Post op, Day 2

February 6, 2015 - Addie had a very rough night.  She was uncomfortable most of the night and had a lot of belly paid.  Since Addie isn't eating or drinking anything by mouth, she formed a fairly large gas bubble in her intestines (an x-ray showed us this bubble).  In order to get this bubble moving, we needed to get her up and moving - and since she barely wanted to be touched without feeling discomfort, it didn't look very promising to get her walking.  So Dr. Shindi decided to put her NG tube back in to help keep things moving in her belly.  This gave Addie so much relief.  A gas bubble after surgery is very common.  Since Addie seemed to be progressing so well, Dr. Shindi felt that pulling the NG tube when he did would be ok.  Addie was just telling us that she needed a bit more time and we needed to slow down.  And that was totally ok!!

Pittsburg hospital has a team of professionals that help the patients and their siblings understand what is happening (medically speaking) to them and why there is so many wires and lines hooked up to them.  They also bring crafts and other fun toys to the bedside to help keep the patient comfortable and distracted from everything that is happening around them.  Today, Addie made an Valentine ladybug and Alivia got to make a different craft which used different things found in a hospital and turned it into art.  It helps to make things seem less scary!

Alivia needed to step out of the room while Addie was having a test done.  This is how I found her

The big news today was that Addie moved from the PICU to the floor (7b).  We are hoping that things are much more relaxed and comfortable on the floor than in the PICU.  Another step in the right direction!!