Roughly one year ago we were hit with the scariest moment a parent could ever experience, our little boy stopped breathing.  He was only about 2 months old. Addison spent just a little under a week in the hospital being poked, tested and scaned constantly.  By the time is was all said and done, the doctors said that ACE has severe reflux and had choked.  For almost the first year of his life he had to have a tablespoon of rice cereal for each ounce of formula.  Also for the first 6 months he had to sleep on a wedge.  We finally had to yank it out of his crib, because he was too mobile and rolling around so much that is became dangerous.  Both of these things kept him from choking while his insides strengthened as he grew.  We are so grateful for all the prayers we received during this time.  Thankfully this all feels like a really bad dream and I can say that we have a happy and healthy fourteen month old now. 

The first image of ACE  having a tube put down his nose and throat to monitor for reflux for 24 hours.  The second image is of ACE wearing lots of electrodes on his head for 24 hours while they monitored his brain activity for seizures.  Poor little guy also had an IV in his arm and heart and breathing monitors on as well.

Here is my big boy now, happy and healthy.  My we have come a long way I am so thankful for each and every moment I have with him.  He is such a blessing and brings a ridiculous amount of joy into my life.

(If you would like to read more about our experience and story you can find it in my archives starting at August 17, 2010: http://babykellogg.tumblr.com/post/966872730/please-pray-for-my-baby-boy-addison)

So, as some of you know I was in the hospital in December for abdominal pain.  They told me that my pain was due to an intestinal blockage and IBS.  Well, I continued to have a lot of problems and pain in the abdomen even after the blockage was supposedly cleared out after having a colonoscopy.  My IBS has been under control and no problems in that area for quite some time.  On Monday I went to my general doctor and to my gastroenterologist for the continued pain.  They really weren’t sure what was going on.  My general doctor thought it could be my gallbladder, my gastroenterologist thought I pulled a muscle in my abdomen. He wanted me to heat, ice and take some muscle relaxers and see if my pain improved.

Tuesday rolls around and I am racing around getting ready for my auditions.  I decided to put the heating pad on the right front side of my abdomen just as the doctor has recommended.  I had it on for about 5 minutes and stood up to go to the bathroom when BAM…holy hell…the most excruciating pain.  I was screaming crying in pain and I could move.  I felt like I was going to vomit.  Thank goodness my husband was working from home that day.  He immediately rushed my over to the hospital. 

Once again the doctors seemed unsure as to what was causing my pain.  They thought it might be an ovarian cyst that ruptured and was bleeding.  I went in for an ultrasound of my ovaries.  The ultrasound didn’t show any problems, my ovaries looked good.  Then I had to drink this horrible contrast and get a CT Scan to take a look at my appendix, gallbladder, etc.  Once again the doctors tell me we can’t find you appendix on the CT Scan, this was the same thing they told me in December.  The doctors examined me again and then brought in a surgeon to examine me.  They said that all my pain was showing that I needed my appendix removed, but they were still unsure since it didn’t show up in the scan.  They gave me two options:  Continue to be watched for the next 24 hrs. and be put on antibiotics or go in for surgery immediately.  I picked surgery.  I knew that it was my appendix. 

I was immediately hurried off to surgery.  When I woke up they informed my that my appendix was at the early stages of going bad and removed it.  They also found 2 ovarian cysts  and removed them and sent them off for biopsy.  

So, it’s now Thursday and I am back home trying my best to rest and recover.  Although I am in pain from my surgery, I am not in pain anymore in from my appendix.  Thank goodness.

Day 6: We are finally leaving the hospital.  Ryan and I managed to get a few hours of sleep on Thursday night.  We started Addison on his thicken feedings with rice in his formula.  He did extremely well that night.  Addison woke up in the morning with a smile on his face.  He seemed thrilled to not be hooked up so many monitors, wires and cords.  He still had the IV in his arm as a precaution in case something were to happen, along with his heart and breathing monitor.  The morning was busy just like any other morning we had at the hospital. 

First, the Gastroenterologist came in to discuss Addison’s reflux prob results and the required treatment.  Addison has really bad reflux, but not that bad of the acid part of it.  What this means it that his stomach can’t keep down the formula, which probably caused him to choke and stop breathing on Sunday.  He is required to have 1 tablespoon of rice cereal with each ounce of formula he drinks.  I was a little confused because the nurse the night before told us something completely different.  The Gastroenterologist  set the the record straight: yes, 1 tablespoon rice to 1 ounce of formula.   We also have to keep Addison upright for at least 15-20 minutes following his feeding.  Last, the need to purchase a wedge for his crib.  This will help him out if he does reflux while he is sleeping.

Then, we were visited by a representative from Smart Monitor.  The is the Apnea Monitor that we would be taking home with us.  We orginally thought that Addison would just be hooked up to it while he was sleeping, but we were wrong.  Addison must wear it 24-7.  It is used to monitor his breathing and heart rate.  If either one of these stops for 16 seconds this horrible alarm sounds.  I swear the first time I heard it in the hospital while we were testing it, I almost peed myself.  If Addison did stop breathing then the alarm would sound to stimulate him to start breathing again and also to notify (well, scare the ever living crap out of us) us that is he not breathing.  If he does stop breathing we must start administer CPR. Although we had taken a class before he was born, the hospital had a video for us to watch and test to take.  I was so happy that they required this.  I realized that I had actually forgotten a few things we had learned in class. Although, I hope that I never have to use CPR or the hymlick maneuver on anyone ever again.

We then had our last visit from the Pediatrician.  A few things we needed to know going forward.  We must see our Pediatrician 24-72 hours after leaving the hospital.  He will be in charge of monitoring Addison’s reflux and will decide for how long he will have to use the Smart Monitor.  We have to follow up with the Cardiologist in a month.  They are still concerned about the whole in his heart and will have to under go the same heart test again to see if it has sealed up.  Finally, we need to follow up with the Gastroenterologist in 2-4 weeks to also check up on his reflux issues.

Woohoo!  We are finally going home with our little ACE Man.  Once we arrived home we were greeted by all of our furry babies.  The dogs and cats were thrilled to see Addison.  Each one came up and gave him a good lick on the face.  We followed our usual routine with Addison.  One of his favorite things to do is to play in his crib and giggle at his mobile.   The monitor and the wires he has connected to him didn’t  seem to phase him.  I was so thankful that they were not interrupting his normal life.  We got Addison’s Spa Baby tub all ready.  We unhooked the monitor (This is the only time he can be without the monitor).  ACE splashed around in the tub.  He seem so delighted to finally have his regular tubby.  We feed him dinner at about 8:30 and kept him upright for about 30 minutes before putting him to bed. 

We were a little nervous about the night ahead of us.  We feared that Addison’s monitor might alarm or that he would be restless and fussy.  I woke up this morning and looked at the clock…it was 7 am.  OMG, are you serious!  I can’t believe the whole family slept so peacefully and for that long.  I immediately went over and checked on Addison, he slowly woke up and started my morning off with his wonderful smile.  I know he must be so happy so back in his own bed.

Day 5 began with Addison waking and being unable to eat.  The MRI and sedation required Addison to stop eating after midnight.  He woke up in great spirits, but then became irritable once his hunger pains set in.  Around 9 am we finally got the okay for to head down to the MRI.  Addison was wheeled down in his crib.  His mood changed to a more happy baby during the ride down there. I think he was enjoying the change of scenery.  Once we arrived down there it was complete chaos.  They weren’t ready for us and we were shoved in an area called Intervention with lots of sick old people.  They didn’t seem to please to have us there to begin with, but leave it to Addison to bring on the charm.  Once they took a peak at the ACE man their hearts melted.  As always, Addison began smiling and giggling at the ladies.  I have a feeling we are going to have our hands full when he turns 16 if he is already flirting like this at 10 weeks old.  Finally we got word that they were ready for Addison’s MRI. 

We went into a small room were they started to administer the sedation.  My happy little baby began whaling and crying so loud.  I immediately began crying.  I felt so horrible that Addison was in pain once again and I couldn’t make it better.  I was worried that there was something wrong with the IV again.  The Anesthesiologist nurse assured me that it was okay.  She told us it was time for us to leave the room and that we must go to a waiting area.  I was histerical.  I refused to go to the waiting area.  I stood outside the door and then slumped to the hospital floor.  I couldn’t stop crying.  I kept hearing Addison screaming.  It was killing me that I could be there to comfort him in any way.  I continued to hear this for over 45 minutes.  I feared that something was really wrong.  He should have been in MRI by now.  Then all of the sudden the crying stopped.  My heart dropped….Finally one of the technicians came out and informed us that the sedation was not working and they had to put him under general anesthesia.  Oh my goodness, I really started flipping out.  Addison is only 10 weeks old and they put him under for something as simple as an MRI.   Needless to say the next 20 minutes seemed like an eternity.  And then I heard Addison screaming it was music to my ears.  They opened up the door and I finally got to see my little boy.  He was so pale and cold. 

We were taken back to Pediatric recovery.  I thought that seeing Addison would make me feel better and put me at ease, but it didn’t.  We weren’t out the woods yet.  We now had to get Addison vitals signs up: Temperature, heart rate, pulse, coloring, etc.  Addison was having such difficulty waking up from the anesthesia.  I continued to cry and shake in fear that something was still wrong.  I wanted to hear him yell and cry, I needed to see those baby blue eyes.  We tried everything for almost 4 hours to get him to wake up.  The nurse and I decided to change his diaper.  Yippy, Addison peed on the nurse and woke up for a little bit.  I was finally able to hold him and offer him some pedialyte.  He didn’t drink much and dosed back to sleep and was snoring, but I new that my little ACE man was finally coming back to me.  We then got released to head back to him room.  He woke up briefly to have about 2 ounces of pedialyte and then dosed back off.  The nurse informed us that it would take quite a while for him to wake up and be alert since he was given a double amount of sedation for the MRI.

The Pediatrician came by the room and let us know that we had the results of the MRI.  GOOD NEWS!  Everything is okay.  She has had the results from the reflux probe.  Addison indeed an acid reflux and this was probably the cause of him not breathing and what know to have been from choking.  WOOHOO!  Praise the Lord there is a Power of Prayer!  The ACE man is perfectly healthy and is going to be okay! 

We will be spending one more night in the hospital for Addison to be monitored since he is still not completely awake and alert.  We will now be adding 1 teaspoon of rice cereal to every 1 ounce of formula.  We are also going to be going home with an Apnea monitor to alert us if he does stop breathing again in his sleep.

Our family can’t thank you enough for all of your prayers!  God heard each and everyone of you and took care of Addison during the awful week or tests and procedures at the hospital.  I will always remember to keep the faith and know that God watching over our little ACE man!

I lay awake typing at 4 am in the morning watching my little ACE man breathe.  We have now been at the hospital for 4 days with our little ACE man.  Addison slept okay with the reflux tube down his nose and throat.  He wrestled a little bit throughout the night.  I managed to get a few hours of sleep, probably from sheer exhaustion.  I think I am up to a total of 6 hours of sleep in the past 4 days.  My mind was racing last night with the last bit of news were given about the cyst and asymmetrical ventricles in his brain.  I swear the worst thing is the not knowing what something means.  The fear of the unknown is completely nerve racking. 

Addison woke up in the morning and had his regular feeding.  We entertained him with his rings, rattles and monkey.  He flashed his beautiful smile and cooed.  I felt as if my little boy was letting me know he was okay and everything was going to be alright.  Ryan and I held Addison as much a we could that morning, letting him sleep in arms more than the crib.  We wanted to keep him close to our hearts and send him every bit of positive energy we had in our exhausted bodies.  It was nice to finally have a morning that wasn’t filled with specialists constantly in and out of the room.  Our dear friend Christina came over in the morning and brought us breakfast and played and talked with Addison.  We have felt blessed to have some many friends near and far be so supportive during this difficult time.

At noon it was finally time to have the tube removed from Addison’s nose and throat.   Poor little Addison did not enjoy this experience one bit.  I think the worst part for him was the tape being removed from his skin.  Once that was all said and done, he smiled at the nurses.  It was almost as if it was his way of thanking them for removing the annoying tube from his body.  I immediately scooped my little boy up and hugged him.  I was thrilled that he was finally free of another device in, on and connected to his body.

I asked the nurse if we could now bathe Addison, because he hadn’t had a bathe since Saturday night.  She prepared everything for us to bathe him on the crib.  I stripped Addison down and let him just lay naked and free for a few minutes. I felt like he needed this after everything.  There is nothing more freeing than being naked.  The nurse then helped me bathe Addison.  She kindly wrapped his ankle monitor and IV up in a rubber glove so they wouldn’t get wet.  I started with just giving him a good sponge bathe.  He seemed delighted to finally be clean again. We then put him into the little plastic tub and just let him relax while I sprinkled water over him to rinse all the soap off.  I then scooped him up in his little duck towel from home.  The hospital towels were so hard and uncomfortable feeling.  I wanted to be sure ACE had something to remind him of the comforts of home.  I lotioned up my little baby bug and clothed him in his Mommy’s little Monster onesie.  This onsie makes me smile because it couldn’t be any further from the truth.  Addison is such an angel and has proved to be amazing little baby with such spirit.

Mommy and Daddy held Addison until he finally feel a sleep. Ahh, we were so happy that our little boy could finally rest without so many things hooked up to his body.  He napped for about an hour when the Neurosurgeon finally arrived to give us the report from his CAT Scan.  It was GOOD NEWS!  No need to be concerned about his brain.  What they thought was a cyst, was actually just some fluid between the ventricles, and it is completely normal.  He also let us know that the different size of his 2 ventricles was normal to and no need to be concerned.  He has no reason to belief that any of these things caused him to stop breathing.

The neurologist also stopped by to talk to us.  She has ordered an MRI for Addison tomorrow.  She wants to do a a more detailed view of his brain just to rule out anything neurological that caused Addison to stop breathing.  In order for them to do the MRI they must sedate Addison.  I am so uneasy about this.  The poor little boy is only 10 weeks old and they want to sedate him.  Even though he is calm and good nature little boy, he must be completely still for the MRI, this is the reason for the sedation.  In order for them to sedate Addison he has to be given IV fluids and can’t eat for over 6 hours.  I am so worried about my little boy not getting to eat, that makes for a very uncomfortable and unhappy baby.  Speaking of uncomfortable, they started giving Addison fluids in his IV.  Addison went from completely content and asleep to moaning in pain.  I immediately knew something was wrong.  I knew the IV must have come lose or changed positions in his vein.  Let me just tell you how horrible this is.  I have had it happen to me before.  It feels as if someone is pumping fire into your veins and through your hand.  I immediately got the nurse to check his IV….sure enough Momma was right.  They immediately removed it and place a warm compress on his hand.  They allowed him to have some time of rest before putting a new one in his other hand.

Where does this whole experience bring us to now… we just have get the MRI done in the morning, wait for the results of the reflux tube test, wait for results of the MRI, and wait to here if the doctors are going to hook a monitor up to Addison’s heart for 24 hours.  Testing, Wait, wait, wait…still no real answers at this point.  We are praying that this whole mishap is just a bad case of acid reflux and he just choked.  We are praying that the doctor’s have just been overly cautious running all of these test.  We pray that of little baby bug is going to be okay and live a wonderfully full and healthy life!

Tuesday was our third day at the hospital with Addison.  Our little ACE man did wonderfully during the night, sleeping his usualy 7-8 hours.  I am so glad that he did, because he was definitely going to need his rest for the day ahead.  Mommy on the other had has only had a total of 3 1/2 hours of sleep in the past 3 days.  First thing in the morning the technician came by and removed the electrodes from Addison’s head.  He has a few war wounds from these little boogers.. some of his hair is missing in patches now.  I guess he will have to start a new trend for fall.

Addison was able to get one feeding in when he woke up, but then was unable to eat for about 6 hours because they had to put a tube down his nose and throat.   ACE was screaming and crying uncontrollable.  Bring on the water works for Momma, I balled my eyes out as they put this down his nose. I swear the worst feeling in the world is to have your child in pain and not be able to fix it.  My heart just breaks for him with all the poking and prodding they have done to him. 

Once this was finished and Addison had finally calmed back down another technician came in to do and x-ray of his chest.  They had to be sure the tube was in place properly.  We have now approached crucial baby feeding time.  Let the screaming begin.  Unfortunately, Addison was unable to eat until we got the reading back from the radiologist that the tube was in place.  The nurse cam to the room and gave us the green light to feed him.  Addison sucked his bottle down quicker than I have ever seen before. 

And as usual once Addison finally had a breather and time to rest, it was time for another round of tests.  This time they did an ultrasound of his head.  This testing is done to be sure that there isn’t any bleeding in his head.  ACE did awesome during this and kept nice and still for the technician.  He continued to flash that cute little smile and flirt with the ladies. 

We got back some results from some of the previous test later on in the afternoon.  The cardiologist let us know that she couldn’t find anything majorly wrong with Addison heart.  Although, they did discover he has a small hole in his heart.  Apparently, this is not normal, but it also wasn’t of huge concern for the cardiologist.  She mentioned that it typically that closes up with age.  So, we will hope and pray that it does close up and doesn’t give Addison any future problems.  The neurologist told of that the electrodes didn’t find any signs or activity of a seizure during the time he was monitored.  We were so happy to get some good news for now. 

Addison still continues to be on antibiotics for meningitis.  If the lab work come back good tomorrow then they will take him off of the antibiotics.  The pediatrican feels that we will get good news that he doesn’t have meningitis.

Then early on in the evening we were told the results of Addison’s ultrasound of his head.  We were informed that they found a cyst on his brain and he needed to have a CAT Scan.  I freakin lost it…I emotionally just can’t handle this anymore.  Addison, was such a good baby once again.  I am constantly amazed my how good natured he has been through all of this.  The premliminary results of the scan came back very quickly.  We received more unsettling news.  Addison brain ventricles are different sizes.  The pediatrician told us that they are supposed to be the same size and that they are concerned.  Concerned for what she couldn’t tell me at that time.  She let us know that a neurosurgeon would be coming to speak with us tomorrow.

As for now we are left worrying and watching over Addison through the night.  Addison will have to keep the tube in his nose and throat for the next 24 hours.  We have been told that the hospital will be sending us home, whenever that may be, with an Apnea monitor.  This is monitor that Addison will wear at home while he is sleeping and an alarm will sound if he stops breathing.  They will also be instructing us on CPR.  Ryan and I took an infant CPR course before Addison was home, but we are looking forward to a refresher course.

Once again thank you to everyone for their thoughts, prayers and words of encouragement.  You have helped lift our family up through a most difficult time.  Please continue to pray for our little ACE man.