Then I heard him bottle feeding. What the frig?! This really upset me cause I had to get up to pump anyway. I did so and while I was pumping, Lochlan had a big poop. It was one of those things where I was like, can I change him myself? Do I need to get permission? Strange feeling to say the least.
So I went out and gave them my milk and told them he had pooped but he was settled and that I would change him if he was at home. And they said they'd be in in a bit.
So I went back to our room and layed there and thought, this doesn't feel right. It drove me crazy that I was staying the night and yet I was just a passenger on the train.
Needless to say, I did voice my concerns the next morning to one of the doctors. I still don't know why I wasn't given the opportunity to breastfeed. I asked if it takes more energy than bottle feeding and he said no. (the Dr.) Basically they said I should have been woken up.
Anyway, it ended up not being what I was expecting for our first sleepover.
Yesterday, Lochlan's nurse mentioned something about them thinking of moving him back to the step down unit. (Pediatric Critial Care Unit or PCCU) This was where he was moved to directly from the NICU. They had taken his monitors off when he moved to his regular room and they were finally starting to see that this may be not the best idea. HELLO!!!
I started to get a little upset because I thought, oh no, here we go again...another change. I asked for Claire to come up (the social worker) because I felt like I needed to talk to her.
As I was having a moment, the team of doctors came in. They said they had decided it was best to move Lochlan to the step down, not because he was digressing, but because they wanted to watch over him more closely. I had asked when he was first moved to his room, whether if something happened - mainly thinking of his nose prongs coming out, would anyone know and they had said no.
The doctor said this was a concern (ya think?) and that if his prongs did come out of his nose, he would just stop breathing. He wouldn't grunt, or groan or let you know in any way. That's a comforting thought isn't it?
My concern was why did they move him in the first place? They said something about protocol with not having had any spells for 10days in a row....blah blah blah. I think they must have forgot how little he is and how early he was born. I really think they've been kind of shooting from the hip if you will.
So that upset me. Not that he was going to be monitored and moved because of it but because there have been so many changes and different directions, and stories and too much to handle really.
They can't monitor him in the regular room because it's not hooked up to the nurses station.
Okay, so know I am sitting in his step down room in PCCU typing this. The plan is to nurse him 4 times a day and then gabboge him the other 4 times. Gabboge meaning feeding him through his NG tube so he gets a break. Didn't learn that word until coming over to peds. He is nursing like a champion. Amazing my little boy. He needs to gain 30grams a day before they will increase his nursing attempts. So they would like for him to eventually be nursing or bottle feeding entirely and still gaining weight so the NG tube can come out and then we can think about him coming home. He could still come home on oxygen which will more than likely be the case.
So that's where it all sits. I'm trying to be in 2 places at once - here with Lochlan and at home with Abby. (and Rob) Yesterday, I came for his 8:30am feed and stayed until I nursed him again at 11:30am. I went home around 1:30pm and after Abby's nap, we went to a cottage where Chris & Brad were. Had a great time actually. It was nice to have a bit of a break. Then I came back to the hospital to do his 8:30pm and 11:30pm feeds. He was amazing again! Thankfully I asked for a cot and was able to sleep for about an hour in between feeds. (There's no TV in this room unlike his other room - but I needed sleep more anyway!)
Today, I decided to spend the morning with Abby and then come to feed Lochlan and spend some time with him for the 11:30am and the 2:30pm feeds. Then I'll go home and spend time with Abby again and come back after she's in bed for the 8:30pm/11:30pm feeds. This will be my life for the next few weeks at least until we increase the number of times he's nursing (and in that case, I may just camp out in the hospital and take a few hours to go home every now and then) or until Lochlan is able to come home. I pray this only lasts for a few weeks. He is feedings every 3 hours so I'm trying to figure out what the best plan would be. He does 2:30am, 5:30am, 8:30am, 11:30am, 2:30pm, 5:30pm, 8:30pm, 11:30pm. So deciding what is best for our family...so that I can still keep it as normal as possible for Abby. (on a side note - we finally got her big girl bed and she loves it so we'll see how it goes tonight. Last night, she fell asleep on the way home from the cottage and I was able to plop her into bed. She arrived in our bed at 4:30am! Not bad...)
Thursday, he had his eyes rechecked. And the Doctor said they looked great. I guess there was a concern about his left eye last week when they checked it but now it's better. Phew! Otherwise he'd have to get laser surgery again or some other procedure done.
At 40 weeks gestation, which is 1 week from Tuesday, he will be off the caffeine meds. (This helps prevent apnea which he's never had a problem with)
Sorry this is all over the place in terms of my thought process and update. It's been a few days since I blogged and I'm trying to remember everything.
Lochlan's weight is now 2100 grams (2.1kg) In terms of pounds and ounces....somewhere around 4 1/2 pounds. I know that 2400 grams is 5 pounds. So do the math!! : )
Today he gained only 15 grams. Not the 30grams they want to see but I'm just happy he gained at all! Yesterday, he stayed the same. He'll get there! Give him a break! He's already way more than when he was born!
Here are a few pics to enjoy. I will post a few more in my next blog. Aunt Chrissy came to meet him on Thursday for the very first time. He's allowed a few visitors now so I'll post those tomorrow. My camera is too far away! ha ha
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