We got to bring Ryan home today. After a less than sleep-filled night in the hospital with him, I was very excited to be out of there. I began to understand why Garrett was so worn down after staying 2 nights!
Ryan's fever didn't come back, but his personality did. He was bouncing all over the place yesterday afternoon and this morning. The doctor said he looked great. He's on a dose of asprin every day for 6 weeks and has to follow up with her on Monday and a cardiologist the next time he's in town (comes twice a month). He'll have to see the cardiologist once a year for 5 years, but they really don't expect there to be any long term side effects. PRAISE THE LORD!!
We want to make sure to say thank you to everyone who was praying for Ryan (and all of us). It has been a trying week - we are exhausted and ready for some sleep! We has so many friends stop by and visit us at the hospital, send gifts, provide meals, & watch the other kids. We feel so blessed! I wish I was polite enough to send out individual thank you cards (I'm going to try), but if I don't get one to you...well...we'll just say the dog ate it! :)
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Hospital Day 2
We started the day off very well with Ryan's temp staying at normal all night. But by mid-morning it was rapidly rising again. They had to de-frost another bag of the globulin (or whatever it's called). Rumor has it those things run $10,000 - $15,000 per bag. Thank God for Blue Cross & Blue Shield!!
From what we've heard, the up and down fever is par for the course. It's just a long recovery road, even after he leaves the hospital. We are still confident he was diagnosed early enough that there won't be any lasting concerns. Of course, time will tell for sure.
Ryan was up and down all day - perky and giggly one minute; lethargic and irritable the next. He watched a lot of TV (not his usual self) and took cat naps. When I stopped in before work, his face was cleared up and he was smiling. By the time I got there at 3:00, he was red-cheeked again.
I stayed with him all evening. Garrett brought Hunter and the girls up to visit for a few minutes. That cheered him up (them and the candy Garrett gave him). Liz Gibson and the Kuehls also stopped by bearing gifts and snacks.
His temp is floating around 100 again, which isn't too bad. He'll get another bag of the antibodies everyday until the fever is gone. He's also getting blood work everyday to monitor his progress. He's doing very well considering. The balloons, stuffed animals, and candy have helped tremendously. :)
Garrett is back at the hospital for another "sleep over." I came home to get a restless night's sleep without Garrett here. We also found out that our basketball hoop fell on the neighbor's car. Oh, joy! Another opportunity to trust in God to work it all out. Funny how that always happens. I'll be posting again tomorrow and Garrett and I are both updating our Twitter accounts and Facebook statuses.
We really do appreciate all of your prayers and support. I know many of you have gone through so much worse. We are in no position to complain, but have been given an opportunity to see how amazing God is!
From what we've heard, the up and down fever is par for the course. It's just a long recovery road, even after he leaves the hospital. We are still confident he was diagnosed early enough that there won't be any lasting concerns. Of course, time will tell for sure.
Ryan was up and down all day - perky and giggly one minute; lethargic and irritable the next. He watched a lot of TV (not his usual self) and took cat naps. When I stopped in before work, his face was cleared up and he was smiling. By the time I got there at 3:00, he was red-cheeked again.
I stayed with him all evening. Garrett brought Hunter and the girls up to visit for a few minutes. That cheered him up (them and the candy Garrett gave him). Liz Gibson and the Kuehls also stopped by bearing gifts and snacks.
His temp is floating around 100 again, which isn't too bad. He'll get another bag of the antibodies everyday until the fever is gone. He's also getting blood work everyday to monitor his progress. He's doing very well considering. The balloons, stuffed animals, and candy have helped tremendously. :)
Garrett is back at the hospital for another "sleep over." I came home to get a restless night's sleep without Garrett here. We also found out that our basketball hoop fell on the neighbor's car. Oh, joy! Another opportunity to trust in God to work it all out. Funny how that always happens. I'll be posting again tomorrow and Garrett and I are both updating our Twitter accounts and Facebook statuses.
We really do appreciate all of your prayers and support. I know many of you have gone through so much worse. We are in no position to complain, but have been given an opportunity to see how amazing God is!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Ryan
Unfortunately, it's a sick kid that makes updating my blog (and therefore my family and friends) a priority. Ryan came down with a fever and rash last Wednesday night. Garrett took him to the doctor on Thursday. He told us it was an upper-respiratory infection and we just had to wait it out. Of course, Ryan had clear nose, throat, & lungs - Garrett and I were skeptical.
We have been concerned about our pediatrician since our old one left several months ago. We aren't thrilled with the replacements, but it was just a hunch. We asked around and found a new pediatrician, but Ryan couldn't get in until this morning. So as the fever came and went all weekend we waited. Surely it would go away; it couldn't' be serious enough to go to the ER - the fever isn't over 102, he'll be fine.
Thankfully, God has good timing. The new pediatrician first thought the rash was strep-related, but when the initial strep test came back negative, she did some more looking. She wouldn't tell Garrett what it was, but said she needed some blood work & suggested just going to the hospital and having Ryan admitted.
After a chest x-ray, an ultrasound (we confirmed he's not pregnant), an echo-cardiogram, and blood work, the initial indication is Kawasaki Disease. It has nothing to do with motorcycles; rather the heart.
It can be caused by either a bacteria or virus & is rare & not highly contagious. If not treated w/in 10-days it can cause long-term heart & artery problems. Ryan is in his 6th day of the fever and rash (like I said, God has AMAZING timing). He is being treated with something that starts with a 'G.' He'll have more blood work tomorrow and will be in the hospital until his fever is gone. The nurse guessed around 3-4 days. It takes the body 6 weeks to fight it off fully & he'll have to follow up with a cardiologist.
Pretty scary stuff, but like I said, God is good & kept Ryan from something that could have been a lot worse. Garrett is spending the night with him, I'm going to stop in tomorrow morning on my way to work. I'll be working a partial day & then spending the afternoon and evening with Ryan. Garrett being off work helps ease the tension (again, God's amazing timing).
Our Sunday School class and friends are really stepping up to help out with the other kids, meals - everything. We are very thankful for all God is doing to see us through.
I will keep you posted as we discover more! Thanks for your prayers!
We have been concerned about our pediatrician since our old one left several months ago. We aren't thrilled with the replacements, but it was just a hunch. We asked around and found a new pediatrician, but Ryan couldn't get in until this morning. So as the fever came and went all weekend we waited. Surely it would go away; it couldn't' be serious enough to go to the ER - the fever isn't over 102, he'll be fine.
Thankfully, God has good timing. The new pediatrician first thought the rash was strep-related, but when the initial strep test came back negative, she did some more looking. She wouldn't tell Garrett what it was, but said she needed some blood work & suggested just going to the hospital and having Ryan admitted.
After a chest x-ray, an ultrasound (we confirmed he's not pregnant), an echo-cardiogram, and blood work, the initial indication is Kawasaki Disease. It has nothing to do with motorcycles; rather the heart.
It can be caused by either a bacteria or virus & is rare & not highly contagious. If not treated w/in 10-days it can cause long-term heart & artery problems. Ryan is in his 6th day of the fever and rash (like I said, God has AMAZING timing). He is being treated with something that starts with a 'G.' He'll have more blood work tomorrow and will be in the hospital until his fever is gone. The nurse guessed around 3-4 days. It takes the body 6 weeks to fight it off fully & he'll have to follow up with a cardiologist.
Pretty scary stuff, but like I said, God is good & kept Ryan from something that could have been a lot worse. Garrett is spending the night with him, I'm going to stop in tomorrow morning on my way to work. I'll be working a partial day & then spending the afternoon and evening with Ryan. Garrett being off work helps ease the tension (again, God's amazing timing).
Our Sunday School class and friends are really stepping up to help out with the other kids, meals - everything. We are very thankful for all God is doing to see us through.
I will keep you posted as we discover more! Thanks for your prayers!
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