the surgery

It was a long day, to say the least. After a restless night for mom and dad, we left the house at 5am and arrived at Primary Children's just before 6 to check into same day surgery. Emery was in heaven, even at that early hour, as the room started filling with children and their parents.



He loved playing with the toys and got right in with the big kids. It was great, as he hadn't been allowed to eat or drink since the night before and I was panicked that he would start asking for his bottle.



There was a little scare initially, as they only had his eye surgery on the schedule at the check in counter. We had to wait until we went back in to the exam room to find out that things were set for both surgeries.

Around 6:45, he was given a routine exam to check his health and was not very happy about it. He had been diagnosed with an ear infection on Sunday and was given an antibiotic shot that day, one Monday, and another Tuesday-- all to make sure he was in fighting shape for today's events. The second he saw the nurse walk towards him, he let it be known that he wasn't going to take it.

It even took a bit of coaxing for us to get his diaper changed and his surgery "scrubs" put on. Good thing he had his favorite Cookie and Elmo to comfort him. They would stay by his side, literally, the entire day.



The early wake-up call was starting to show as we left the exam room and headed to the pre-surgery play area.

Emery loved the kitchen, just like he does at home. And yes, gross that he was putting the cup in his mouth, but I couldn't stop him fast enough!



It was during this 30 minutes of fun that Nate and I decided Santa will be getting him his own kitchen for Christmas.



At 7:15, a nurse came out and administered an anti-anxiety drug that helped him relax. He slowed down over the next 15 minutes and was in my arms by 7:30 when the eye doctor and anesthesiologist came out. The eye doctor, Dr. Dries, assured us that he would take extra special care of our little one and because Dr. Patel was not there yet, Dr. Dries drew dots around Emery's forehead where the cyst was to be removed. He left to prep and the anesthesiologist explained what would happen in detail with the surgery. She was a wonderfully kind 60 something grandma who I immediately trusted. She told us she had a grandson Emery's age and that she would make sure he was safe and comfortable during the surgery. She let me hold him as we walked toward the operating room, right to the double doors where we had to hand him to her. Luckily the medicine had worked and the moment I dreaded was over in an instant. Nate and I gave him a kiss and I handed our baby to her. And that was that.

We waited in the parents surgery waiting room with other anxious adults and numbingly watched the Today show for 2 hours. Dr. Dries came in first and said the eye surgery had gone extremely well. He told us that Dr. Patel was finishing up and that we would be reunited with Emery shortly. We were given some instructions and were able to ask a couple of questions. About a half hour later, Dr. Patel came with the same great news. Relief was an understatement.

15 minutes later, my name was called and the nurse in the waiting room gave me a slip of paper and told me to follow the kites on the floor to the big blue doors. Nate couldn't come for another half hour while Emery was still coming out of the anesthesia. I have never walked so quickly in my life.

I found him in the post surgery room with a dozen other children, each in their own little bed. His eyes were closed and he was feverishly sucking down sugar water from a bottle that a nurse was holding and his vitals were being checked by another nurse. They let me hold the bottle and stroke his hair as he started to wake up. His picc line was still in and his other hand was tightly grasping his beloved Cookie. The nurse told me that they had tried to give him a sippy cup, but he wouldn't take it and so they tried the bottle and he was on his second one by the time I arrived. When he started to stir and cry, they let me take him out of the bed and rock him. I sang him his favorite songs and he continued to drink from the bottle. It was disconcerting, as there were several children screaming for their moms and sobbing. We had been warned that some children come out of the anesthesia without much fuss and others have a hard time. Unfortunately, Emery was the latter. There were lots of bloody tears, which we had also been told could happen but I was still not prepared for, and crying.

In order to move into the recovery room and ultimately go home, he had to pass several tests, including drinking something and breathing on his own with a high enough saturation of oxygen. I was told that when he is in pain, he holds his breath, so the oxygen level wasn't as high as it should have been. As I rocked him, I had to hold an oxygen mask over his mouth to help with that. They took out his picc line and got blood everywhere (I threw away my shirt when we got home, as it was covered) and Emery was in a lot of pain.

At that point, I was able to carry him into the recovery room and they called Nathan to come in. We had two rocking chairs next to his bed and the nurse would come in periodically to monitor him and check him stats. It was a horrible hour and a half, but Emery made it through.

As soon as he heard Nate's voice, he cried out for him. At that point, he still wasn't opening his eyes. We were told it felt like sandpaper and it took him a long time to keep them open.



After about an hour, he was much more alert. All he wanted was apple juice, but they were worried he had already had so much (about 8 4 oz. bottles by that point!). We tried a popsicle, but he didn't much care for it.



He still wanted the bottle.



His eyes were swollen and looked bruised. The area where the cyst was removed seemed much better-- just a small butterfly bandage to cover the stitches.







After another dose of lortab kicked in, he seemed much more himself. He sat on his own, kept his eyes open, and was easily distracted with toys and other items on his bed. By 11:15am, the nurse told us we could take him home.



We changed him and got his discharge papers and then headed to the pharmacy to pick up his antibiotic eye drops and lortab. He had to wear arm braces because he kept rubbing his eyes, which he wasn't supposed to touch.

We were home by 1pm and all three of us collapsed in bed. Emery and I slept 3 hours straight. He woke up happy but annoyed with the arm braces.

With the lortab, he was comfortable and got lots of rest. We learned that the cyst removal was not too uncomfortable. Had that been the only surgery, he would have been sent home with a recommendation to take Motrin for the next 24 hours. It was the eye surgery that caused so much pain and discomfort.



At first, I wasn't going to list the day's events in such detail, but I want to remember what it felt like and I want to be able to recall the tender feelings of love I have for my son.

Nathan told me he hadn't known how much he loved Emery until he watched him be taken to the OR. It's been a very difficult experience, but one that has reminded us of what is truly meaningful. I'm grateful for my slice of heaven on earth-- my family is the most important thing to me.