Ureter Reimplantation-Day 3

Brooke was ready for bed around 11:00 last night, which happened to also be time for more pain meds. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to keep them down, so she was given a dose of zofran in her iv and then a redose of the pain meds, which really helped her relax and sleep. She had the best night so far, sleeping from 12:30 to 6:30, and then got right out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She wasn't ready to get back in bed, so she sat up in a chair for an hour. She was getting a little shaky, so I asked if she was okay. She asked how long she had been sitting, and said she was trying for 3 hours because that is how long it will take sitting in her carseat to get home. She is doing anything and everything she can think of to convince her nurses and doctor she is ready to be discharged. Her nurse was surprised to see her up already, and took advantage of her good mood to change her bandages and remove the catheter. Her incision is still looking really good, and her doctor plans to remove the drain tube tomorrow. She was having some pain when the catheter tubing was moved, so she was happy to finally have it out.

Her doctor came by, and warned us that she will need to potty frequently, and may have several accidents as her bladder is still having spasms. Brooke has been working really hard today, trying her best to make it to the bathroom in time. We have spent the majority of the day walking to the bathroom, sitting for 20 minutes, walking to the bed, standing for a few minutes, and then back to the bathroom. She did really well all morning, but by the afternoon she was in pain again. At one point I brought a chair into the bathroom, and she was sitting on the potty with her head in my lap resting...poor little girl! It was getting harder to walk, and she was starting to stay hunched over and barely shuffling her feet. I couldn't figure out why she refused to get in bed and rest, until I noticed a few little bumps on her bottom. Turns out she is getting some bed sores. We are going to be limiting her time on her back, and turning her every couple of hours to keep any pressure of her sores-the last thing we need is for them to get any worse. They are currently like little blisters on her bottom, and already uncomfortable. She was very irritable, asking us to turn out the lights and take Bo away (he was playing and talking). Rob left, and she continued to complain about noise, specifically the baby in the room next to us. He had been crying ALL DAY LONG, and it was driving her crazy, so her nurses moved us to a new room. We are now in a family suite, which is twice the size of her previous room and has a fold-out couch for me to sleep on...so much better than a chair! She was finally able to rest a bit, and woke up feeling much better. Rob and Bo came back for another visit, and Brooke's nurse suggested she walk to the cafeteria to find something to eat. Three popsicles, two grapes and a tiny bite of ice cream is all she has eaten since her surgery, and she has to start eating and drinking before we can leave.

She picked out a personal pan cheese pizza and a strawberry-banana smoothie, and actually managed to eat almost an entire slice of her pizza (she didn't touch the smoothie). She had been out of bed for almost three hours at the point, and still would not sit down because of the sores on her bottom. Rob and Bo left for the night, and I told her it was time to get in bed. She refused, saying she was going to stand up and sleep. She started having more bladder spasms, and was very uncomfortable. I pulled a chair into the bathroom again to sit with her, and she started crying while I was gone. She said, "Mommy, it really makes me hurt when you are gone. I hurt when you aren't holding my hand or holding my tummy. That's what the problem is here, you can't leave me alone." That was the first time she has cried with tears through this entire hospital stay, and she was shaking and really upset. Of course the shaking made her incision hurt, and she was a mess. I managed to get her out of the bathroom and back to her bed, but she was so wiped out that she just bent forward over the foot of the bed and refused to move. Her nurse came in with more pain meds (and Zofran just in case), and helped me get her comfortable.

She is on her knees, with her upper body propped up by a stack of pillows...basically feels exactly like she is laying over the foot of the bed still. She seems to be sleeping comfortably right now, and I really hope she stays that way. Now that the catheter is removed, we will need to change out her bed pads and clean her up throughout the night, and I'm praying she will sleep soundly enough that we don't totally wake her up each time. Her nurse will be back at 12:30 (about an hour from now) to check vitals and we will do the first clean up then...I'm reallly hoping she goes right back to sleep...she has had a long day!