girls are receiving.
Jillian is being taken off of her high frequency ventilator and switched to a regular ventilator. Basically the difference is she will no longer receive constant low level shaking but will be able to lay still in her bed just like her big sister has been doing all along.
Britian will most likely be taken off of her ventilator completely in a day or two. I am feeling anxious about this because we do not have confirmation that her PDA (heart valve) is closed yet. But she is getting another EKG today to check for this. Both girls had slight heart murmur sounds this morning which is the first time anyone has heard murmurs from them.
Both girls are getting my breastmilk today. Britian is up to 3cc 3 times a day and Jillian is getting 2cc 3 times a day. No guarantee how long this schedule will last as they seem to take one dose fine then need to skip a dose or two then resume feeds again. But of course I am always hopeful that each new attempt will put them on the road to full feeds.
Mid-blog post writing update: I just got to speak with Dr. Dagle who is the Neonatologist taking care of the girls for the next 2 weeks and also the one that was on call the night the girls were admitted. He is in agreeance with me that we will not extubate the girls before their PDA closes, yeah! Also, at any time they are ready to graduate to a lower level NICU, it is all based on supply and demand at this point, if a more critical baby (or babies) come in then my girls can graduate. We are also looking at about a month or so before they can be transferred to the NICU closer to our home. I am happy with that. At least with a goal in mind I can stay a little more sane about the prospect of commuting back and forth between home and the hospital a little better as well as the need to have childcare/help with my older children.
Thank you for all of your prayers! Please keep them coming. I am humbled to my knees with the outpouring of love, support, and prayers that my girls are receiving.
Thank you for the update! We are definately continuing to hold your entire family up in prayer.
ReplyDeleteContinuing to pray for your babies and your family!
ReplyDeleteThanks for keeping us updated! Continuing to lift everyone up in prayer. Sure wish I lived closer to help you out. I'll do all I can from here though.
ReplyDeleteMy family continues to pray for your girls as you are walking where I have been right now. Mine were off ventilators with open PDAs one of my boys did not close until after he left the NICU. None of my 3 needed heart surgery. The ibprofrin did the trick. You do have to worry about NEC with the Ibprorin, but I'm sure they told you that. My survivors did fine and never had any real respiratory issues in the NICU and their hearts are normal now. Wow I did not realize one was on the High frequencey vent, My son Logan spent many days on that. Everytime I hear a sprinkler I think of that machine. Hugs to you. I hope your girls continue to improve each day.
ReplyDeleteContinuing to keep you all in prayer.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the update, so thrilled about the ongoing good news, and pray it always moves in that direction.
ReplyDeleteIn the mean time - how are YOU? You've had major surgery and are recovering yourself. Are YOU doing alright?
Thank you everyone for your continued prayers. They are working miracles for my two sweet girls. Everyday is filled with joy and good news, we will continue to pray that things move in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteQ, I am doing good. My c-section opened up so they had to take quite a few staples out. I am wet packing my wound twice a day but in the grand scheme of things this is the least of my worries. Otherwise things are going well, emotionally I am stabling out.