Top Reasons to Go to a Children's Hospital When Available.

When we realized we'd be heading to the ER with Ava, we immediately thought of our local and state-of-the-art Level 1 trauma center children's hospital, Dell Children's Medical Center. We'd never been there before, but only because Ava had never needed the type of medical intervention that could be better given at an institution specially designed for children. Though we had concerns that the wait times would be longer, we tossed those hesitations by the wayside, being more interested in child-size IVs and trained medical professionals sensitive to children's unique fears and issues. It turned out to be the second best decision we made that night (the first being to rush her in immediately per our instincts).

Here are just a handful of the ways that Dell Children's Medical Center went above and beyond during our stay:

- As mentioned above, everyone on staff is specially trained to address the fears of both children and their, ahem, hysterical parents. I was never made to feel like a crazed mother, nor was Ava talked down to or treated with anything even remotely resembling disrespect. Instead, everyone went out of their way to ensure that she was comfortable, that we were in the know, and that she experienced as little anxiety as humanly possible during our stay, both in the ER and our room. We were offered coffee in the waiting area, asked repeatedly how long we'd been waiting (it was only about thirty minutes from our entrance through the ER doors to being brought back to an ER bed - IMPRESSIVE!) and treated with empathy and compassion. For that, I am endlessly thankful. 

- All of the medical equipment is designed for children where possible. She was given the smallest IV needle possible, and the support used to immobilize her hand was definitely child-specific. We also had to measure her urine output the entire time we were there, but she was resistant to using the "tee tee hat" insert for the toilet, and they were so accommodating, pulling out all sorts of gadgets to meet our request that she not be catheterized unless as an absolute last resort. They were great about respecting our wishes.

- It may sound ridiculous, but the design and decor of the hospital alone was a lifesaver. How many walks we must have taken through the halls to check out the handprints ingrained in the walls, the many murals, the colorful, child-centered artwork, the fish tank and so on. If she hadn't been hooked up to IVs and feeling awful, she may have thought we were at an amusement park:

- Catering only to children, the hospital had an amazing playroom for admitted children and their families to use. Sadly, we were unable to use it since we were essentially labeled as extremely contagious. Instead, a Child Life Specialist (a career path I actually explored through my major and sometimes wish I would have pursued) came to our room and asked us what we wanted to play with from it, and then brought us coloring books, paints and paper and games. What an amazing service!

- One of the most amazing things that Dell does is offer a service on the website to send greeting cards to patients. Better yet? Anyone can do it, and they're FREE! We got 34 cards delivered to Ava's room on Monday, with an outpouring of love from around the country. I can't remember the last time my heart felt so full with love, both incoming and outgoing. To everyone who sent a card, I can never, ever sufficiently express my gratitude to you, but let me at least start by saying thank you so much. We love you all. Each and every card brought a smile to her face, and tears to my eyes. 

- And last, but certainly not least, if you're ever looking for an Austin-based non-profit to support, please consider the Assistance League of Austin. One of their projects they fund is sending carts of toys and books into the hospital, and going door to door to visit sick children and allowing them to pick a toy and book each! I may or may not have cried over the gesture, when Ava perked up at a new Belle barbie (her favorite princess!) and a Goldilocks and the Three Bears book to read. Thank you so much, ALA. We will certainly repay the debt.

- Oh, and popsicles. Lots and lots of popsicles.

A huge thank you to the staff, doctors, nurses, clinical assistants, child life specialists, ALA volunteers, and everyone else who was a part of Ava's team of medical providers. We are forever in your debt.

Thankful.

On this day of Thanksgiving, I have more than ever to be thankful for.

Despite my regular posting this week (I'm also thankful for scheduled posts!), I've actually been bedside at Dell Children's Hospital while Ava suffered through a serious illness, one which we still can't put a name to.

Despite having one of the most charming Saturday mornings and afternoons this past weekend, the evening took a turn for the worse, when driving over to a friend's house, Ava started complaining of severe back pain and then started projectile vomiting. This was a huge change from ten minutes prior, when she was running around with my husband, jumping on the bed and being silly. A mere hours before, we'd been decorating a Christmas tree on the side of Highway 360 and re-visiting the 360 Bridge Overlook - this time with daddy. But between 5:30, when her nausea and vomiting began, and 7pm, when we arrived at the Children's Hospital, Ava threw up likely over thirty times. And, for reasons no one seems to understand even now, she became so dehydrated in that short period of time that she actually became unresponsive while in the ER waiting room, unable to hold her head up, recognize us, or tell us her name.

In short, it was the absolute scariest experience of our entire lives.

The hospital, thankfully, was a Godsend. A nurse came out and found us and asked A's name, and then rushed us back, sending someone for her folder. Her blood pressure was 141/83 - a shockingly high amount that they said indicated serious pain, and our worst fears were that she had appendicitis or something equally serious that would require surgery. Thankfully, those fears were not proven unwarranted upon examination. They were concerned, however, about a potential UTI gone rogue to her kidneys given the complaint of back pain and obvious signs of pain, and tested her as such. It took us some time to get her to produce a urine sample due to the dehydration - we went through TWO bags of IV fluids before she could even pee (!!!!!!) - and when she did, it tested "dirty", so a kidney infection (acute nephritis) was initially assumed. Despite Zofran (a wonder drug, if you ask me), Ava continued to throw up in between bouts of falling asleep, and sometimes even vomited while asleep without even opening her eyes. Truly terrifying.

The doctor made the decision to admit her, wanting to both observe her and having some serious concerns regarding her mental state, and I happily agreed, unable to get the image of her with eyes glazed over out of my head. Little did I know that our two day hospital stay had only just begun.

Long story short, we have been through it in the past five days. Her urine culture grew nothing, though a renal (kidney) ultrasound showed a discoloration that indicated inflammation. Strong IV antibiotics did nothing to stop the pain and vomiting except make her feel even sicker and riddling her poor GI tract with some serious diarrhea, posing further dehydration concerns. She went through bags of IV fluids, and some IV Zofran - the one thing that was able to abate the vomiting while in her system. She'd be acting like she felt entirely better, pretending the green line across the floor was a snake and telling us to watch out, and then five seconds later she'd be heaving up the contents of her stomach. Nobody knew why.

Our second day in the hospital, we did get some clue to the cause when, lo and behold, I started puking my guts up. This led to a diagnosis of acute gastroenteritis, but anyone who has ever been through the stomach flu knows that while AWFUL, what I'm describing clearly is beyond the bounds of your average stomach flu. And no one was able to explain the back pain, other than "body aches". Essentially, we got a diagnosis of stomach flu because putting "I have no clue" isn't exactly an option.

Thankfully, we were released Monday night, and while Ava threw up that night, she has done much better ever since. Today is the first day she's been able to stomach any food without taking the Zofran, and I've finally been able to stop taking the Zofran that an angelic friend rushed over to me Tuesday night after I got sick all over again. By some miracle, my husband has been spared, and has been our rock through this entire thing, even when I haven't been very nice to him from feeling stressed or sick.

So today, and every single day that has come before and will come after, I am so, so very thankful for my family. For Ava, my everything. And for my husband, without whom I could never survive, who is my rock and my friend and my partner.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Kiss and hug your babies, and be thankful everyday for the abundance of blessings that you have - our families are so easy to take for granted, but so impossible to live without.