Bug in Air

Bug in Air

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Surgery & Healing



Rayleigh Bug's surgery to get the Vagus Nerve Stimulator (VNS) put in was on Thursday. We were to check in at 5:30a and the surgery would start at 7:15a. Of course, Miss Bug thought it would be a great idea to start the day at 2:30a! So, needless to say, we were dragging our feet to the hospital at 5:30!

We arrive and check in and shortly after that they take us back to the "holding room" where they explain how the day will go and we get Bug's gown on her. Dr. Yaun, the neurosurgeon, came back to let us know what to expect and answer any last minute questions and then the anesthesiologist came in to do the same.



After an hour in that room it's time to take her back and start anesthesia. She had fallen asleep in the holding room so they expected no issues at all getting anesthesia to her. They would do it through a breathing mask which she tolerated very well the last couple of times she went under anesthesia. Michael and Lovie went straight to the waiting room but I got to walk with Bug until they took her to the next room to prepare for anesthesia.


 

It's a wierd feeling in that room. You've mentally prepared yourself, you are confident in the surgeon, but you find yourself with this small nervous feeling or something. I started tearing up and telling Bug how strong she is and explaining what will happen and how she'll feel when she wakes up but that I will be right there when she does and that Dr. Yaun and the nurses will take extra good care of her and I give her lots of kisses. Then I compose myself and head to the waiting room.

Once I'm back in the waiting room I'm feeling pretty good again. I know she's in good hands and that the surgeon has done this surgery without complications every time!



About 40 minutes into the waiting I receive a phone call from the nurse letting me know that anesthesia went perfect and Dr. Yaun started 20 minutes and it was going very well and that Dr. Yaun will be in once she's finished to let us know how it goes.

So we wait, and wait, and wait. We see families come in and wait, crying or showing no emotion. We see doctors come in one after another to let families know how their child's surgery went and then the flood of relief on that families face.

Then after 2 hours in the waiting room we see Dr. Yaun coming past the glass wall and as soon as she turns the corner and finds us she starts beaming and our flood of relief begins before she even speaks! And she says that it went perfectly and Rayleigh had the perfect skin and muscles for VNS placement and the leads attached right onto the vagus nerve like they should! She said that they turned the VNS on to do a couple test pulses and it did exactly what it should!

A little bit later a nurse comes and gets me to see her in Recovery. She is still in and out of sleep and very groggy but she's there, my strong baby girl! Only one at a time is allowed in Recovery so I take my time with my Bug then trade spots with Michael so he can see his baby goo, too!




Then they take us to a Step Down area which is just little rooms with curtain doors to stay until they discharge you. We are all allowed in the Step Down room so now Lovie gets to see her, too! We're calling and updating family members and making sure Bug tolerates juice and then they release us around noon.



She did very well the rest of the day at home, still a little groggy but not really sleeping anymore. Then Friday we continued doing Tylenol/Ibuprofen every 3 hours to manage pain but she was doing great! She was moving around and laying on her side and not too fussy. She is so strong.

Dr. Yaun told us we could take the bandages off on Saturday so we did that yesterday afternoon and I was like "Whoa, they cut my kid open!" haha



She should be feeling great for Christmas and then the next week we will see her neuro to activate the VNS and start the pulses very slowly.

Thank you to everyone who thought about, prayed for, and sent well wishes for a successful surgery and quick recovery! We love you all - Bug is blessed to have all of your support :)

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

It's Happening!!

Rayleigh's surgery is tomorrow!!!

My sweet baby girl is going to have her first surgery tomorrow morning. She will be under anesthesia for the 4th time in her life and she's only 2 1/2 years old.

The surgery is to implant the VNS. You can read all about the VNS in this blog post of mine.

The surgery will take place early in the morning. The neurosurgeon said that it will take about 1-2 hours for the surgery and then Rayleigh Bug will be in recovery for 2-4 hours and then she will be released to go home that afternoon/evening!!

Bug will need to be on Tylenol/ibuprofen for 2-3 days for pain management and will have some restrictions at first like no laying on her left side and no carrying under her armpits.

We will see her neurologist in 2 weeks to have the VNS turned on. They like to allow a couple of weeks after surgery for the body to adjust to the foreign object before they activate the pulses. Her pulses will be very slow at first and will be adjusted every 2 weeks for a few months. We have a busy road ahead of us but we are ready!



I will do a post tomorrow to update you on how it went!

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Rescheduled With No Date

I thought I would be posting more about Rayleigh's VNS by now but that will have to wait. Unfortunately, her surgery has been pushed back again. It was originally scheduled for November 29th but our secondary insurance had the payment as pending so the hospital had to wait because they need it paid in full before they can operate. So we were given a new date of December 13th. Then, the neurosurgeon's office called this week to tell us that our secondary insurance is now saying that the VNS is not FDA approved for children under 12 years old and they are wanting a lot of "proof" that this is a good idea for Rayleigh. They want copies of her MRIs, EEGs and letters from her neurologist, epileptologist and neurosurgeon. I have no doubt that these letters will get written and sent promptly but I highly doubt they will be read soon.

This time, they have rescheduled us without a date. The office will call us when they hear from our secondary insurance and we will set a date then. The nurse said it will likely be in the New Year.

I don't know why this upsets me as much as it does, but I'm really sad about the whole deal. Maybe its because I'm the kind of person that goes by the calendar, maybe it's because I've always been a little sad when something I've wanted gets puts off but I really think it's because I want this for Bug so bad.

I feel like the quicker she gets the VNS put in, the faster we can
activate it and the faster we can see the results.
 
Like every day matters.
 
 
Really quickly I will let you know that Rayleigh Bug has been on the full dose of the new medicine and has been Lamictal-free for 2 weeks now. She tolerated the transition fairly well (compared to previous medicine/dose changes). She is finally starting to take naps in the middle of the day again - something that stopped when she was taking Lamictal. Bug's seizure frequency and severity has gone down in the last couple of weeks and we aren't seeing any side effects. Well, maybe crankiness but she is also cutting her last molar so it could be attributed to that...
 
 
Rayleigh's been a happier girl these days, even flashing smiles again!! And she seems stronger. I think it's a combination of hard work and putting weight back on again!
 
Photo taken in October 2012
 
She is one tough cookie!