Today was a long day at Children's Hospital but we did catch a slight break as I mentioned in the previous post as the 11am call time for a 1pm surgery did get pushed up to a 9:30 arrival and a 11:30 surgery.
Jake was in good spirits this morning and was patient during the pre-op drills despite being mostly a repeat of vitals and questions that we have answered multiple times already.
Spent the 2 hours waiting for the inevitable name call, and Sam took Jake up where she would discuss many of the particulars with the anesthesiologist about Jake's previous allergic reactions that have been undiagnosed. Jake told the nurses he didn't need the funny stuff (Verced) to calm him before the surgery which was helpful because we hoped it would help eliminate his nausea post surgery.
Then came the normal drill as we wait around checking the board which counts down the minutes in the OR. A new update technology, an app Ease that updates on as well from the operating room. The surgery lasted approximately 3.5 hours and the nurse called our name to take our beeper away informing us a Dr would be down to discuss. 45 more minutes went by and no sign of a doctor so we checked back in as we started to get nervous wondering what if Jake experienced his allergic reaction in the OR again. We were assured there wasn't any complications and the Dr would be down soon. Before long, the Fellow came down to discuss the procedure. It seemed to be more in depth and complicated than previously discussed and Jake had 5 teeth extracted that were living way above the gum lines even near his nasal passages and had to have parts of his jaw cut through. All of this to prepare for palate expansion and the incisions ranged from his bottom of his mouth, the top of his mouth, and his jaw. The mission to help remove problematic teeth that wouldn't ever come in and set the table for his mouth to be able to be worked on with orthodontia to come. This procedure will set the stage for his 2nd part of his really big surgery the lower half but that probably won't happen till 18-20 or whenever Jake finishes completely growing. In our family, that can be awhile.
The new protocols only allow one parent to go up so Sam went to recovery to greet Jake post-op. At first, Jake was sleeping but then he woke up and was talking with Sam. After a little while, we switched places and Jake was a little disoriented but very funny making jokes and wanting to move around and talk a lot. He did look like he had gone a few rounds in a heavyweight fight but once they cleaned him up a bit, he looked really good. Before long, they did inform us that a bed was ready and we were able to make our way to a room. Jake is staying the night at the hospital. Getting to the room, Jake showed some nice signs and said he was really hungry. Soon that led to Hangry as he didn't understand what was taking so long. Jake can only have liquids so he had to settle for broth, a Boost and a frozen ice cup. The wait was making Jake a little antsy and he calmed down after getting to consume a bit. Unfortunately, Jake will be on an all liquid diet for a week which was an unexpected wrinkle. Jake was complaining about his eye bothering him and we think it actually is the area near his sinuses where a tooth was removed so probably a factor or irritation and swelling. We hope he is able to settle in and sleep a decent amount tonight. Sam will stay with Jake at the hospital and await the Dr.'s in the am.
A long day/night and we hope for a somewhat restful night for Jake and Sam at the hospital.
Glad to put day 1 behind us.
A little photo of Jake pre-surgery.
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