Sierra Rose has been off the ventilator since yesterday. She is doing well. Look for more information (and hopefully a picture) tomorrow.
Thanks for your prayers!
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
Update October 8, 2007
Sierra Rose did well over the weekend. She was removed from the ventilator this morning. So far, everything has been going well. Everyone will observe her closely today to see how she does.
Please pray that Sierra will breath on her own completely and that she won't have any more sleep apnea.
I'll post another update tomorrow.
Please pray that Sierra will breath on her own completely and that she won't have any more sleep apnea.
I'll post another update tomorrow.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Update October 5, 2007
Thank you for praying faithfully for little Sierra Rose and for the rest of the family. Below is the latest update. It addresses the different areas mentioned in the last e-mail update and on this blogsite. By the way, this will probably be the last update until Monday--I usually don't have Internet access on the weekends.
Sodium--It is still high (147) but Sierra isn't losing fluids like she was the last time it was high.
Myoclonus--This has subsided greatly.
Sonogram--Yesterday or the day before Sierra had a sonogram performed on her head. The sonogram did not reveal any new problems.
Digestion--Sierra had some milk left over in her stomach but has been digesting better.
Waking Up--It seems that Sierra is finally beginning to wake up. She had her eyes opened at several points during the day. Sierra has been more responsive. When she yawned she also stretched her arms and legs. It is also evident that she has good hearing; she hears and reacts to different sounds in the room.
Keep on Praying! God is doing good things because of your prayers. Here are the main needs:
-Pray for the sodium level to go down.
-Pray for digestion to continue improving
-Pray for the sleep apnea to go away entirely. Sierra's doctor believes that she can be removed from the ventilator now, but R and J aren't comfortable with this yet. R requested prayer that God would give them wisdom to allow the doctor to remove the ventilator.
Thank God
-Yesterday R and J were able to hold Sierra Rose for about 3 hours total.
-Today R and DAK were able to hold Sierra for another 3 hours.
-Sierra has gained weight. She now weighs 7 pounds.
-Sierra's overall physical condition has improved considerably since first entering NICU over 2 weeks ago.
Sodium--It is still high (147) but Sierra isn't losing fluids like she was the last time it was high.
Myoclonus--This has subsided greatly.
Sonogram--Yesterday or the day before Sierra had a sonogram performed on her head. The sonogram did not reveal any new problems.
Digestion--Sierra had some milk left over in her stomach but has been digesting better.
Waking Up--It seems that Sierra is finally beginning to wake up. She had her eyes opened at several points during the day. Sierra has been more responsive. When she yawned she also stretched her arms and legs. It is also evident that she has good hearing; she hears and reacts to different sounds in the room.
Keep on Praying! God is doing good things because of your prayers. Here are the main needs:
-Pray for the sodium level to go down.
-Pray for digestion to continue improving
-Pray for the sleep apnea to go away entirely. Sierra's doctor believes that she can be removed from the ventilator now, but R and J aren't comfortable with this yet. R requested prayer that God would give them wisdom to allow the doctor to remove the ventilator.
Thank God
-Yesterday R and J were able to hold Sierra Rose for about 3 hours total.
-Today R and DAK were able to hold Sierra for another 3 hours.
-Sierra has gained weight. She now weighs 7 pounds.
-Sierra's overall physical condition has improved considerably since first entering NICU over 2 weeks ago.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Update October 4, 2007
CURRENT STATUS
Earlier today, R was able to hold Sierra Rose for 2 1/2 hours! J should be able to hold her later. The nurse said that they should be able to hold her much more frequently over the coming days.
Sierra was digesting milk a little better. She seems to digest better when she is on her stomach instead of on her back.
CURRENT PRAYER POINTS
-Pray that Sierra's spells of sleep apnea would stop. Because she is still having apnea, R and J do not want her removed from the ventilator. Currently, when Sierra stops breathing due to apnea, the back-up ventilator provides oxygen for her. If the ventilator were to be removed completely, Sierra would be without oxygen until a nurse could go over and stimulate her or give her oxygen.
-Pray that Sierra would wake up. She has been asleep the entire 2 weeks that she has been in NICU. We're not sure if this is because the part of her brain that affects sleep was damaged, because of her medications, or because of some other reason.
-Pray that Siera's digestion would improve.
-Pray that Sierra's sodium level would go back down. It went high again (147).
-Thank God that Sierra Rose could be held by her mother for the second time since being born. This is great for both of them.
Thank you for your prayers. It's a joy to know that all of you are praying for Sierra Rose and for the rest of the family!
--MK
Earlier today, R was able to hold Sierra Rose for 2 1/2 hours! J should be able to hold her later. The nurse said that they should be able to hold her much more frequently over the coming days.
Sierra was digesting milk a little better. She seems to digest better when she is on her stomach instead of on her back.
CURRENT PRAYER POINTS
-Pray that Sierra's spells of sleep apnea would stop. Because she is still having apnea, R and J do not want her removed from the ventilator. Currently, when Sierra stops breathing due to apnea, the back-up ventilator provides oxygen for her. If the ventilator were to be removed completely, Sierra would be without oxygen until a nurse could go over and stimulate her or give her oxygen.
-Pray that Sierra would wake up. She has been asleep the entire 2 weeks that she has been in NICU. We're not sure if this is because the part of her brain that affects sleep was damaged, because of her medications, or because of some other reason.
-Pray that Siera's digestion would improve.
-Pray that Sierra's sodium level would go back down. It went high again (147).
-Thank God that Sierra Rose could be held by her mother for the second time since being born. This is great for both of them.
Thank you for your prayers. It's a joy to know that all of you are praying for Sierra Rose and for the rest of the family!
--MK
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Correction and Update to October 3, 2007
Sierra Rose's fever was not 102.5 degrees, but 101.2. Results from the blood test showed a normal white blood cell count, thus indicating no infection. Also, her temperature dropped to normal (98.8) later in the afternoon. Praise God! Thanks for praying!
Update October 3, 2007 with SPECIAL PRAYER REQUEST
SPECIAL PRAYER REQUEST as of 12:40 p. m. Wednesday: Siera Rose has a fever of 102.5 degrees. The nurse was going to call the doctor to find out what to do. Pray that this fever is not caused by an infection or other problem. Pray that it will subside.
Dear Friends,
Last night R called and provided an update Here is the information:
-Sodium level is still good
-Thyroxine (hormone) level is good
-Cortisol (hormone) level is 1.9. It should be 2.-something. Nurses will keep an eye on it.
-Sleep apnea (cessation of breath during sleep)--Apparently, it is not uncommon for newborns to experience some apnea. The nurses don't seem concerned about this.
-Myoclonus (involuntary muscular contractions) is less frequent
-Digestion is not too good. Nurses had been feeding Sierra 20 ml every 3 hours. They chaned that to 2 ml every hour.
BIG PRAISE
Thank you for praying for God's provision regarding hospital bills. J and R were approved for Medicaid assistance. Medicaid will cover all of Sierra's health care costs for 1 year and R's for 3 months. This is a huge answer to prayer. (Just to give you an idea of the coming bills, one hospital ride was $1,300.) It's hubling enough to be in a position of needing help from friends and relatives. It is even more so to be in a position of receiving help from the government, but we still thank God for His provision.
PRAYER REQUESTS
-Pray for Sierra's fever to drop
-Pray for her cortisol level to improve
-Pray for the apnea to stop
-Pray for the myoclonus to continue declining
-Pray for the digestion process to work properly
-Thank God for His financial provision!
Thank you for your continued support. This has been a difficult ordeal. It's a blessing to have friends upon whom we can lean for support.
God bless.
--MK
Dear Friends,
Last night R called and provided an update Here is the information:
-Sodium level is still good
-Thyroxine (hormone) level is good
-Cortisol (hormone) level is 1.9. It should be 2.-something. Nurses will keep an eye on it.
-Sleep apnea (cessation of breath during sleep)--Apparently, it is not uncommon for newborns to experience some apnea. The nurses don't seem concerned about this.
-Myoclonus (involuntary muscular contractions) is less frequent
-Digestion is not too good. Nurses had been feeding Sierra 20 ml every 3 hours. They chaned that to 2 ml every hour.
BIG PRAISE
Thank you for praying for God's provision regarding hospital bills. J and R were approved for Medicaid assistance. Medicaid will cover all of Sierra's health care costs for 1 year and R's for 3 months. This is a huge answer to prayer. (Just to give you an idea of the coming bills, one hospital ride was $1,300.) It's hubling enough to be in a position of needing help from friends and relatives. It is even more so to be in a position of receiving help from the government, but we still thank God for His provision.
PRAYER REQUESTS
-Pray for Sierra's fever to drop
-Pray for her cortisol level to improve
-Pray for the apnea to stop
-Pray for the myoclonus to continue declining
-Pray for the digestion process to work properly
-Thank God for His financial provision!
Thank you for your continued support. This has been a difficult ordeal. It's a blessing to have friends upon whom we can lean for support.
God bless.
--MK
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Update October 2, 2007
Sierra Rose has been doing about the same but there are two issues that could use your prayer. At one point last night she stopped breathing due to apnea. (Apparently this isn't too uncommon, but it was scary.) I guess her ventilator kicked on for a while. Pray that Sierra will breath on her own properly and regularly as she had been doing the last several days.
Sierra hasn't been digesting R's milk too well. We're not sure what the cause is for this and we're not sure what the cure is either. Hopefully we'll know more tomorrow.
Thank you so much for your prayers! Please keep on praying for Siera Rose's physical and mental health. When you have prayed, God has listened and has given His grace. When you pray, please also pray for the other babies in NICU and for their families. The NICU room is designed to hold about 40 babies but has about 50. Some of the babies never have their mothers visit.
--MK
Sierra hasn't been digesting R's milk too well. We're not sure what the cause is for this and we're not sure what the cure is either. Hopefully we'll know more tomorrow.
Thank you so much for your prayers! Please keep on praying for Siera Rose's physical and mental health. When you have prayed, God has listened and has given His grace. When you pray, please also pray for the other babies in NICU and for their families. The NICU room is designed to hold about 40 babies but has about 50. Some of the babies never have their mothers visit.
--MK
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