Hospital Love

Lucas has a thing for hospitals and making sure we use our insurance to the fullest!  It has now been a little over 48 hours since he was admitted to the hospital here in Payson.

It started back on Tuesday when I decided to keep him home from school because he woke up with a bad cough.  Kody had been coughing the week before and I figured he must have shared with his brother.  Wednesday was even worse and his eyes were really really blood shot.  That evening I finally took him to see the doctor at the clinic.  Because it was after hours, we didn't see our regular doctor.  He checked him out and decided that due to an infection his asthma had flaired up and was making him extremely wheezy.  The checked is oxygen stats and they were around 87.  I had instructions to take him the Payson office where this specific doctor (Dr. Bartholomew) would be working the next day just so he could test his O2 stats again.

Blood shot eyes at the doctors office Wed. night

Thursday morning Lucas woke up feeling fine.  If it hadn't been for doctors orders the previous night, I might have sent him to school.  I almost didn't end up taking him to get tested because he seemed all back to normal although his color was a little off. I dropped Kody off to preschool and the rest of us headed to Payson.  The nurses checked his oxygen and I was shocked to see it at 84.  They tried different fingers and everything.  84 is to low!  The immediately consulted the doctor who was doing rounds at the hospital.  He called up to pediatrics and within a few minutes we were on the 3rd floor getting all situated.

Reading a card from his good buddy Mason

He was put on oxygen and given a breathing treatment.  When the doctor came in to check in on him he also ordered an IV since he was extremely dehydrated and his color was was not good.  He oxygen monitor kept going off so they kept increasing the liters.  By the time they got it above 88 he was at 4 liters. (What ever that means!)  He had a chest x-ray done, lab work & a viral nose study thing.he

For some reason I wasn't thinking this was super serious and thought we'd be here for a little while and then head home.  HA!!  The x-ray came back clear so it was determined that he had probably a viral pneumonia that also triggered an asthma flair up.  Over the next little bit they worked on lowering the O2, but eventually they'd have to turn it back up.  He slept off and on and played a little Xbox.  When he was sleeping his O2 monitor would go off quite regularly.  They did breathing treatments quite often, but sometimes I felt that they didn't do anything.  Jed slept with him that night I went home with Hadley.  My sister had been watching Kody an Ryker that afternoon and evening.  Hadley was starting to sound horrible and junky and didn't sleep very good that night.  Jed says he was up a lot more with Lucas, but I'm not so sure! :)

Xbox keeping him company

Friday I came around 9 with the kids to trade Jed.  He took the day off work and stayed home with Kody & Ryker.  Lucas seemed to be doing about the same.  He had had several breathing treatments through out the night and had continued to cough a lot.  About 11 that morning the doctor came in to check on him.  He was really struggling with his oxygen stats so they tried to put a mask on him.  He freaked out big time and started crying and yelling that he couldn't breathe.  I'm not to fond of the mask either since it gives a feeling of claustrophobia.  But the nose tube wasn't cutting it anymore so we had to do something.  Right after that he spiked a 103 fever and kept crying and saying his head hurt really really bad.  By the way he was acting, I was pretty sure his head was going to explode.  This was the first time I got really nervous.  I'm so grateful that the doctor happened to be here during all of this.  Another x-ray was ordered, more blood work, and a heavy dose of Motrin was given.  He was on fire and I felt so bad.  They wouldn't let him leave the room, so the x-ray team brought up the portable machine and did it right here.  I was given a roll up tape and tubing and rigged up a make shift blow-by that I taped to his pillow.  This way he didn't have to wear the mask, but he was getting more than just the nose tube.  He had to keep it right next to his mouth, but it worked for the majority of the day and as long as he didn't move, his stats stayed ok.  The doc sat down with me after things were under control and said he had a very serious lung infection and would need to start antibiotics.  He had gone down to look at the x-ray and was pretty sure there was a start of strep pneumonia in the left lung.  The radiologist ended up reading it the same way.  I felt so bad because he just kept looking at me with tears in his eyes saying he wanted to go home.

This picture is hard to see, but it's the make shift O2 thingy I taped to his pillow.

Jed and our friend Brett came a little while later to give him a blessing.  By this point that meds had kicked in, he had slept, and he had done a complete 180.  It was crazy to say the least.  I couldn't believe that just a couple hours before he looked awful.  That night he felt much better but still struggled with the O2.  It was starting to maintain a little bit more so they lowered the liters and he was okay until about 3 in the morning when the monitor kept going off again.

Hadley's been his cheerleader

I came in about 7:30 this morning to relive Jed so that he could go to work for a little while.  Brett and Jen helped us with Kody and Ryker for a few hours today!  Today has been the best day so far.  He's been weaned to 1 liter and as stayed around 92.  He has an IV antibiotic every 8 hours and 1 by mouth once a day.  Hopefully whatever decided to take up residence is being evicted pronto!!  I'm hoping maybe tomorrow is our lucky day.

My parents are coming down today to get Ryker & Kody for a few days.  They'll be in heaven and it'll be nice to get Lucas back on the healthy side.

Thank you for all the prayers, calls, concerns, and love!  We really really appreciate it.  We could not ask for better family and friends.

P.S.  For some reason I can't seem to remember to bring my camera to the hospital.  Horrible phone pics will have to do for now.