Jordan and Allyssa stayed Monday night so they could take over Wesley duties starting Tuesday AM.
Nick, Norah, and I headed to Iowa City a bit early so Norah could play in the playground before surgery. We got there shortly before 11. The or ended up calling at 11:25 and asking if we were there- they were ready for Norah early, so we headed up.
Nick's mom, Diana, and little sister, Emi, got there when Norah was already doing the pre-op preparations. We had to see the main urologist, his assistant, the nurse, and the anesthesiologist. They gave her medicine to calm her and it made her a little loopy which was nice because she wasn't scared. They took her at about 12:15 and we were sent up to the waiting room. They checked in with us every hour or hour and a half. They officially started her surgery at about 12:45 and finished 3 hours later.
Dr. Storm came up to meet with Nick and me. The surgery went well. There were blockages on both sides and stents were placed on both sides. We suspected she would need a stent at least On the right side but they didn't make the decision until during the surgery. Her right side ureter continued to be worse than the left and needed more work. In addition to being shortened, it had to be tapered quite a bit.
We then went back to the waiting room and waited over an hour to get to see Norah in recovery. When we finally got called down, Norah was still very out of it. They put in a caudal block (similar to an epidural according to her anesthesiologist) that kept her from having pain until the next day.
After a while in the waiting room, we went up to her room. We were in the same room as last time but the other side (surgery patients often have shared rooms). Emi and Diana got to see Norah then but she was definitely still very out of it. They stuck around for us to run down for supper and bring it back up. Dr Storm's assistant came to check on us before leaving for the night.
Wednesday morning we were woken up by the residents doing rounds at 6am. Norah got way freaked out by waking up to two strange men but calmed down and drank some juice and milk after that. We ordered her breakfast but she didn't eat much of it. Dr Storm came by that morning to check on her too and was pleased to hear she was drinking.
She started having some pain after that so we tried Tylenol first to help.
A Child Life rep came to tell Norah about story time and sock monkey shopping on the top floor so we headed up there Wednesday morning. Norah picked out a sock monkey with a purple hat and met the furry friend volunteer that day, Sophie. Sophie was a super fluffy super chill Pomeranian whom Norah fell in love with. Sophie let Norah pet her and did several tricks. Norah stayed so long that she missed story time, but it was with worth it because Norah was finally smiling. We did make the Craft time after that. Norah made a purple party hat.
The bladder spasms unfortunately started kicking in after that. Bladder spasms are common after any surgery on the bladder and common if stents are placed. I'd read about them prior to surgery but I wasn't prepared for how hard they were on Norah (and me)! She was miserable and started taking Ditropan to help. The resident came by again and got her on another med to help. It was a suppository and she was not happy about that but it really did help and didn't take too long to kick in. We switched Ditropan from as needed to scheduled every six hours and have continued that until this weekend when we have been trying to let her sleep mostly through the night.
The rest of Wednesday she had some pain but it was better than before for sure. My aunt MJ came that evening and brought us pizza which made Nick's and my day because hospital food is awful :( They totally have the mochas down, but the food? Not so much. Wednesday night was draining as Norah woke every time she peed, which was pretty often. That's pretty common after the surgery she had. She did settle right back to sleep but being up every hour made me tired. Nick managed to sleep through it all somehow.
Thursday morning, the resident in charge of Norah, Dr. Kogan came in at 6 or so again to check on her and said he would recommend to Dr. Storm that she go home since the spasms were under control but to make sure to continue Ditropan on schedule. I made Nick get up and get me coffee shortly after that. While he was gone (7:30 ish?), Dr. Storm came in and said he would put the order in to discharge her so long as we were comfortable doing so.
Somehow during the nurse shift change, Norah's change in med orders got messed up and she went 8 or so hours without the Ditropan and was in pain again, so we had to get that and Codeine to get her comfortable again. I wasn't happy and neither was Norah, but it showed that she definitely needed the meds on schedule.
When the pharmacy brought her meds, we got to leave. I think we actually left he hospital around 10:30 or 11. All three of us were ready to go. Sharing a tiny room with strangers when you have miserable kids is not a good time!
The drive home was rough on Norah. I think the bumps and the seatbelt combo bugged her. One of the few times in life I was wished we lived closer to Iowa City. ;) Thursday and Friday were rough and we have had some rough patches but now, 12 days after surgery, she is doing much better. She went to daycare two days last week and my mom stayed with her two days. She will be in daycare all week this week. We are finally almost done with the 5 minute bathing limits, so she will be happy to play in the bath again!
We will head back Oct 14 to get her stents out. 1 month and 1 day to go! She will have to be put out again, which I hate, but hopefully this will be the last time. Between her 2 MRIs, the cystoscopy, this surgery, and the stent removal she will have had general anesthesia 5 times in one year. That's a lot for a little one and her parents to deal with!
The rest of Wednesday she had some pain but it was better than before for sure. My aunt MJ came that evening and brought us pizza which made Nick's and my day because hospital food is awful :( They totally have the mochas down, but the food? Not so much. Wednesday night was draining as Norah woke every time she peed, which was pretty often. That's pretty common after the surgery she had. She did settle right back to sleep but being up every hour made me tired. Nick managed to sleep through it all somehow.
Thursday morning, the resident in charge of Norah, Dr. Kogan came in at 6 or so again to check on her and said he would recommend to Dr. Storm that she go home since the spasms were under control but to make sure to continue Ditropan on schedule. I made Nick get up and get me coffee shortly after that. While he was gone (7:30 ish?), Dr. Storm came in and said he would put the order in to discharge her so long as we were comfortable doing so.
Somehow during the nurse shift change, Norah's change in med orders got messed up and she went 8 or so hours without the Ditropan and was in pain again, so we had to get that and Codeine to get her comfortable again. I wasn't happy and neither was Norah, but it showed that she definitely needed the meds on schedule.
When the pharmacy brought her meds, we got to leave. I think we actually left he hospital around 10:30 or 11. All three of us were ready to go. Sharing a tiny room with strangers when you have miserable kids is not a good time!
The drive home was rough on Norah. I think the bumps and the seatbelt combo bugged her. One of the few times in life I was wished we lived closer to Iowa City. ;) Thursday and Friday were rough and we have had some rough patches but now, 12 days after surgery, she is doing much better. She went to daycare two days last week and my mom stayed with her two days. She will be in daycare all week this week. We are finally almost done with the 5 minute bathing limits, so she will be happy to play in the bath again!
We will head back Oct 14 to get her stents out. 1 month and 1 day to go! She will have to be put out again, which I hate, but hopefully this will be the last time. Between her 2 MRIs, the cystoscopy, this surgery, and the stent removal she will have had general anesthesia 5 times in one year. That's a lot for a little one and her parents to deal with!
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