This week Jimmy and I went to Erlanger to meet with some pretty great people. We met several doctors, nurses, and specialists. We also got to tour the NICU and children's hospital where Ruthie will most likely be staying. Totally awesome! I was so impressed with the NICU (intensive care unit for infants) They had 50 babies in there! It was amazing to see! These little ones were taken care of so well! If Ruthie's in there, it is nice to know there are so many dedicated nurses and staff taking such care of the sweet ones. (also, jimmy and i can visit any time of day. I like that.)
The first doctor we met is a surgeon. He and his team will be the ones to assess Ruthie after she is born to determine whether or not she needs surgery right away, what kind of surgery, and what exactly we are dealing with. There's only so much you can see on an ultrasound. So, when she comes out they will be looking to see if the mass is ON her lung, intermingled with the lung tissue, or completely overtaken it. This will let him know how to remove it. If it's on her lung, he may be able to save it and she may have both of her little lungs to work with. Another scenario would be it is totally intermingled with the right lung and part or the whole lung would have to be removed. So, if you didn't know, a person can live with only one lung. He said she could run, play, jump, etc. This would become her normal. She could still play sports and do most things with no long term care or meds. She could probably never be a smoker. But let's be honest, I don't really want her to pick up that habit. Now, he wasn't blindly optimistic. Things could go wrong. Her left lung may have problems, as well. She may need something called ECHMO which is only done at Vanderbilt and she would then be transferred. There are lots of things that could go wrong, but overall, she's got a good shot.
We, also, went to see our hi-risk OB. (the one who put in the shunt-referred to as Yoda in previous blogs) He said the shunt is still in place. It's still doing it's job. She is stable and looks pretty good. He was very happy with the results of the procedure and is hopeful for her. Her mass has a blood supply so is most likely not going to shrink or go away. As she grows, it may grow with her, but will likely not cause any more problems. Jimmy asked.... "Is our cup half full here? or half empty?" The Doc replied.. Mostly full. So, that was enough for us. We are feeling pretty good about all this. I'm just trying not to go into labor.
We discussed what would happen if I should go into labor here (in cookeville). They said "oh. that should be okay. Depending on how far along (in labor) you are, we'll either stop your contractions and airlift you here (to erlanger) or if you are about to deliver, we'll airlift our NICU team to Cookeville and stabilize Ruthie then bring her here." WOW! I was just like... okay. Feeling like a VIP again. Part of that makes me nervous, but also comforts me. Hopefully, we never have to do this. If I make it to 37-38 weeks, we'll schedule an induction or c-section depending on Ruthie's needs. I'm 28 weeks today.... so 9-10 more weeks.
So, as you can see, the list of "What if's" is super long.... She could be born breathing fine, come home with us, and we'll schedule a surgery for later... or she could be born not breathing and neither of her lungs functioning and not make it. Obviously our doctor's are telling us both ends of the spectrum but betting on somewhere in the middle. They are optimistic and i think that's a good sign. But to know all these scenarios and running through them all.... not fun. So, I'm putting away all the "what if's" and not worrying. Let's be honest. Worrying will do absolutely nothing for me or for Ruthie. BUT if i can relax, give God these worries/what if's...that actually might do some good. So, my little mustard seed of faith is in the Lord and choosing every day to hope for the best and be ready for a little one at home. Sounds fine and dandy but put into practice is a daily thing. People keep saying they admire my strength or faith or whatever...Truth is... Here's the secret... I'm not keeping this. God has this. I'm just living it.
Putting away the "What if's"
This week Jimmy and I went to Erlanger to meet with some pretty great people. We met several doctors, nurses, and specialists. We also got to tour the NICU and children's hospital where Ruthie will most likely be staying. Totally awesome! I was so impressed with the NICU (intensive care unit for infants) They had 50 babies in there! It was amazing to see! These little ones were taken care of so well! If Ruthie's in there, it is nice to know there are so many dedicated nurses and staff taking such care of the sweet ones. (also, jimmy and i can visit any time of day. I like that.)
The first doctor we met is a surgeon. He and his team will be the ones to assess Ruthie after she is born to determine whether or not she needs surgery right away, what kind of surgery, and what exactly we are dealing with. There's only so much you can see on an ultrasound. So, when she comes out they will be looking to see if the mass is ON her lung, intermingled with the lung tissue, or completely overtaken it. This will let him know how to remove it. If it's on her lung, he may be able to save it and she may have both of her little lungs to work with. Another scenario would be it is totally intermingled with the right lung and part or the whole lung would have to be removed. So, if you didn't know, a person can live with only one lung. He said she could run, play, jump, etc. This would become her normal. She could still play sports and do most things with no long term care or meds. She could probably never be a smoker. But let's be honest, I don't really want her to pick up that habit. Now, he wasn't blindly optimistic. Things could go wrong. Her left lung may have problems, as well. She may need something called ECHMO which is only done at Vanderbilt and she would then be transferred. There are lots of things that could go wrong, but overall, she's got a good shot.
We, also, went to see our hi-risk OB. (the one who put in the shunt-referred to as Yoda in previous blogs) He said the shunt is still in place. It's still doing it's job. She is stable and looks pretty good. He was very happy with the results of the procedure and is hopeful for her. Her mass has a blood supply so is most likely not going to shrink or go away. As she grows, it may grow with her, but will likely not cause any more problems. Jimmy asked.... "Is our cup half full here? or half empty?" The Doc replied.. Mostly full. So, that was enough for us. We are feeling pretty good about all this. I'm just trying not to go into labor.
We discussed what would happen if I should go into labor here (in cookeville). They said "oh. that should be okay. Depending on how far along (in labor) you are, we'll either stop your contractions and airlift you here (to erlanger) or if you are about to deliver, we'll airlift our NICU team to Cookeville and stabilize Ruthie then bring her here." WOW! I was just like... okay. Feeling like a VIP again. Part of that makes me nervous, but also comforts me. Hopefully, we never have to do this. If I make it to 37-38 weeks, we'll schedule an induction or c-section depending on Ruthie's needs. I'm 28 weeks today.... so 9-10 more weeks.
So, as you can see, the list of "What if's" is super long.... She could be born breathing fine, come home with us, and we'll schedule a surgery for later... or she could be born not breathing and neither of her lungs functioning and not make it. Obviously our doctor's are telling us both ends of the spectrum but betting on somewhere in the middle. They are optimistic and i think that's a good sign. But to know all these scenarios and running through them all.... not fun. So, I'm putting away all the "what if's" and not worrying. Let's be honest. Worrying will do absolutely nothing for me or for Ruthie. BUT if i can relax, give God these worries/what if's...that actually might do some good. So, my little mustard seed of faith is in the Lord and choosing every day to hope for the best and be ready for a little one at home. Sounds fine and dandy but put into practice is a daily thing. People keep saying they admire my strength or faith or whatever...Truth is... Here's the secret... I'm not keeping this. God has this. I'm just living it.
The first doctor we met is a surgeon. He and his team will be the ones to assess Ruthie after she is born to determine whether or not she needs surgery right away, what kind of surgery, and what exactly we are dealing with. There's only so much you can see on an ultrasound. So, when she comes out they will be looking to see if the mass is ON her lung, intermingled with the lung tissue, or completely overtaken it. This will let him know how to remove it. If it's on her lung, he may be able to save it and she may have both of her little lungs to work with. Another scenario would be it is totally intermingled with the right lung and part or the whole lung would have to be removed. So, if you didn't know, a person can live with only one lung. He said she could run, play, jump, etc. This would become her normal. She could still play sports and do most things with no long term care or meds. She could probably never be a smoker. But let's be honest, I don't really want her to pick up that habit. Now, he wasn't blindly optimistic. Things could go wrong. Her left lung may have problems, as well. She may need something called ECHMO which is only done at Vanderbilt and she would then be transferred. There are lots of things that could go wrong, but overall, she's got a good shot.
We, also, went to see our hi-risk OB. (the one who put in the shunt-referred to as Yoda in previous blogs) He said the shunt is still in place. It's still doing it's job. She is stable and looks pretty good. He was very happy with the results of the procedure and is hopeful for her. Her mass has a blood supply so is most likely not going to shrink or go away. As she grows, it may grow with her, but will likely not cause any more problems. Jimmy asked.... "Is our cup half full here? or half empty?" The Doc replied.. Mostly full. So, that was enough for us. We are feeling pretty good about all this. I'm just trying not to go into labor.
We discussed what would happen if I should go into labor here (in cookeville). They said "oh. that should be okay. Depending on how far along (in labor) you are, we'll either stop your contractions and airlift you here (to erlanger) or if you are about to deliver, we'll airlift our NICU team to Cookeville and stabilize Ruthie then bring her here." WOW! I was just like... okay. Feeling like a VIP again. Part of that makes me nervous, but also comforts me. Hopefully, we never have to do this. If I make it to 37-38 weeks, we'll schedule an induction or c-section depending on Ruthie's needs. I'm 28 weeks today.... so 9-10 more weeks.
So, as you can see, the list of "What if's" is super long.... She could be born breathing fine, come home with us, and we'll schedule a surgery for later... or she could be born not breathing and neither of her lungs functioning and not make it. Obviously our doctor's are telling us both ends of the spectrum but betting on somewhere in the middle. They are optimistic and i think that's a good sign. But to know all these scenarios and running through them all.... not fun. So, I'm putting away all the "what if's" and not worrying. Let's be honest. Worrying will do absolutely nothing for me or for Ruthie. BUT if i can relax, give God these worries/what if's...that actually might do some good. So, my little mustard seed of faith is in the Lord and choosing every day to hope for the best and be ready for a little one at home. Sounds fine and dandy but put into practice is a daily thing. People keep saying they admire my strength or faith or whatever...Truth is... Here's the secret... I'm not keeping this. God has this. I'm just living it.