2-23-16

I'll pick up where we left off last night! We went down for the ultrasound about 6. They found what they call a hematoma, a pocket of blood like a bruise, in the area around his small intestine, along with a lot of backed waste. The ultrasound wasn't clear enough to exactly identify where the hemotoma was (inside or outside the intestine wall), and whether it was actually blocking the movement of his intestines. The surgery team was going to want a CT scan to get that answer, probably the next day if he didn't get worse. So we came back to the room and made some adjustments in the mean time. Took out the feeding tube and put in a suction tube that basically vacuums out his stomach intermittently, and stopped the solid feeds to switch him to IV nourishment--both in an effort to give his digestive system a break. And finally he seemed to be comfortable! He slept all night, first time in a long time, and hasn't had any more vomiting! We went down for the CT scan late morning, and by afternoon, the doctors came in and reported that the CT had showed the hemotama inside the small intestine, and probably was the source of a blockage for a while. But it appears to be diminishing-not bleeding anymore and getting smaller. There IS flow around it again, but a pretty thin path. So they think that in a week's time the body should resolve the issue. For a while they will stick with the IV nourishment instead of solid feedings. All this means that we will likely be in the hospital the rest of the week while they watch this and wait for it to heal. He has already had a few bowl movements today, so his system seems to already be improving. Thank you for all the prayers since yesterday--as you can see they were answered as they could clearly identify what was going on, and that it looks like it will resolve itself! Continue to pray that all goes according to plan, and we can put this bump-in-the-road behind us.

Drew has clearly felt much better today. It's great to see his smile and energy back! But with a 6 foot tube attaching him to the wall for the suction of his belly, it has been challenging to keep him contained and entertained! We've found the window that we can watch the traffic and people crossing the street. He stands and waves at people below, as you can see! He continues to be so cooperative and easy to work with during all these tests and exams, making all this SO much easier to handle. I thank God for my little Drewy each day!

Until next time!

~Heidi