Emma came home on Thursday and everything has been going well with having two out of three babies home. When we swaddle Ada and Emma and lay them down in the crib together (spaced apart), they turn their heads towards one another, without fail. It's the cutest thing in the world to witness, especially after they had been separated for four weeks in the NICU. They definitely take comfort in one another's presence.
We are hoping to bring Julia home on Monday. The NICU was ready to discharge her on Thursday, but then a vigilant nurse spotted Julia's distended stomach. Fortunately, she doesn't have an infection, which was our primary concern. Since then, Julia has had a few desats, so it's better for her to be 100% before coming home to be with us and her sisters.
We can't wait to have our full house!
Showing posts with label NICU. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NICU. Show all posts
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
NICU news and an update from the home front
If all continues to go according to plan, Julia and Emma will be coming home together on Thursday! We are beyond excited to have them all home with us. They will be moving to open cribs tomorrow, and I will be spending the day with them at the NICU. (Dad will stay home with Ada.)
Ada's first ped visit went well today. She now weighs 2 kg (up from 1.875 on Saturday) and is 17.25 inches long. She is nowhere on the full term singleton growth chart (just a lonely little dot way beneath the lowest curve), but the pediatrician is not concerned given she arrived 7 weeks early.
Ada and Emma are both breech babies and we will need to schedule an ultrasound to check whether their hip joints developed properly. If it didn't, they will need to wear a harness. Other than that, we are fortunate to have three healthy preemies so far.
We love having Ada home with us, caring for her, cuddling her. We're starting to see a glimpse of us as a family. She has the sweetest, funniest facial expressions that regularly crack us up. We talk to her, snuggle her, give her updates about her sisters - and every so often I have to pinch myself that our dream came true. Here I am: a mother, holding one of MY babies, one of OUR babies. And the realization is omnipresent: ugly, imperfect embryos really do make beautiful babies (as my RE consoled me on the day of our second transfer, when I thought all hope was lost.)
The surgeries, IVF cycles, pregnancy and postpartum period have all been extremely stressful. Even though I'm sleep deprived now - and will continue to be for many months - a heavy weight has lifted. The uncertainty of infertility and the risks of a triplet pregnancy have evaporated, leaving just the "normal" fears of any new mom of multiples.
It's still pretty unreal that Julia and Emma will be home in two days. We can't wait to start our crazy new life, with all three of our miracle babies home with us.
Ada's first ped visit went well today. She now weighs 2 kg (up from 1.875 on Saturday) and is 17.25 inches long. She is nowhere on the full term singleton growth chart (just a lonely little dot way beneath the lowest curve), but the pediatrician is not concerned given she arrived 7 weeks early.
Ada and Emma are both breech babies and we will need to schedule an ultrasound to check whether their hip joints developed properly. If it didn't, they will need to wear a harness. Other than that, we are fortunate to have three healthy preemies so far.
We love having Ada home with us, caring for her, cuddling her. We're starting to see a glimpse of us as a family. She has the sweetest, funniest facial expressions that regularly crack us up. We talk to her, snuggle her, give her updates about her sisters - and every so often I have to pinch myself that our dream came true. Here I am: a mother, holding one of MY babies, one of OUR babies. And the realization is omnipresent: ugly, imperfect embryos really do make beautiful babies (as my RE consoled me on the day of our second transfer, when I thought all hope was lost.)
The surgeries, IVF cycles, pregnancy and postpartum period have all been extremely stressful. Even though I'm sleep deprived now - and will continue to be for many months - a heavy weight has lifted. The uncertainty of infertility and the risks of a triplet pregnancy have evaporated, leaving just the "normal" fears of any new mom of multiples.
It's still pretty unreal that Julia and Emma will be home in two days. We can't wait to start our crazy new life, with all three of our miracle babies home with us.
Monday, November 16, 2009
NICU update - Day 23
Wonderful news from the NICU today: Julia and Emma are both progressing beautifully. They are each drinking 31 ml of breast milk every three hours. Their nasal cannulas and Julia's IV have been removed, and Julia is no longer receiving phototherapy. Yay for not being hooked up to Vapotherm, hyperal and intralipids! Freedom.
Dad went to visit his two baby girls in the NICU today while I stayed home with Ada. My dh reports that they're still in their isolettes, but I'm sure the next step is to switch it to air and see if they can maintain their body temperature. Hopefully by the end of the week, we'll have at least one more baby home, if not both.
Ada is doing great at home. She's such a sweet, content baby. Ada is sleeping in her own crib in the nursery, and has adapted well to the new sounds and smells of home. We have her on the same 3-hour schedule the NICU used: 10, 1, 4 and 7 day and night.
Thank you for all the wonderful comments and good wishes as we're bringing the girls home one by one. Each comment is appreciated and means the world to us. The girls are fortunate to have so many friends rooting for them. While you're cheering us on, my thoughts are with my brave friend Kate, who had her ET today. Dear Kate, if you're reading this, just know that I'm sitting with you, willing the universe to work its magic.
Dad went to visit his two baby girls in the NICU today while I stayed home with Ada. My dh reports that they're still in their isolettes, but I'm sure the next step is to switch it to air and see if they can maintain their body temperature. Hopefully by the end of the week, we'll have at least one more baby home, if not both.
Ada is doing great at home. She's such a sweet, content baby. Ada is sleeping in her own crib in the nursery, and has adapted well to the new sounds and smells of home. We have her on the same 3-hour schedule the NICU used: 10, 1, 4 and 7 day and night.
Thank you for all the wonderful comments and good wishes as we're bringing the girls home one by one. Each comment is appreciated and means the world to us. The girls are fortunate to have so many friends rooting for them. While you're cheering us on, my thoughts are with my brave friend Kate, who had her ET today. Dear Kate, if you're reading this, just know that I'm sitting with you, willing the universe to work its magic.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
One week old - NICU update
All three girls are now receiving gut stim "practice feedings" of 3 mls of breast milk three times a day. They're lovin' it! I can't believe they are already a week old.
Emma
She had been struggling the most, but is progressing wonderfully. Emma has moved to an isolette, just like her sisters, and has finally been taken off the ventilator. She is sporting a nasal cannula and breathing room air. While I was pumping, my husband was able to witness the gut stim in process. He reports that she was fussy, but the moment the breast milk hit her tummy she settled down. He took her temperature, a perfect 36.8 C, and was able to touch her head as the nurse unhooked her from all of the monitors. I held her for the first time today and it was just amazing to see her little face. She was wide awake, staring at me and her dad and seemed to really enjoy being swaddled and snuggled. After about 30 minutes, she was wiped out and needed to return to her isolette and the bilirubin lights.
Julia
She is no longer jaundiced and the bilirubin lights have been switched off. Her isolette is now covered with a pretty blanket to mimic the muffled, darker environment of the womb. For the second day in a row, her heart murmur couldn't be heard, so it seems as if the three doses of meds worked its magic.
Ada
Her nasal cannula has been removed and she is breathing room air. Ada is still under the bilirubin lights for jaundice, but doing terrific in every other respect. Her heart murmur can still be heard, but we hope it will resolve on its own. I had a chance to hold her for the 2nd time today. She was wide awake and stared at me. Like Emma, her eyes turned toward her dad whenever he spoke. It was lovely seeing her more comfortable, and receiving no breathing assistance whatsoever. Real progress!
Emma
She had been struggling the most, but is progressing wonderfully. Emma has moved to an isolette, just like her sisters, and has finally been taken off the ventilator. She is sporting a nasal cannula and breathing room air. While I was pumping, my husband was able to witness the gut stim in process. He reports that she was fussy, but the moment the breast milk hit her tummy she settled down. He took her temperature, a perfect 36.8 C, and was able to touch her head as the nurse unhooked her from all of the monitors. I held her for the first time today and it was just amazing to see her little face. She was wide awake, staring at me and her dad and seemed to really enjoy being swaddled and snuggled. After about 30 minutes, she was wiped out and needed to return to her isolette and the bilirubin lights.
Julia
She is no longer jaundiced and the bilirubin lights have been switched off. Her isolette is now covered with a pretty blanket to mimic the muffled, darker environment of the womb. For the second day in a row, her heart murmur couldn't be heard, so it seems as if the three doses of meds worked its magic.
Ada
Her nasal cannula has been removed and she is breathing room air. Ada is still under the bilirubin lights for jaundice, but doing terrific in every other respect. Her heart murmur can still be heard, but we hope it will resolve on its own. I had a chance to hold her for the 2nd time today. She was wide awake and stared at me. Like Emma, her eyes turned toward her dad whenever he spoke. It was lovely seeing her more comfortable, and receiving no breathing assistance whatsoever. Real progress!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Day 3 NICU Triplet Update
All of our girls are stable and doing as well as can be expected. Ada and Julia are receiving oxygen through nasal cannulas, but Emma is on a ventilator and struggling the most of all three. It just breaks my heart to see them all so fragile, and using their entire bodies to take a breath. It looks like breathing is the most exhausting thing in the world for them to do. Their entire torso moves with each breath.
Ada, who broke my water, is doing the best. She is already in an isolette, while Julia and Emma are in open warmers for easy access. The perinatologist who delivered them said it's typical for the baby who "wanted out" to be the strongest post-delivery, and for the one farthest from the action (Emma) to be the weakest. "Their sister might have wanted out, but Julia and Emma were still enjoying the 'air conditioning' in your uterus," the peri said. It made me laugh.
All three girls are jaundiced and receiving phototherapy. They look so cute with their eye protection on, like they're hanging out on a beach somewhere, but we wish we could see and study their tiny little faces. With all the monitors, IVs, tubes and other NICU paraphernalia, it's impossible to see their features, so we'll have to keep guessing for now whether they look alike, and which parts of mom and dad they inherited.
We are falling truly, madly, deeply in love with our babies.
Ada
- She was on 30% O2 at 5:45 this morning (21% is room air)
- She is receiving the oxygen and positive airway pressure through a nasal cannula.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
- Lots of tactile motion going on, even though her eyes are covered, her tiny little fingers are exploring everything in her isolette. She was holding and sucking her binki this afternoon, and touching the vital signs monitor attached to her leg, and touching the vent going into her nose.
Julia
- She was on 35% O2 at 5:45 this morning, and they dropped it down to 30% tonight. She is receiving the oxygen and positive airway pressure through a nasal cannula.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
- She pulled out her 3rd IV tonight, and the nurse said they will try to go in through her umbilical cord to re-establish the nutrition feed. Ah, mommy's little troublemaker.
Emma
- Emma is on a ventilator to help her breathe
- She started on 45-50% O2 at 5:45 this morning, they upped it to 75% this afternoon, but was able to bring it back down to 35% after she received a third round of synthetic surfactant to help lubricate her lungs. Surfactant acts like a detergent on the inner surface of the alveoli, reducing the incidence of collapse.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
Mothership update
- The peri who delivered the girls told me today that I did in fact have post-partum HELLP Syndrome (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets) and not "just" preeclampsia. Sunday night, Monday and Tuesday were the worst. My platelets dropped to below 75 (normal is 150). It's a good thing the doc waited to tell me how worried he was until after I started to feel better, otherwise I might have felt even more sorry for myself. LOL.
- My peri felt that preeclampsia and HELLP had been brewing for weeks as I've been showing symptoms of it, but since the bloodwork came back "normal enough" for the three weeks in a row before I delivered they weren't going to act on it.
- I'm so glad that the peri discussed the symptoms with me in detail during my office visits, because when I started to feel lung pressure and was struggling to breathe, and experiencing vision changes while in the recovery room, I knew I needed to alert the docs to it and not just power through (which would've been my normal inclination). Thank goodness I did...
- While in the high risk maternity ward, I became somewhat of a freak show. Several residents (it's a Univ. hospital) wanted to see my "party trick." I was unusually "hyperreflective," meaning that whenever they would test my reflexes in my knees, my shoulders would shake simultaneously. It was so weird!
- The peri said the best thing that could've happened, was for Ada to have broken my water when she did. If she hadn't, all four of our lives would have been in jeapordy.
Ada, who broke my water, is doing the best. She is already in an isolette, while Julia and Emma are in open warmers for easy access. The perinatologist who delivered them said it's typical for the baby who "wanted out" to be the strongest post-delivery, and for the one farthest from the action (Emma) to be the weakest. "Their sister might have wanted out, but Julia and Emma were still enjoying the 'air conditioning' in your uterus," the peri said. It made me laugh.
All three girls are jaundiced and receiving phototherapy. They look so cute with their eye protection on, like they're hanging out on a beach somewhere, but we wish we could see and study their tiny little faces. With all the monitors, IVs, tubes and other NICU paraphernalia, it's impossible to see their features, so we'll have to keep guessing for now whether they look alike, and which parts of mom and dad they inherited.
We are falling truly, madly, deeply in love with our babies.
Ada
- She was on 30% O2 at 5:45 this morning (21% is room air)
- She is receiving the oxygen and positive airway pressure through a nasal cannula.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
- Lots of tactile motion going on, even though her eyes are covered, her tiny little fingers are exploring everything in her isolette. She was holding and sucking her binki this afternoon, and touching the vital signs monitor attached to her leg, and touching the vent going into her nose.
Julia
- She was on 35% O2 at 5:45 this morning, and they dropped it down to 30% tonight. She is receiving the oxygen and positive airway pressure through a nasal cannula.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
- She pulled out her 3rd IV tonight, and the nurse said they will try to go in through her umbilical cord to re-establish the nutrition feed. Ah, mommy's little troublemaker.
Emma
- Emma is on a ventilator to help her breathe
- She started on 45-50% O2 at 5:45 this morning, they upped it to 75% this afternoon, but was able to bring it back down to 35% after she received a third round of synthetic surfactant to help lubricate her lungs. Surfactant acts like a detergent on the inner surface of the alveoli, reducing the incidence of collapse.
- Receiving IV for nutrition (intralipids and vitamins/minerals)
Mothership update
- The peri who delivered the girls told me today that I did in fact have post-partum HELLP Syndrome (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets) and not "just" preeclampsia. Sunday night, Monday and Tuesday were the worst. My platelets dropped to below 75 (normal is 150). It's a good thing the doc waited to tell me how worried he was until after I started to feel better, otherwise I might have felt even more sorry for myself. LOL.
- My peri felt that preeclampsia and HELLP had been brewing for weeks as I've been showing symptoms of it, but since the bloodwork came back "normal enough" for the three weeks in a row before I delivered they weren't going to act on it.
- I'm so glad that the peri discussed the symptoms with me in detail during my office visits, because when I started to feel lung pressure and was struggling to breathe, and experiencing vision changes while in the recovery room, I knew I needed to alert the docs to it and not just power through (which would've been my normal inclination). Thank goodness I did...
- While in the high risk maternity ward, I became somewhat of a freak show. Several residents (it's a Univ. hospital) wanted to see my "party trick." I was unusually "hyperreflective," meaning that whenever they would test my reflexes in my knees, my shoulders would shake simultaneously. It was so weird!
- The peri said the best thing that could've happened, was for Ada to have broken my water when she did. If she hadn't, all four of our lives would have been in jeapordy.
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