At Home!

We got out of the hospital yesterday at 5 PM, home by 6:30. The pumping regime is quite exhausting. Mom and I alternated responsibilities overnight: I changed Loki's diaper, checked his tube position, offered the bottle (all refused!), and started the pump. This took 25 minutes, every 3 hours. Mom stopped the pump, cleaned the pump bag, and flushed Loki's NG tube. During the week, we'll trade these jobs.

The big drawback of pumping is that Loki can essentially not go out in public for more than an hour. Sure, theoretically we could stroll the farmer's market with the bag and pump on the pole, but that would be more trouble and more stares than it is worth. However, we can sit by our building's pool and hot tub, or go to a friend's house.

This brings me to our request. Because I go to work, Mom will be very much tied to Loki and to home during the week, even more so than before. Social visits during this time would be greatly appreciated. Bringing a kid is OK, as long as everybody is healthy. The pool here is nice during the afternoon!

To answer a question: A gravity feed (also called bolus) is done by putting the milk in a large syringe which is connected to Loki's NG tube and held above him. You can then leave the syringe open and let gravity pull the milk to his stomach, or use the syringe's plunger to give it a push. The pump is actually used to slow the feeding down, so that we don't put too much stress on Loki's stomach.

To move to the much faster, easier, and simpler gravity feeds, the pump is gradually sped up, reducing the time of each feeding. The doctors said to not do this until our appointment in a week. However, when we look back on the day the NG tube went in, there was little actual evidence that a pump is needed. We tried one gravity feed, and Loki was fussy. So the doctors said to use the pump. Yet Loki was still fussy! However, then the doctors said to continue the pump for a couple days in order for Loki to adjust, which he did. Thus, Loki's reaction to the gravity feed may have simply been his reaction to the food itself. We have decided to speed up Loki's pumps each day, and watch his response.

The best news through all of this is how Loki has responded. He is already much happier than before, talking and smiling more. He is also already looking larger, and gaining a bit of weight (80 grams (or almost 3 ounces) on his final hospital day!). And he is making some sudden developments. He sitting up for a few seconds while leaning on his hands, he rolls over both directions now, and he moves across the floor ( he lays on his tummy and pulls himself along the ground, pulling his knees under his booty and pushing himself forward with his feet).

Despite this, we have a different and significant challenge ahead: Loki must learn to eat again. As I mention, he is generally refusing the bottle.

Now, some thoughts from Mom:

Placing the tube is quite challenging. We have to do this ourselves every month or whenever it comes out. Loki pulled the tube out twice during his first 24 hours. I was trained by the nurses, but only put it in with supervision. It is a very uncomfortable process for Loki and he fights with all his might. We measure the tube from the tip of his nose to the top of his ear, than diagonally down to the navel. Subtract a centimeter and you have the correct length. Push it in the nose, which causes pain and some bleeding when not done smoothly, and tape it to the cheek. Push air in the tube with a syringe to listen for the "poof" with a stethoscope, indicating the placement is correct, and all done. Hopefully Loki won't pull the tube out before it expires!

Although a hospital stay is not fun, we were lucky again with most of our nurses. Loki was quite a celebrity in the hallways. Often we did not recognize the nurses but they knew him. One nurse who walked in to give a quick hand commented, "Oh, I know that little guy. That's Loki, he's the popular baby." Obviously, we're proud to be the parents of a baby with a fan club!