5 days of life -- A Father's Update

January 4, 2010 --David's update

We keep getting surprised--in a good way--by this girl, Grace.

Beth and I visited for a few hours this afternoon. Good news:

1) The lungs are getting stronger. She's down to 22% oxygen, which is basically the level in the atmosphere, and her blood is getting the oxygen it needs from that level. She's probably not going off the ventilator soon, but it's doing much less work and her body is doing much more on its own.

2) The brain is not bleeding further. This was a huge fear--with small babies, and especially those with high levels of oxygen (like Grace), there is a high risk that the oxygen will cause hemmorhages. Grace has a very low level bleed that she's had since day one, but it's clearing up and there's nothing more. The risks of brain bleeding decline as she gets past the first few days.

3) She's pooping and peeing. As you all surely know, there's nothing like a good poop and pee. Grace is doing both, which just means that she is able to get the waste out of her body. It also means that she can start trying to feed from breast milk.

The doctor's at St. Vincent's are treating her like a miracle. When we met all of them, after Beth's water broke, they didn't think we'd get this far. They're delighted she stayed in the womb so long--every day made a huge difference. And she's responded so well to the care she's received.

Thanks for your love,
DL