Time for an Avery update
After Avery made it through the heart surgery and transfer back to the burn unit last weekend, he had surgery again Monday. This was to get another deep debridement and move forward with grafting if the time was right. The surgeons were only able to do a little bit of grafting using donated cadaver tissue in the center of his chest. The lower abdomen isn’t ready yet and they’d done enough to him so they called it a day. Avery loses a lot of blood and fluids during these surgeries so they have to take their time. It’s also very hard to manage his pain after as well. Surgery days are rough. He had a great day yesterday and was able to have his feeding tube out for a while as long as he did his best to chow down. Avery had another surgery scheduled for today where they were without a doubt moving forward with grafting the arms and hands. For this they’re using his own skin, taken from a large area on the front and back of his thighs. Troy and I were updated part of the way through today’s surgery, due to the extent of everything they’d done today he was going to remain intubated. I of course freaked out. After I had some time to sit with it I came to terms with the why behind it. This is specifically for his comfort and healing. The massive amount of pain meds needed to keep him comfortable are risky without that support. The plan for now is to keep him intubated and sedated for a few days. While it’s more traumatic for us to see him that way, it’s in his best interest and will promote rest and healing without fighting excruciating pain. Avery was able to hear and acknowledge his dad and I this evening. Enough to nod yes when we told him we loved him and that one of us would be spending the night as usual. Also nodded in agreement when we were talking to the nurses and signal he wanted the lights off. Avery also fully understands/acknowledged why he has the tube, and that nothing bad or scary had happened to him. It’s just for pain control, support and rest. Again, thank you beyond words to everyone who is in my family’s corner. It overwhelms me everyday in the BEST possible way.
After Avery made it through the heart surgery and transfer back to the burn unit last weekend, he had surgery again Monday. This was to get another deep debridement and move forward with grafting if the time was right. The surgeons were only able to do a little bit of grafting using donated cadaver tissue in the center of his chest. The lower abdomen isn’t ready yet and they’d done enough to him so they called it a day. Avery loses a lot of blood and fluids during these surgeries so they have to take their time. It’s also very hard to manage his pain after as well. Surgery days are rough. He had a great day yesterday and was able to have his feeding tube out for a while as long as he did his best to chow down. Avery had another surgery scheduled for today where they were without a doubt moving forward with grafting the arms and hands. For this they’re using his own skin, taken from a large area on the front and back of his thighs. Troy and I were updated part of the way through today’s surgery, due to the extent of everything they’d done today he was going to remain intubated. I of course freaked out. After I had some time to sit with it I came to terms with the why behind it. This is specifically for his comfort and healing. The massive amount of pain meds needed to keep him comfortable are risky without that support. The plan for now is to keep him intubated and sedated for a few days. While it’s more traumatic for us to see him that way, it’s in his best interest and will promote rest and healing without fighting excruciating pain. Avery was able to hear and acknowledge his dad and I this evening. Enough to nod yes when we told him we loved him and that one of us would be spending the night as usual. Also nodded in agreement when we were talking to the nurses and signal he wanted the lights off. Avery also fully understands/acknowledged why he has the tube, and that nothing bad or scary had happened to him. It’s just for pain control, support and rest. Again, thank you beyond words to everyone who is in my family’s corner. It overwhelms me everyday in the BEST possible way.