We drove up to UVA this morning and had an x-ray. then before they even looked at it the nurse came and was really excited to be taking the cast off. we were a little worried that it wasn't coming off but apparently they had planned to take it of today already. so good
to get it off they had to use the saw thingy. it's pretty cool because it is portable, like a large vacuum, and the blade vibrates to cut rather than spinning. so if the blade hit skin it would stop automatically. of course, sabine didn't know that so the sound combined with the vibration made for a very unhappy baby... kind of like when we wash her hair. A LOT of upset for something that ultimately is a good thing. after the cast came off the nurse tried to wash her off some, but she wasn't having it. so i held her instead. she felt SO light after having that cast, and very loose, like a noodle.
her skin looks really good and had only a spot or two where it was almost cracked. in one of the creases of her thighs she had a little yeast going (Ugh!) where i couldn't reach to clean it but we wiped it off and the skin underneath looked fine. so we'll keep it clean and dry and she should be good as new fast.
so then the dr asked for another x-ray so we took her back upstairs. and after that one his exact words were : 'she looks too good' uh! YAY! so as of now we're not doing anything else. we go back in 3-4 weeks once her muscles relax and she has some time out of the cast and then they'll do another x-ray and tell us where to go from there. but it was good to see the beginnings of the femur head on the x-ray and he said her measurements in the hip were within the normal range on both sides, only slightly more open on the left than the right. all good things.
now we get to enjoy her noodle legs and i'm going next to order her a bathing suit. swimming pool, here we come!
Showing posts with label Cast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cast. Show all posts
Friday, June 12, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
Cast #2
Cast #2 is on and sabine did great even with the unexpected 3 hour wait at the dr today which meant she fasted for like 7 hours. she just chatted with the ladies there and kept herself entertained with her toys. the dr will call tomorrow to check on her and tell us how the x-ray looks.. then we'll know how much longer to expect the cast. hopefully we're at least halfway through.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Bloomers
The great thing that i love about baby girl clothes now is that most of the dresses come with bloomers to match. i think that they are SO cute. much better than the disposable diapers with elmo or some other character on them. usually the dress will have a cute little pair of bloomers hooked in to the inside that is supposed to go over the diaper.
so you can bet that i'm bummed that sabine can't wear the bloomers over the cast. especially now with all the dresses, we have a drawer FULL of bloomers. i don't know if they'll work over the cloth either, probably not until we get into bigger sizes. on the upside, my mom and i spent some time fitting a pair that she made to go over the cast so now sabine does have one dress with matching bloomers. it is very cute and i'll have to get a picture up soon.
and since she can't wear them over her diapers... i discovered a different use for them. what do you think? it kind of makes me think "son... you've got a panty on your head" which is from some movie. i don't know which one but i bet my brother chris can tell me.
and just for fun... check out those cheeks!
so you can bet that i'm bummed that sabine can't wear the bloomers over the cast. especially now with all the dresses, we have a drawer FULL of bloomers. i don't know if they'll work over the cloth either, probably not until we get into bigger sizes. on the upside, my mom and i spent some time fitting a pair that she made to go over the cast so now sabine does have one dress with matching bloomers. it is very cute and i'll have to get a picture up soon.
and since she can't wear them over her diapers... i discovered a different use for them. what do you think? it kind of makes me think "son... you've got a panty on your head" which is from some movie. i don't know which one but i bet my brother chris can tell me.
and just for fun... check out those cheeks!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tea Break
as a new mom i've been invited out for coffee much more than i used to. (i drink tea, but it works) it seems to be one of the ways new moms get together to bond. in carytown there is a coffee shop specifically designed for moms of young children. it has two play areas, one for babies and one for bigger kids that has an indoor playground. sabine and i met our friend niki and her son bodhi there on monday.
sabine couldn't really play in any of the zones, but they did have the PERFECT chair for her to sit all by herself while niki and i caught up. usually i wouldn't let my 6 month old sit in a grownup chair all alone, but with the cast she was all set. unfortunately, bodhi didn't last long in the playzone so we ended up walking cary street to catch up. but i think sabine liked the coffee shop while she was there. what do you think?
here are some pics and video:
sabine couldn't really play in any of the zones, but they did have the PERFECT chair for her to sit all by herself while niki and i caught up. usually i wouldn't let my 6 month old sit in a grownup chair all alone, but with the cast she was all set. unfortunately, bodhi didn't last long in the playzone so we ended up walking cary street to catch up. but i think sabine liked the coffee shop while she was there. what do you think?
here are some pics and video:
Monday, April 13, 2009
Casted Baby
Living with a baby in a cast is not recommended if you can avoid it. but as we can't avoid it, we're doing it. this is one of those situations like natural childbirth... the only way out is THROUGH. and it's one of those times when i'm glad i DID natural childbirth because i feel like i can do ANYTHING after doing that.
in general sabine is doing really really well. in the last week she has majorly adjusted to being in the cast. she has gotten much more focused in her looking and reaching. she also is putting many more things in her mouth and i'm wondering if that is to get the stimulation she isn't getting from gross motor movement and sensory perception on her legs. and she has been in the most ridiculously good mood. it's like she just discovered she's alive and she is VERY happy about it. she could be the poster child for 'life is good'
so really i need to get over myself and take a lesson from her to just enjoy myself, no matter what is...
but here's what is difficult. suddenly, as far as caring for her goes, it's like we have a newborn again. we can't use the cloth diapers so we're changing diapers much more often. and we have to be very vigilant about it, they get full fast because they are so small. and so she's cranky when she has a full diaper (as anyone would be) so i feel like i'm ALWAYS changing diapers. also, so far, she hasn't let us put her down very much. she isn't comfortable on the ground and is totally revolting against tummy time. i don't want to put her on her back during the day because she sleeps on her back and we're supposed to change her position often. so it's a LOT of carrying her. and she got really heavy with that cast. she's also resisting the stroller again like she did as a newborn so now i'm slinging her to go for walks.. no breaks for my body there. and all those little 5 to 20 minutes snippets of time when i could do something while she played by herself on the floor... gone!
and SLEEP. or should i say ... lack thereof for her and for us. first after the hospital we moved her into our bed for her comfort and to be able to reposition her and watch her closely. that was OK except she got a cold and snored and she took up the whole bed somehow. now she's comfortable back in her own bed but she's waking up A LOT. A LOT LOT. so i'm up all night long going in to reposition her or change her diaper. and how can you help her help herself sleep when she can't even adjust herself to make herself more comfortable? i don't know what the answer will be with that one.
and finally. a few days before her procedure i jacked up my arm while teaching yoga. (!) arg! i was in SERIOUS pain for about a week. now i'm doing better and am going to physical therapy for what appears to be a strain of the muscle underneath my shoulder blade (how do you DO that?). but being in pain and emotional about the whole experience also makes it all feel like she is a newborn all over again.
a newborn that doesn't sleep and needs to be entertained. but at least that's the fun part.
this week i think she's already easier than last week in the cast, so hopefully we'll just continue to improve. the fact that i'm not in pain anymore makes everything much more tolerable. now if i could get a few more minutes of sleep i'd really be in good shape. i'm not counting on it though.
(such gratitude for the nap she's taking right now!!!!)
in general sabine is doing really really well. in the last week she has majorly adjusted to being in the cast. she has gotten much more focused in her looking and reaching. she also is putting many more things in her mouth and i'm wondering if that is to get the stimulation she isn't getting from gross motor movement and sensory perception on her legs. and she has been in the most ridiculously good mood. it's like she just discovered she's alive and she is VERY happy about it. she could be the poster child for 'life is good'
so really i need to get over myself and take a lesson from her to just enjoy myself, no matter what is...
but here's what is difficult. suddenly, as far as caring for her goes, it's like we have a newborn again. we can't use the cloth diapers so we're changing diapers much more often. and we have to be very vigilant about it, they get full fast because they are so small. and so she's cranky when she has a full diaper (as anyone would be) so i feel like i'm ALWAYS changing diapers. also, so far, she hasn't let us put her down very much. she isn't comfortable on the ground and is totally revolting against tummy time. i don't want to put her on her back during the day because she sleeps on her back and we're supposed to change her position often. so it's a LOT of carrying her. and she got really heavy with that cast. she's also resisting the stroller again like she did as a newborn so now i'm slinging her to go for walks.. no breaks for my body there. and all those little 5 to 20 minutes snippets of time when i could do something while she played by herself on the floor... gone!
and SLEEP. or should i say ... lack thereof for her and for us. first after the hospital we moved her into our bed for her comfort and to be able to reposition her and watch her closely. that was OK except she got a cold and snored and she took up the whole bed somehow. now she's comfortable back in her own bed but she's waking up A LOT. A LOT LOT. so i'm up all night long going in to reposition her or change her diaper. and how can you help her help herself sleep when she can't even adjust herself to make herself more comfortable? i don't know what the answer will be with that one.
and finally. a few days before her procedure i jacked up my arm while teaching yoga. (!) arg! i was in SERIOUS pain for about a week. now i'm doing better and am going to physical therapy for what appears to be a strain of the muscle underneath my shoulder blade (how do you DO that?). but being in pain and emotional about the whole experience also makes it all feel like she is a newborn all over again.
a newborn that doesn't sleep and needs to be entertained. but at least that's the fun part.
this week i think she's already easier than last week in the cast, so hopefully we'll just continue to improve. the fact that i'm not in pain anymore makes everything much more tolerable. now if i could get a few more minutes of sleep i'd really be in good shape. i'm not counting on it though.
(such gratitude for the nap she's taking right now!!!!)
Monday, April 6, 2009
Spica Dipes
i'm pretty bummed about the diaper situation with the cast. now it takes two disposable diapers to cover sabine when we used to use only one cloth one. i feel like the months of the cloth diapers are being out done by the weeks of the cast diapers. but oh well. apparently we don't have it too bad with this part as far as diapering in a spica cast go.
so first, i should tell you about the cast. it is hot pink fiberglass with a cottonish layer in the middle for comfort and then next to her skin is a layer of gore-tex. the layer of gore tex is just about the best thing we could ask for. it is much better for the skin than other cast lining materials AND it can tolerate being wiped a little bit. so now if her diaper leaks here and there it's ok for us to wipe it up. i was reading last night that you can actually bathe and shower with goretex/fiberlgass casts, but our dr didn't say we could do that so i'm not going to try it without the ok. so while we know there will be some stuff getting inside the cast, at least we can do as much wiping as possible and keep it sort of clean (and stink-free) for as long as possible.
the cast itself is in a sort of V shape or upside down U shape with her legs wide. it comes just to her belly button and then down to her ankles. and there is a hole cut for diapering. that's where we were pleasantly surprised actually. we've read horror stories of people having to cut diapers into small pieces and fill the gap with maxi pads and poise pads and dry the whole thing with a hairdryer at every changing... sounded like LOTS of work. but for us she is just right and the hole is just the right size that we just shove a newborn sized diaper up there front and back, tucking it in on the sides. then we cover the outer part of the cast and the hole with a size 5 diaper. it took us a little while to get the hang of it but i'd say now it only takes a minute longer than our cloth changes did before. and she tolerates it pretty well unless i start taking too long.
so i guess slowly but surely we'll make our way to some sort of 'Cast Normal' for the next few weeks. i'm personally trying to stay present and enjoy this time with her too. but in all honestly, i'll be glad when it's over.
so first, i should tell you about the cast. it is hot pink fiberglass with a cottonish layer in the middle for comfort and then next to her skin is a layer of gore-tex. the layer of gore tex is just about the best thing we could ask for. it is much better for the skin than other cast lining materials AND it can tolerate being wiped a little bit. so now if her diaper leaks here and there it's ok for us to wipe it up. i was reading last night that you can actually bathe and shower with goretex/fiberlgass casts, but our dr didn't say we could do that so i'm not going to try it without the ok. so while we know there will be some stuff getting inside the cast, at least we can do as much wiping as possible and keep it sort of clean (and stink-free) for as long as possible.
the cast itself is in a sort of V shape or upside down U shape with her legs wide. it comes just to her belly button and then down to her ankles. and there is a hole cut for diapering. that's where we were pleasantly surprised actually. we've read horror stories of people having to cut diapers into small pieces and fill the gap with maxi pads and poise pads and dry the whole thing with a hairdryer at every changing... sounded like LOTS of work. but for us she is just right and the hole is just the right size that we just shove a newborn sized diaper up there front and back, tucking it in on the sides. then we cover the outer part of the cast and the hole with a size 5 diaper. it took us a little while to get the hang of it but i'd say now it only takes a minute longer than our cloth changes did before. and she tolerates it pretty well unless i start taking too long.
so i guess slowly but surely we'll make our way to some sort of 'Cast Normal' for the next few weeks. i'm personally trying to stay present and enjoy this time with her too. but in all honestly, i'll be glad when it's over.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Casting Take One
So here it is on sunday and i'm just getting a moment to write how it all went. it is by the grace of max that i have a few minutes at the computer and i think this may be how it will be for the next three months. blog posts may be few and far between as i opt for eating, sleeping, and showering instead.
anyway. on thursday morning we got up bright and early to drive up to UVA. the drive went better than expected because sabine slept the whole way even though she was officially fasting by that time. when we got there we dropped off aunt eva in the waiting room and were shown to the children's surgical unit. there we changed sabine into her cute hospital gown and socks that wouldn't stay on and her diaper. and still she held it together really well considering how hungry she must have been. she was pretty content to play with us and look at everyone. her only complaints happened when the room started to get full.
while we were on the surgical unit we met everyone on the team. anesthesiologist and resident, dr romness (his resident wasn't there but she was in on the procedure) nurses to be in the procedure and nurses to take vitals etc. plenty of people. and of course the one i remember is andy, the anesthesiology resident. probably because he was younger than me or maybe my age and he looked us in the eye and he told us she'd have a breathing tube during the procedure (UGH!) the other anesthesiologist was the head of pediatrics anesth. and he scared us. he said "well kids take a while to adjust to the SPICA cast... i'm not talking days" CRAP! but he followed that with "i'm talking hours" and on he went on his discussion....
so then it came time for them to take her away. this was the worst part of course because i had to just hand over my baby into andy's arms (who didn't really look like he knew how to hold a baby) and let her go on alone. there was a brief moment when the nurse asked me if i wanted to come back with sabine, but the dr. said i shouldn't. that babies don't remember and it's really hard on the parents. so i didn't. thinking back though i should have said i'd go because she would definitely know i was there and maybe that would make a difference, who cares if it's hard for me. i'm her mom i'm supposed to help her. anyways, i can only imagine what happened while she was away from us and maybe it's better that way. (i get sad just typing it though)
we were sent back downstairs to the waiting area for an hour. during that time the gist of what happened was that dr romness injected dye into her hip to see the bones properly, then because she was asleep all of her ligaments and tendons and muscles were soft so he just slid the bone into proper place. then they wrapped the cast to hold her in place. so the procedure part doesn't take very long it's just the casting. and he had been considering a prick in one of her tendons to create more space, but with her asleep he found he didn't need to do that, so it was ok.
after about an hour dr romness called to say all was well. she was waking up and we'd be called up soon. unfortunately they weren't able to get her to the CT while she was asleep because the CT was backed up or the appointment wasn't right or something. arg! so instead she had to wait.
a few minutes later we were shown upstairs to the wake-up from anesthesia area. there we found a VERY unhappy baby. she was crying her MAD cry and one of the nurses was holding her. so i took her right away and asked if i could nurse and they ALMOST let me but i couldn't because they were waiting on the CT. if anything was wrong in the CT they'd have to put her back under to fix it... so no nursing. instead, i held her and gave her the pacifier that she likes and the nurses brought the sugar water to dip her pacifier in and it didn't take too long with me holding her for her to come around. she just closed her eyes and sucked and rested back with my hand on her chest.
finally we went to CT and that took a few times because she was wiggly, but they eventually got it. then back upstairs to recovery and as soon as dr. romness OKd the CT i got to nurse her. as i was nursing her i got the nurse to take out the line for the IV and take off the heartrate monitor. the nurse really didn't want to do it just then but i convinced her because i knew it would bug sabine less to have those taken care of while she was nursing.
the OT department brought up the carseat for us to use and the nurse went over instructions. dr romness checked back in and went over instructions and we were sent on our way. we drove away from the hospital by 1030 am. she slept all the way back and really hasn't missed a beat in adjusting to being in a cast. i'm pretty amazed.
when we got home, sabine had a note on the door and when we read it we found out we had a big lunch waiting for us on the back porch, delivered by katie and shannon. it was absolutely the best thing at the best moment. we were all exhausted and not thinking well enough to feed ourselves and there was food provided. (and it was yummy healthy food too, but i wouldn't have complained about a chocolate sundae)
and now we're into adjusting. i'll write more about what the cast is like and diapering and our new life in the cast trimester. but at the moment my time is up. more later.
anyway. on thursday morning we got up bright and early to drive up to UVA. the drive went better than expected because sabine slept the whole way even though she was officially fasting by that time. when we got there we dropped off aunt eva in the waiting room and were shown to the children's surgical unit. there we changed sabine into her cute hospital gown and socks that wouldn't stay on and her diaper. and still she held it together really well considering how hungry she must have been. she was pretty content to play with us and look at everyone. her only complaints happened when the room started to get full.
while we were on the surgical unit we met everyone on the team. anesthesiologist and resident, dr romness (his resident wasn't there but she was in on the procedure) nurses to be in the procedure and nurses to take vitals etc. plenty of people. and of course the one i remember is andy, the anesthesiology resident. probably because he was younger than me or maybe my age and he looked us in the eye and he told us she'd have a breathing tube during the procedure (UGH!) the other anesthesiologist was the head of pediatrics anesth. and he scared us. he said "well kids take a while to adjust to the SPICA cast... i'm not talking days" CRAP! but he followed that with "i'm talking hours" and on he went on his discussion....
so then it came time for them to take her away. this was the worst part of course because i had to just hand over my baby into andy's arms (who didn't really look like he knew how to hold a baby) and let her go on alone. there was a brief moment when the nurse asked me if i wanted to come back with sabine, but the dr. said i shouldn't. that babies don't remember and it's really hard on the parents. so i didn't. thinking back though i should have said i'd go because she would definitely know i was there and maybe that would make a difference, who cares if it's hard for me. i'm her mom i'm supposed to help her. anyways, i can only imagine what happened while she was away from us and maybe it's better that way. (i get sad just typing it though)
we were sent back downstairs to the waiting area for an hour. during that time the gist of what happened was that dr romness injected dye into her hip to see the bones properly, then because she was asleep all of her ligaments and tendons and muscles were soft so he just slid the bone into proper place. then they wrapped the cast to hold her in place. so the procedure part doesn't take very long it's just the casting. and he had been considering a prick in one of her tendons to create more space, but with her asleep he found he didn't need to do that, so it was ok.
after about an hour dr romness called to say all was well. she was waking up and we'd be called up soon. unfortunately they weren't able to get her to the CT while she was asleep because the CT was backed up or the appointment wasn't right or something. arg! so instead she had to wait.
a few minutes later we were shown upstairs to the wake-up from anesthesia area. there we found a VERY unhappy baby. she was crying her MAD cry and one of the nurses was holding her. so i took her right away and asked if i could nurse and they ALMOST let me but i couldn't because they were waiting on the CT. if anything was wrong in the CT they'd have to put her back under to fix it... so no nursing. instead, i held her and gave her the pacifier that she likes and the nurses brought the sugar water to dip her pacifier in and it didn't take too long with me holding her for her to come around. she just closed her eyes and sucked and rested back with my hand on her chest.
finally we went to CT and that took a few times because she was wiggly, but they eventually got it. then back upstairs to recovery and as soon as dr. romness OKd the CT i got to nurse her. as i was nursing her i got the nurse to take out the line for the IV and take off the heartrate monitor. the nurse really didn't want to do it just then but i convinced her because i knew it would bug sabine less to have those taken care of while she was nursing.
the OT department brought up the carseat for us to use and the nurse went over instructions. dr romness checked back in and went over instructions and we were sent on our way. we drove away from the hospital by 1030 am. she slept all the way back and really hasn't missed a beat in adjusting to being in a cast. i'm pretty amazed.
when we got home, sabine had a note on the door and when we read it we found out we had a big lunch waiting for us on the back porch, delivered by katie and shannon. it was absolutely the best thing at the best moment. we were all exhausted and not thinking well enough to feed ourselves and there was food provided. (and it was yummy healthy food too, but i wouldn't have complained about a chocolate sundae)
and now we're into adjusting. i'll write more about what the cast is like and diapering and our new life in the cast trimester. but at the moment my time is up. more later.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)