| Later updates | Aaron update 129 |
| Subject: Aaron update 129 Date: Sunday, November 16, 2003 11:05 AM From: Kevin Quick To: Aaron Update List I just wanted to clue you all in that Kathleen, Aaron and I will be spending Monday afternoon through Thursday this week in San Francisco, seeing a wide range of doctors for Aaron. We'll very much appreciate your prayers. Aaron has only gained 3/4 pound in the past 3 months, and we're getting a little concerned. He's at 12 pounds now, which is even off the chart for very-low-birthweight (under 1000 grams; Aaron was 695 grams) premature boys. He's still not eating as much as we'd like him to, and he's so active, we think he's just burning what few calories he does take in. Tuesday morning, we'll be seeing a gastrointestinal specialist for the first time. Hopefully, she'll (I believe it's a she) have a simple solution, like an appetite stimulant, that will help Aaron want to eat more. Or, she might recommend some tests to find out if Aaron has any anomalies with his digestive system that could be corrected somehow. Or, she may suggest an NG (nasal) or G (stomach) tube, to help with Aaron's feedings. Or, maybe she'll just say that Aaron is small but fine, and that we shouldn't worry too much about his very slow growth? One way or another, we'd like to have some kind of resolution on this thing. Wednesday morning, we'll be visiting the Whitney Clinic, where Aaron will be evaluated for developmental progress. We think he'll do fine there, as he's almost crawling now, he sits up (tripods) pretty well, and he stands up, if we hold onto his hands. And, as always, he's very alert and perceptive. Thursday morning, we'll be visiting with the pulmonologist (Dr. Hardy) and her team (nutritionist, physical therapist, nurse practitioner and social worker). Again, we ask for your prayers. We so much want to raise Aaron as a "normal" kid, but these doctors visits often send us into whirlwinds of worry and concerns: He's not eating enough, he's not big enough, he's not growing, if he gets sick at this size, he'll have to be hospitalized, etc., etc. We've already had kind of a rough week worrying about these things, and we're not so sure how well we're prepared for another one of these barrages! Kathleen's pregnancy with baby #2 is still going well. We're in week 28; Aaron was born at week 24. If baby #2 were born now, he/she might be able to survive without being placed on a ventilator. (How many people can appreciate that like we do?) Kathleen's first test for gestational diabetes, which she took a week ago, came back positive, so we're a little concerned about that. She'll be taking another, more definitive test a week from Monday, which will tell us how much we need to worry about that, and whether her condition, if she has one, can be controlled through diet, or whether she'll need insulin shots. Kathleen's getting a pretty good-sized belly; she's going to be huge! We're enjoying all of baby #2's pokes and kicks. 28 weeks down, 12 to go! Yes! Aaron was officially declined for coverage by Blue Shield (Kathleen and my medical insurance company), because of his history. Our special CCS coverage was extended for three months, so we'll be OK financially until February 27. After that, unless we figure something out, Aaron will be uninsured. So, God has some good opportunities to perform some financial/insurance miracles for us in the coming months (or, some good opportunities for keeping us sane as we say goodbye to our remaining limited resources). As always, we welcome any words of wisdom that any of you might have on these things. This is our first time through this stuff, and we appreciate any and all helpful ideas. To our church friends, we miss you dearly! I'm writing this on Sunday morning. (Kathleen wanted me to add that we're tired of being hermits, and we look forward to seeing you all again when the doctors say that it's OK!) Lots of love, Kevin, Kathleen, Aaron and baby #2 |
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