My Little Glow-Worm January 16, 2007
Adam had his first pediatrician appointment yesterday. (I know I neglected to blog about it, but I ended up finding a good ped.) Adam was born with a large contusion on the sole of his foot (which no one could figure out the cause of) that put him at an increased risk of jaundice. They did a 36 hour bilirubin test at the hospital, and his pediatrician wanted to follow up on that yesterday.
He’s been looking pretty yellow, and with one look at him, the pediatrician warned us that if his bilirubin level came back over 20 then he’d have to be hospitalized. Of course, the thought of that did not sit with me well at all.
We had to go over to the hospital in order to get a stat level bilirubin level run. After waiting in admitting for a year and a half then getting his test done and then waiting an hour for the results (the ped didn’t want us going back home in case Adam needed to be admitted) we were pretty much at our wit’s end. Adam was fantastic throughout it all, though.
We finally got the results back, and his bilirubin level was at 18.2. That is high and does means he has jaundice, but at least it meant that we could do what needed to be done at home. We got a phototherapy blanket and have to keep it on him 24/7 until his levels drop. He has to have his levels tested daily until then. While the phototherapy stuff isn’t exactly fun to deal with, I’m just glad to do whatever it takes to keep him home.
Adam is being a trooper. He’s got some neon green lights hooked onto his back at all times making him to appear very much glow- worm-like, but he’s hanging in there just fine.
He’s such an amazing little guy. It’s still a bit surreal to me to be sitting here typing with one hand while I hold my son with the other, but I’m absolutely loving every minute of it. I can’t tell you how many times Dan or I have turned to the other and said how much he was worth the wait. My little glow-worm most surely was.
ETA: I just remembered that Dan took a picture of glowing Adam yesterday.
- Posted in : our main man
- Author : amanda
Comments»
So very happy to hear all is going well, aside from the little itty bitty teensy weensy set back. Surely, all will be fine!
I bet he is adorable!! Enjoy every second of this!!
Sorry about the elevated bilirubin levels, but am glad he can be treated at home. Love the picture of your little “glow-worm”! Sounds like you are having fun with the little guy!
Aww! What an adorable little glow worm! I hope his bilirubin comes down fast… It cracks me up to remember how Michael and I oohed and aahed over Julia’s beautiful olive complexion when she was first born. Hello…it’s called jaundice!
Glad he’s doing okay, despite the bili-blanket!
Hope his heel-pricks are few, and so glad you’re loving mama-hood!
Love the glow-worm photo- what a great nickname - he will love it when he’s 16!
I am just SO happy for you and Dan.
Hee, we had one of those ourselves:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/callistawolf/187704053/
Glad you could resolve it at home. Both of my boys now had jaundice, but there weren’t any “biliblankets” when Harry was a baby, I don’t think. I too was very glad we could handle it ourselves proactively. The blanket worked GREAT and the levels went down really quickly. I hope you find the same is true with little Adam.
What a lovely picture. I hope the jaundice clears up soon.
I didn’t know biliblankets even existed! That’s great that you can treat him at home. Too bad it’s winter or you could probably also treat it by taking him outside for some nekkid sunshine time. :)
The heel sticks are obnoxious - Axel had them a few times a day to check his electrolyte levels when he was in the NICU. Luckily he didn’t even flinch for most of them. He was released just as they ran out of places to stick him!
Enjoy the one-handed typing while the little guy is a non-wiggler! If you’re talented (I wasn’t) you’ll master the no-handed nursing and be able to type with two hands!
More pics!! That is so cute!
What a cutie. I’m glad you have a good way to treat the jaundice at home.
Congrats! Congrats!! I have been following you for sometime now and am so happy things have worked out so well for you. Best!!!
What a cute little glow worm! I’m glad you could keep him at home for treatment, rather than having to admit your precious little bundle.
And I loveloveloved reading this line: “while I hold my son…”
LOVE the picture, LOVE seeing the words “my son” in there, at last - so so happy for you!
I have been wanting to comment since you released the induction date but I couldn’t think of what to write to you without crying. I am 32 weeks pregnant after 10 years & 3 IVF’s. I have followed your story for almost 2 years now. My husband knew that we were a few weeks apart & has even asked how you were doing. I am so happy that you finally have your son safe in your arms. I am counting down the days until my son is safe in my arms. I know exactly what you have been going through with all the worrying…because I have been on the edge myself. Congratulations to you & Dan on your beautiful glow worm!
So glad you are able to take care of Adam at home. We had to spend extra time in the hospital with our little glow worm. I would have preferred to have dont it at home.
What a lovely picture. I’m glad he’s getting his glow treatment, I did look at one of those lovely pictures from day 1 and worry he was looking a bit yellow. Hey, I may not be a parent but at least I can pretend from time to time!
Lovely little glow-worm : )
What a handsome glow worm!
Love he glow worm picture!!
Sorry for the slight struggles, but still so happy for you!
I loved all the pics! He is adorable.
Sorry for the scare you had but so relieved everything turned out well.
WOW! Congratulations!!!! :)
I love the picture!! What an adorable Glow worm ;-)
Amanda how cute! Since we have two FP docs and 1 Ped in our office we see a lot of little ones who we have to set up to get the billiblankets and such for home. Hopefully soon you two(dh and you) can relax without too much interuption with dr visits. He’s adorable sweetie!
How cute! He is so tiny! How in the world did he get a contusion on his foot?!
wow modern medical miracle that he can glow in the comfort of his own home instead of at the hospital.
Thanks for the update!
I go away on vacation….and look what happens! Congratulations, to you both, what a beautiful baby boy. I understand the elevated bilirubin is a common and reversable problem with newborns. Keep us posted.
He does look like a little glow worm, a cute little glow worm at that. Hope the jaundice clears up quickly.
What a great image. I’m so glad you got to keep him home. Just the thought of having to sit there in the hospital gave me the hives on your behalf.
It’s so lovely to see you settling into motherhood.
oh my gosh - so cute. I thought he was a toy at first! I hope Adam’s jaundice clears up fast.
Many congratulations. He is beautiful and you must be very, very proud. I am so glad that everything went okay for you.
Debbie in the UK
Congrats on the new addition. I am so sorry about the scare though! He is an adorable little glow worm, hope he improves soon!
Take care
Congratulations girlie. I’m amazed — and I’m due in a couple of weeks as well.
When you were describing Adam looking yellow, it made me think that of course he is — he’s a banana too. LOL
I hope that you two enjoy each other’s company, it’s been a long journey.
-A
He’s just beautiful, glowing or otherwise. Hoping the sleep deprivation isn’t weighing too heavily, and that your sweet boy continues to shine.
–Bugs
You don’t know me, but I wanted to say Thank You for blogging your experience. My DH and I have been TTC for 7 yrs and 2 mos. I have undergone 5 IVF/ICSIs all fresh transfers, except the last one we transferred 2 frozen blasts along with one fresh blast. My first 3 cycles ended with a chem.pgcy, a ruptured ectopic pgcy, and a “presumed” ectopic pgcy, the last 2 cycles were BFNs. Oddly, the last 2 were also the only cycles resulting in blasts to freeze. I’m really trying to find the strength to continue with more treatments. We have one frozen blast from our last transfer still. Reading your story has given me some renewed hope. I’m not ready to give up on this lifelong dream of mine, but feel like I can’t live in TTC-land forever either. So I’m hoping to try again in the fall using a more advanced PGD to find out if our embryos are “normal” or if that’s the cause of the losses and failures. I can only imagine the joy and happiness, as well as the anxiety and fear, you must be experiencing as you hold your little one after traveling such a long, hard road. Congratulations! I hope one day to be able to blog about the birth of my child(ren), instead of all the doctor appts, needle sticks, and bad beta results. (-: