Endoscopy Done
After over a week of being sick, eventually getting on antibiotics and feeling a bit better James had his endoscopy.
While we had hiccups along the way with getting up late, trying to get James to drink something in the 15 mins he had to be able to before he was cut off for the next 7 1/2 hours (when he got out of procedure/recovery). The GPS was acting crazy and took us a a few miles out of our way - note to self to let it boot before getting on highways. My shoe breaking at the gas station about 45 mins from the hospital. Luckily a Walmart was across the highway from the gas station. James screamed milk, milk, MILK! several times and asked to eat but thankfully when we got to the hospital he was stimulated enough (Word World on the DVD wasn’t enough I guess) to not ask again.
We did arrive and were lead to his room. We were greeted by a hospital crib and I think both James (daddy) and I got a bit tight throat-ed. We got settled, checked in and played for about an hour in the playroom. They checked us in and took his vitals (not a fan of the blood pressure cuff at all). He did lose 1 1/2 lbs since the Dr saw him in January. He’s now just 29lbs 4oz - not sure if it fell over the last week of being sick and not really eating or if it’s been the course of the last few months of not eating the best.
About 20 minutes before he was supposed to go in we went back to his room and changed him into his hospital gown/pant. He was not very interested in this process and cried out for his ‘drums’ (he had a shirt on with drums on the front). We watched TV and waited for the DR and Anesthesiologist to come in - the nurse updated us saying she was running a bit behind, it wouldn’t be long.
The Anesthesiologist talked to us, told us what to expect, said one of us could go back. The Dr came in, told us what was going to happen, the risks and what would happen if those things happened (bleeding internally too much from the biopsy removal, puncture of his tract - antibiotics/surgery to repair) and we were off in a matter of minutes after that.
I went with James to be there for him while they did the gas. It was a crazy long walk-the nurse and anesthesiologist tried to make James at ease as they walked, talking to him about his Lightening McQueen and Doc Hudson cars he had with him. We eventually reached the surgery room and he lit up at the 10 TVs around the room. They sat him on my lap and we laid him down to prepare for the mask, but the Dr was running a few minutes behind us (scrubbing perhaps, not sure) So, they played around while waiting for the Dr to arrive with the scope, making silly faces and spinning him and I upside down on the big TVs around room as he was getting a bit antsy being confined.
Eventually he grew more irritated and they decided to put him under then. He did really well, all things considered. I wasn’t really prepared for the squirming that happened and the image of him struggling - you know how your mind plays tricks on you - I started to tear and finally someone said that it was normal, that he was OK and that it was just like it should go. Another 30 seconds passed and he was out.
The nurse walked be back to James’ room where James and Evelyn were waiting. We hadn’t eaten and it was already after 10am, we’d been up since 5am. So we walked to the little cafe inside the building and got something to drink & eat. They gave us a buzzer in case the DR was finished to talk to us before we got back. We sat in the general waiting area at a table and ate, I updated Facebook. Eventually we went back to his room, so the Dr wouldn’t have to worry about paging us.
We were back in the room maybe 5 minutes when the DR came in. She said everything went well and she’d been done about 10 minutes already. She showed us images she’d captured and explained that while there wasn’t any visual sign on these, the pathology on the biopsy’s were going to be the important part to show celiac, allergies, ect.
The bipsoy will show determine this;
Healthy Villi (line your intestines) or damaged (from celiac or something else)
Around 10 more minutes passed and the anesthesiologist walked by our room, said James was doing OK - it was a walk by ‘doing OK’, around 5 more minutes passed and they came to get James to go see James - we couldn’t all go as Evelyn wasn’t allowed in the recovery room.
From what James said, James was very upset when he walked in the room. He wanted EVERYTHING off - the finger monitor, the heart monitor, the IV, everything. He was pretty much done with everything, and eventually they took of everything but the IV - he wasn’t interested in the Lightning McQueen Daddy had for him, nothing. He just wanted off.
We had expected that James & I would switch at some point while James recovered in the other room but about 15 minutes after James went back to see James, they walked into the room - IV still in and either he’d calmed for a bit and then remembered his IV or he never calmed in the first place because it took all of my strength to hold and some of Daddy’s too James down and away from pulling out his IV when he got the room.
I held him and we offered him water (he had to drink before he could lose the IV) - we offered him snacks, we turned on the TV - after about 5 minutes he did calm down enough - not sure what was the magic combination of event but he did. Oh! I remember - Daddy offered him his soda - and he drank that twice when we asked for juice from the nurse and he then drank that, and gobbled down gluten free puffs and wafers.
Eventually we were just waiting for the anesthesiologist to release James. This time James instead of wanting to wear his drums to get changed, wanted nothing but to eat and watch TV in his hospital clothes 
We were cleared and headed out, I spotted an Uno’s on our way in, as by this time it was 12:30pm and Uno’s has gluten free foods available for James. So we headed towards home and stopped on the outskirts of the town to eat. James did OK, he ate the breading but held onto the cheese in his mouth which eventually we had to pull over to get rid of (lately he’s been keeping food in his mouth and then getting rid of it after persuasion into a napkin which usually results in vomit/choking type issue also). But they got balloons while we were waiting, and they were a distraction. He did eat a container of puffs and two wafers while we waited - so really it was good for him.
We headed on home. Dinner was a success.
James seems to have developed a ‘black eye’ after the procedure.
James was doing so well, we took a short walk in the neighborhood after supper and then treated them to ice cream, where we learnt that James doesn’t like hot fudge! 
James didn’t seem to have any troubles as far as pain from the procedure (sore throat, ect).
He ate well for breakfast and lunch yesterday but at dinner we were back to storing food and spitting it out with the vomit/choking issue.
We should hear the results of his biopsy next week.
1 comment March 19th, 2010