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
Thursday, October 4, 2007
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
Monday, October 1, 2007
Update September 30-October 1, 2007
Sierra was stable over the weekend, with the myclonus varying throughout each day. She has been breathing on her own regularly but is still attached to the ventilator (just to maintain pressure, I think).
Later today the nurse will check two hormone levels--cortisol and thyroxine (T4).
Today Sierra peaked opened her eyes several times and even yawned! We're excited about this progress.
-Pray for good results from the hormone tests
-Pray for complete removal from the ventilator
-Pray for wakefulness
-Thank God that Sierra's sodium level dropped to a good level (143) yesterday and remained good (140) today!
Later today the nurse will check two hormone levels--cortisol and thyroxine (T4).
Today Sierra peaked opened her eyes several times and even yawned! We're excited about this progress.
-Pray for good results from the hormone tests
-Pray for complete removal from the ventilator
-Pray for wakefulness
-Thank God that Sierra's sodium level dropped to a good level (143) yesterday and remained good (140) today!
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Update Friday, September 28, 2007
CURRENT STATUS
To bring you up to date regarding the last post, doctors administered an EEG on Sierra Rose yesterday to measure the electrical activity of her brain. After viewing the results today, they determined that her movements were not due to seizures. This is good, but unfortunately the cause of her movements is something called myoclonus. At this point, we don't know how serious the myoclonus will be.
Currently, Sierra is receiving Keppra to treat her seizures. This medication should reduce the seizures while allowing her to wake up gradually (as the sedating drugs leave her system).
IT'S NOT ALL BAD
Despite this depressing news about myoclonus, there was some good news yesterday and today.
-Sierra Rose is off her blood pressure medicine
-She is breathing on her own much more regularly (especially when we interact with her)
-She has been able to digest a little of R's milk every 4 hours (fed through a tube)
-Her catheter has been removed
-The best one yet: R and J were able to hold her for the first time yesterday!
PRAYER REQUESTS
-Pray that Sierra Rose will not have additional seizures
-Pray that Sierra Rose will begin to wake up so that the doctors can examine her more thoroughly
-Pray that the myoclonus will be mild
HOW TO HELP
Many of you have asked how you can help. What we desire most of all is your intercessory prayer. If you are doing this, we are overjoyed. Honestly, this is the most important thing you can do to help.
For all those of you who have provided food or visited, thank you very much. Your food and fellowship have been enjoyed.
Here's something that you can do that will really be appreciated: Consider writing a note of blessing to Sierra Rose. (You can mail it to the K family.) We will collect and compile these into a keepsake for Sierra Rose. We believe that she will have a powerful testimony for the Lord as she grows older, even as she has already begun to have.
To bring you up to date regarding the last post, doctors administered an EEG on Sierra Rose yesterday to measure the electrical activity of her brain. After viewing the results today, they determined that her movements were not due to seizures. This is good, but unfortunately the cause of her movements is something called myoclonus. At this point, we don't know how serious the myoclonus will be.
Currently, Sierra is receiving Keppra to treat her seizures. This medication should reduce the seizures while allowing her to wake up gradually (as the sedating drugs leave her system).
IT'S NOT ALL BAD
Despite this depressing news about myoclonus, there was some good news yesterday and today.
-Sierra Rose is off her blood pressure medicine
-She is breathing on her own much more regularly (especially when we interact with her)
-She has been able to digest a little of R's milk every 4 hours (fed through a tube)
-Her catheter has been removed
-The best one yet: R and J were able to hold her for the first time yesterday!
PRAYER REQUESTS
-Pray that Sierra Rose will not have additional seizures
-Pray that Sierra Rose will begin to wake up so that the doctors can examine her more thoroughly
-Pray that the myoclonus will be mild
HOW TO HELP
Many of you have asked how you can help. What we desire most of all is your intercessory prayer. If you are doing this, we are overjoyed. Honestly, this is the most important thing you can do to help.
For all those of you who have provided food or visited, thank you very much. Your food and fellowship have been enjoyed.
Here's something that you can do that will really be appreciated: Consider writing a note of blessing to Sierra Rose. (You can mail it to the K family.) We will collect and compile these into a keepsake for Sierra Rose. We believe that she will have a powerful testimony for the Lord as she grows older, even as she has already begun to have.
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