Home Sweet Home

Well, it's another Monday here at the Powell household and I thought today would be a great day to give updates on each of us. As you know we just recently added a new addition to our family, Hayden Caleb Powell. He is 7 weeks old today and is thankfully napping right now in his room. Hayden was born March 5, 2007 at 10:05 pm. He weighed 7lbs. 4oz. and was 19 inches long. We thought all was well, but after I got to hold him we kept noticing that his chest kept retracting and the nurses decided they should take him on over to the nursery for some support. Well, we didn't realize that that was the last time we were going to get to hold him for almost 2 weeks. Mark went to the nursery to see what was going on and the only news I received was that they had put him in an bed that gave him oxygen. They thought that would help him and that he would be in my room later that evening. Well, I waited and waited and stayed up all night without any sign of him. I can't quite remember everything that night, but he was eventually put on CPAP which helps to push oxygen through his body. We kept our eye on him and they let us come down to the nursery to see him. Hayden just didn't seem to get any better and he actually began to look worse. Our ped kept a close eye on him too and decided that things weren't improving. So, he contacted the Neonatolgist in Odessa to see if he would come over and see if Hayden needed to be transferred. At this point we thought that he may have aspirated some of the fluid into his lungs, but at the same time our ped thought that he had lung immaturity. They felt that he could possibly be given a substance called surfactant that would help to open his lungs. The only thing is that the baby has to be entebated to deliver the medicine. They were hoping they could keep him in Midland for this, but once the Neonatolgist looked at him he decided it would not be in Hayden's best interest to remain there. So, after many tears we felt that it was best that he go to Odessa. A transfer team came and loaded Hayden up on a gurney that had a self sustaining unit on it that would help Hayden breathe as well as monitor all of his vitals. He had been poked so many times that they had finally decided to go through his umbilical cord to deliver his meds and get vitals. My doctor discharged me and we followed Hayden in the ambulance 90 mph down the highway. That was something Mark always wanted to do.....drive fast!! We realized though that not many people cared that we were flashing our lights or speeding after an ambulance and we eventually fell far behind in the chase. So, next time you think someone is a crazy driver and you are going to stay in your lane or block them in to teach them a lesson, just forget your road rage and imagine it is someone chasing after their newborn baby. It helps to calm you down. Anyway, Hayden was admitted in Odessa on Wednesday. Because he remained in Midland for 2 days without the proper support, Hayden developed PPHN. Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension. The left side of his heart began to enlarge because of all the extra work that it was having to do because of his labored breathing. Once he was all set up in the NICU and after 2 doses of surfactant, Hayden was on a high frequency ventilator. He looked like a little hummingbird, taking in 720 breaths a minute. This machine is the life saver. It is the biggest vent in the NICU, but it helps to keep the lungs relaxed and open so they can heal. 3 days later Hayden began to show signs of improvement. They took him off the big vent and moved him to a smaller one and then he eventually got to bypass the CPAP and just have a nasal canula. They had to do a blood transfusion and wean Hayden off of pain meds, which he didn't like, so that took an extra day of recovery. In the end we were there for a total of 13 days. We started this whole event thinking we were only going to be there 3 to 5 days and then 2 to 3 weeks. We are so thankful for all of the prayers, support, medical assistance that we received and we are proud to announce that Hayden is symptom free of the PPHN and Hyaline Membrane Disease. We're glad to have him home and it doesn't look as though he will suffer any effects from his rough start. God truly showed us a miracle and blessed us with wonderful friends and family that helped us through this difficult time. I'll have to write another day about all of the things I learned from this experience. I count my blessings everyday and even though this is the worse thing I've ever gone through, I would not change it for the world! I'll post some pictures of Hayden in the NICU and what he looks like today! I'll have to post again later with updates on everyone else. I've got a busy 21 month old that is needing my attention. God Bless!