Emerson's NICU Stay
Spende geschützt
Many of you already know our story but for those of you who don't...
Emerson was born January 16, 2017 a healthy 10 lb 5 oz baby boy. He arrived 1 day before his due date. I was full term and had a perfectly healthy pregnancy. I was in labor for about 20 hours and delivered him vaginally. We had no idea he would be a whopping 10-pound baby, and were definitely not prepared for him to spend his first 3 and a half weeks of life in the NICU.
Shortly after birth, we were told Emerson's blood sugar was low and that we would need to supplement him with formula. I planned to exclusively breastfeed, but my milk hadn't come in yet so we agreed. When his blood sugar didn't improve by that night, the hospital's pediatrician recommended he be given IV fluids in the NICU. By then, visiting hours were over and all of our family and friends were gone. Emerson spent his first night in the NICU and I cried in my hospital room down the hall, getting up every 3 hours to attempt to breastfeed, feed him a bottle of formula, and then pump.
We were told low blood sugar after birth was common with babies born on the small side and in larger babies. I was asked repeatedly if I had gestational diabetes (which I didn't, and my OB confirmed I was never even borderline). The hospital staff assured us that his body would learn to regulate itself within a couple of days and we could go home. However, even though the IV fluids were keeping his glucose levels stable, they weren't high enough to remove the IV. He was refusing to eat more than 10-15 mL at each feeding and fell asleep when I tried to breastfeed him. Since he wasn't showing signs of improvement, his treatment team decided it was best to give him his fluids through a central line in his umbilical artery as a better long-term solution. A newborn's veins are very small and a baby is very wiggly, making it difficult to keep an IV in for more than a couple of days. We consented. My milk came in and I was pumping every 3 hours in addition to attempting to feed him in order to keep up my supply.
I was discharged from the hospital and we began staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Austin for only $20/night so we could be close to Emerson. Dallas took another week off from work without pay. We relied on family to bring us more clothes and toiletries from home and to check on our animals. Finally, his blood sugar began to stabilize and his doctor gave the order to slowly wean him off the IV fluids!Then suddenly, at just a few days old, Emerson developed a fever. At its highest, his temperature reached 102.4 degrees.
His doctors immediately stopped the weaning process and started him on a range of antibiotics because a high fever meant infection, potentially life-threatening, and we didn't have time to wait for test results. I was asked if I had herpes (which I don't) and if anyone who visited Emerson since birth had been sick (they hadn't). Emerson's blood culture tested position for staphylococcus from samples taken in his umbilical line and the hand where the IV was originally placed. We later found out it was a strain of MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), which is a type of staph bacteria that's become resistant to many of the antibiotics used to treat ordinary staph infections. We were told his particular strain was luckily only resistant to a couple of antibiotics, leaving us with better treatment options. Because of this, they assumed it was community-acquired and not from the hospital. They also cultured my breastmilk and Dallas's skin and both tested positive for MRSA. Neither Dallas or myself had any symptoms or outbreaks. We still don't know if one or both of us were simply carriers or if Emerson did acquire it from the hospital and then passed it to us. We'll probably never know.
Emerson was moved to an isolated room in the NICU. They continued testing him to make sure that was the only cause of his fever. They had to perform a spinal tap twice, but luckily his spinal fluids were negative for bacteria. It was only in his blood stream and hadn't spread to his brain. We thanked God he didn't have meningitis. Signing the consent form to perform a spinal tap on my baby was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Waiting for those test results and hearing his pediatrician tell us he could have died was pure hell and almost broke me.
They removed his umbilical line right away and started a new IV for his antibiotics and as well Tylenol and an oral antibiotic. His fever reduced. Emerson took it all like a champ. I stopped breastfeeding and began taking an oral antibiotic as well and pumping and dumping my milk. Dallas also started antibiotics. We then began the painful waiting game for negative blood and milk cultures. As soon as Emerson tested negative for MRSA, we were told he needed to stay on antibiotics an additional 14 days to make sure he was completely clear of infection and that it wouldn't come back. Once again, he couldn't keep a normal IV in that long. He was transferred to a higher level NICU in a hospital downtown in order to have a central line run through his arm and shoulder to his heart. His first car ride, his first time outside, was in an ambulance.
There are a lot of times in this story where things went totally wrong, but there are also plenty of times we know we were more than lucky. Emerson continued to test negative for MRSA and receive his full treatment of antibiotics. My milk eventually tested negative for MRSA too and I was able to start breastfeeding again. Emerson latched on again as if we had never been apart. At 24 days old, we were finally able to take Emerson home.
He is growing like a weed and is so healthy and strong now. We're now exclusively breastfeeding. He loves to "talk" to us, listen to music, snuggle, and smiles so big every morning when he wakes up. We encountered many families in the NICU and at the Ronald McDonald House that were going through much harder circumstances than us. We're so thankful for all of the support we received and continue to receive from friends and family. I know how blessed we are.
However, even after insurance, we are left with more than we can handle in medical bills. I've spent the last few months talking to our health insurance company and providers trying to get as much of his expenses covered as I can, but it has been overwhelming. We don't take asking for help lightly and appreciate any and all support. This is the first time I'm publicly sharing his story. I'm sorry for the length, but it has been kind of therapeutic to share the details. I didn't realize how long it took me to work through them personally until recently. If you do contribute or share, please leave your name and address and/or email address so that I can thank you personally.
Emerson was born January 16, 2017 a healthy 10 lb 5 oz baby boy. He arrived 1 day before his due date. I was full term and had a perfectly healthy pregnancy. I was in labor for about 20 hours and delivered him vaginally. We had no idea he would be a whopping 10-pound baby, and were definitely not prepared for him to spend his first 3 and a half weeks of life in the NICU.
Shortly after birth, we were told Emerson's blood sugar was low and that we would need to supplement him with formula. I planned to exclusively breastfeed, but my milk hadn't come in yet so we agreed. When his blood sugar didn't improve by that night, the hospital's pediatrician recommended he be given IV fluids in the NICU. By then, visiting hours were over and all of our family and friends were gone. Emerson spent his first night in the NICU and I cried in my hospital room down the hall, getting up every 3 hours to attempt to breastfeed, feed him a bottle of formula, and then pump.
We were told low blood sugar after birth was common with babies born on the small side and in larger babies. I was asked repeatedly if I had gestational diabetes (which I didn't, and my OB confirmed I was never even borderline). The hospital staff assured us that his body would learn to regulate itself within a couple of days and we could go home. However, even though the IV fluids were keeping his glucose levels stable, they weren't high enough to remove the IV. He was refusing to eat more than 10-15 mL at each feeding and fell asleep when I tried to breastfeed him. Since he wasn't showing signs of improvement, his treatment team decided it was best to give him his fluids through a central line in his umbilical artery as a better long-term solution. A newborn's veins are very small and a baby is very wiggly, making it difficult to keep an IV in for more than a couple of days. We consented. My milk came in and I was pumping every 3 hours in addition to attempting to feed him in order to keep up my supply.
I was discharged from the hospital and we began staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Austin for only $20/night so we could be close to Emerson. Dallas took another week off from work without pay. We relied on family to bring us more clothes and toiletries from home and to check on our animals. Finally, his blood sugar began to stabilize and his doctor gave the order to slowly wean him off the IV fluids!Then suddenly, at just a few days old, Emerson developed a fever. At its highest, his temperature reached 102.4 degrees.
His doctors immediately stopped the weaning process and started him on a range of antibiotics because a high fever meant infection, potentially life-threatening, and we didn't have time to wait for test results. I was asked if I had herpes (which I don't) and if anyone who visited Emerson since birth had been sick (they hadn't). Emerson's blood culture tested position for staphylococcus from samples taken in his umbilical line and the hand where the IV was originally placed. We later found out it was a strain of MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), which is a type of staph bacteria that's become resistant to many of the antibiotics used to treat ordinary staph infections. We were told his particular strain was luckily only resistant to a couple of antibiotics, leaving us with better treatment options. Because of this, they assumed it was community-acquired and not from the hospital. They also cultured my breastmilk and Dallas's skin and both tested positive for MRSA. Neither Dallas or myself had any symptoms or outbreaks. We still don't know if one or both of us were simply carriers or if Emerson did acquire it from the hospital and then passed it to us. We'll probably never know.
Emerson was moved to an isolated room in the NICU. They continued testing him to make sure that was the only cause of his fever. They had to perform a spinal tap twice, but luckily his spinal fluids were negative for bacteria. It was only in his blood stream and hadn't spread to his brain. We thanked God he didn't have meningitis. Signing the consent form to perform a spinal tap on my baby was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Waiting for those test results and hearing his pediatrician tell us he could have died was pure hell and almost broke me.
They removed his umbilical line right away and started a new IV for his antibiotics and as well Tylenol and an oral antibiotic. His fever reduced. Emerson took it all like a champ. I stopped breastfeeding and began taking an oral antibiotic as well and pumping and dumping my milk. Dallas also started antibiotics. We then began the painful waiting game for negative blood and milk cultures. As soon as Emerson tested negative for MRSA, we were told he needed to stay on antibiotics an additional 14 days to make sure he was completely clear of infection and that it wouldn't come back. Once again, he couldn't keep a normal IV in that long. He was transferred to a higher level NICU in a hospital downtown in order to have a central line run through his arm and shoulder to his heart. His first car ride, his first time outside, was in an ambulance.
There are a lot of times in this story where things went totally wrong, but there are also plenty of times we know we were more than lucky. Emerson continued to test negative for MRSA and receive his full treatment of antibiotics. My milk eventually tested negative for MRSA too and I was able to start breastfeeding again. Emerson latched on again as if we had never been apart. At 24 days old, we were finally able to take Emerson home.
He is growing like a weed and is so healthy and strong now. We're now exclusively breastfeeding. He loves to "talk" to us, listen to music, snuggle, and smiles so big every morning when he wakes up. We encountered many families in the NICU and at the Ronald McDonald House that were going through much harder circumstances than us. We're so thankful for all of the support we received and continue to receive from friends and family. I know how blessed we are.
However, even after insurance, we are left with more than we can handle in medical bills. I've spent the last few months talking to our health insurance company and providers trying to get as much of his expenses covered as I can, but it has been overwhelming. We don't take asking for help lightly and appreciate any and all support. This is the first time I'm publicly sharing his story. I'm sorry for the length, but it has been kind of therapeutic to share the details. I didn't realize how long it took me to work through them personally until recently. If you do contribute or share, please leave your name and address and/or email address so that I can thank you personally.
Organisator
Jordana Lee Bennett
Organisator
Seguin, TX