Jackson was in the NICU for a total of 12 days. When he was born Matt and I had no idea how long of hospital stay we were looking at for him. We were originally told that it could be a minimum of two weeks and could last until his due date if not longer, but ultimately it was going to depend on how well he did. Jackson was in the more intensive NICU for 5 days. He had his own nurse that only had two patients to care for, him and a little girl. He was carefully monitored and given the attention he needed. He quickly became known as the rockstar of his NICU unit because he flourished so quickly. Since he was doing so well they moved him over to a different part of the NICU, a step down unit. He got his own room that was nicer than mine and had a nurse that was over him and three other kiddos. In his new room parents were able to stay the night if they choose to do so. Parents were also offered a meal tray for each meal that they were at the hospital with their little one(s).
Jackson's Bilirubin level was elevated the morning after he was born. He ended up having to go under the phototherapy lights for a few days until his levels went down. I knew what jaundice was, but I always thought that it turned the skin a yellow color. In Jackson's case, his skin became tomato red. I unfortunately didn't ask enough questions about this because I knew how common jaundice was. It only took a couple of days for his Bilirubin levels to go down. Once the levels were down, he no longer had to be in the phototherapy lights.
When he first got to the NICU he had an IV put in to give him fluids and to administer any medicines that he needed or may need. Just like me, they had a hard time with the IVs so he ended up having one in each hand. It broke our hearts to see the IVs in his hands. They were so big on him and they were wrapped in a way that it looked like he had cardboard taped to his arms. At first we could tell that he was struggling with the weight of all the dressings from the IV, but he quickly figured it out and began moving his arms around like crazy and hasn't stopped since! Thankfully he didn't need the IV for too long and quickly began drinking from a bottle.
He had infant sleep apnea episodes where he stopped breathing for 20 seconds and his heart rate and oxygen level would drop. We were told by several doctors and nurses that it is very common in preterm babies due to the brain still developing. Basically while he is sleeping he forgets to breath. To him and his brain, he is still "cooking" and only needs to practice breath like in the womb. Thankfully there were only a few episodes where the nurse had to go in and stimulate him to wake him up to breath. All of the other times he would jerk himself awake and take a deep breath. While we trusted and believed the nurses, it was still scary to watch Jackson stop breathing. We were told to not stimulate him during an episode. He and his brain had to "work it out." The only time we or the nurses would stimulate him was if it lasted longer than 20 seconds or if his heart rate or oxygen level went too low. Each time he had an episode, our "going home clock" started back over with 5 more days in the hospital. When we found out that we were being discharged, Matt went and bought a breathing/movement monitor that Jackson wears on his diaper. It will vibrate after 15 seconds of no movement to stimulate him and then an alarm will go off after 20 seconds to alert us. It has been wonderful and has definitely eased our minds.
Jackson has great movement in his hips and knees. As of right now we aren't seeing any movement in his ankles or feet. While it's hard to realize that he probably won't have any movement below his ankles, we knew that it was a big possibility due to his lesion level. Physical therapy came in and started his sessions. He absolutely loved it! Every time that they were working on his legs and feet he stayed still and didn't make a sound. I see massages in his future. :)
He is eating every 3 hours on the dot! Exhaustion set in a week after getting home. I never knew someone could be so tired and still function. I am a complete zombie mommy. No matter how tired I am though, seeing his face and feeding him makes me the happiest person on this planet. He has steadily gained weight. When he came home from the NICU he weighed 4lbs 9oz and at his first pediatrician appointment he weighed almost 5lbs. We're having a little bit of a reflux issue and it's scared us a few times. The worst time was when he spit up some and then got choked up and couldn't breath. Thankfully with me hitting his back, scrapping some of the extra saliva out of his mouth, and him working through it, he was OK. Hopefully the reflux doesn't continue too long. I can't stand seeing him choke.
He got his first set of casts on the day that we discharged from the hospital. I'm pretty sure that it bothered me more than him when he got them put on. He whined a little bit while they were being put on, but he didn't cry at all. I think it bothered him that he wasn't able to move his legs like wanted to. The plan is to replace the casts each week. So far he's gone through three sets and each week we are more amazed at how good his feet look. The orthopedic said that we are going to take a break soon to let his legs air out and to start some physical therapy.
I know that this is a super long post, but I wanted to let you all know how he is doing. Like I said, I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to get this posted. I'm going to try really hard to keep up to date and not get so far behind. :) Cuteness overload with pictures...
Crystal
Jackson's door that one of his awesome nurses made for him.
Jackson's Bilirubin level was elevated the morning after he was born. He ended up having to go under the phototherapy lights for a few days until his levels went down. I knew what jaundice was, but I always thought that it turned the skin a yellow color. In Jackson's case, his skin became tomato red. I unfortunately didn't ask enough questions about this because I knew how common jaundice was. It only took a couple of days for his Bilirubin levels to go down. Once the levels were down, he no longer had to be in the phototherapy lights.
When he first got to the NICU he had an IV put in to give him fluids and to administer any medicines that he needed or may need. Just like me, they had a hard time with the IVs so he ended up having one in each hand. It broke our hearts to see the IVs in his hands. They were so big on him and they were wrapped in a way that it looked like he had cardboard taped to his arms. At first we could tell that he was struggling with the weight of all the dressings from the IV, but he quickly figured it out and began moving his arms around like crazy and hasn't stopped since! Thankfully he didn't need the IV for too long and quickly began drinking from a bottle.
He had infant sleep apnea episodes where he stopped breathing for 20 seconds and his heart rate and oxygen level would drop. We were told by several doctors and nurses that it is very common in preterm babies due to the brain still developing. Basically while he is sleeping he forgets to breath. To him and his brain, he is still "cooking" and only needs to practice breath like in the womb. Thankfully there were only a few episodes where the nurse had to go in and stimulate him to wake him up to breath. All of the other times he would jerk himself awake and take a deep breath. While we trusted and believed the nurses, it was still scary to watch Jackson stop breathing. We were told to not stimulate him during an episode. He and his brain had to "work it out." The only time we or the nurses would stimulate him was if it lasted longer than 20 seconds or if his heart rate or oxygen level went too low. Each time he had an episode, our "going home clock" started back over with 5 more days in the hospital. When we found out that we were being discharged, Matt went and bought a breathing/movement monitor that Jackson wears on his diaper. It will vibrate after 15 seconds of no movement to stimulate him and then an alarm will go off after 20 seconds to alert us. It has been wonderful and has definitely eased our minds.
Ready to go home!
He is eating every 3 hours on the dot! Exhaustion set in a week after getting home. I never knew someone could be so tired and still function. I am a complete zombie mommy. No matter how tired I am though, seeing his face and feeding him makes me the happiest person on this planet. He has steadily gained weight. When he came home from the NICU he weighed 4lbs 9oz and at his first pediatrician appointment he weighed almost 5lbs. We're having a little bit of a reflux issue and it's scared us a few times. The worst time was when he spit up some and then got choked up and couldn't breath. Thankfully with me hitting his back, scrapping some of the extra saliva out of his mouth, and him working through it, he was OK. Hopefully the reflux doesn't continue too long. I can't stand seeing him choke.
He got his first set of casts on the day that we discharged from the hospital. I'm pretty sure that it bothered me more than him when he got them put on. He whined a little bit while they were being put on, but he didn't cry at all. I think it bothered him that he wasn't able to move his legs like wanted to. The plan is to replace the casts each week. So far he's gone through three sets and each week we are more amazed at how good his feet look. The orthopedic said that we are going to take a break soon to let his legs air out and to start some physical therapy.
I know that this is a super long post, but I wanted to let you all know how he is doing. Like I said, I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to get this posted. I'm going to try really hard to keep up to date and not get so far behind. :) Cuteness overload with pictures...
Crystal
