Friday, February 17, 2012
Cristl
In just a couple of days it will have been a month since Cristl fell into a coma. When I heard the news of the emergency trip to the hospital on January 19th, I didn't imagine that a month later the situation would have hardly improved. Two nights ago Cristl was transferred to a rehabilitation/nursing home in Glen Burnie. She is no longer in a coma, but rather in a vegetative state. She opens her eyes, but does not respond or appear to have any recognition of anything. She has sleep/wake cycles, but they are hardly different from one another. The doctors are saying that she has anoxic brain damage which has been caused from a lack of oxygen to the brain. At this point, she is not quite 'rehabilitatable,' but we are all full of hope.
MRI
We have already scheduled Trafton's appointment for his MRI. I feel lucky that we were contacted so quickly to get this set up. We are going on March 1st for two back-to-back MRIs. The first one is at 7:00 and the second one is at 9:30. Each actual procedure is scheduled to take 90 minutes. They told us that this was on the long side, but that these particular MRIs, abdominal area, were 'very involved.' We were told to arrive at 6:30 (usual time that we wake Trafton up) so that he could be prepped for sedation. I am glad that our appointments are so early, because I can't imagine having to deny Trafton food for any length of time in the morning. He wakes up at 6:30 and is usuallly having breakfast by 6:35.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Trafton's Visit to the Urologist
Today Trafton went to see a urologist at Geisinger Medical Center in Danville. When he was born with one kidney, doctors did an ultrasound to confirm that there was only one kidney. They found that one kidney was present.
Five days later Trafton had another ultrasound done where they injected him with dye through a catheter to see if kidney/urine reflux was present. There was not and this was good news. We saw a nephrologist (kidney specialist) who told us that we would need to come back one time each year to monitor the function of the one kidney that Trafton did have.
Last summer when Trafton was one year old, we saw the nephrologist again. This ultrasound showed that Trafton's one kidney was enlarged (again, good news) to the size of a seven-year-old's kidney. This was expected due to the need for overcompensation for the missing kidney. Everything looked good except the nephrologist noticed a small mass located on Trafton's bladder. When she looked back at the ultrasound from Trafton's birth, she saw that the mass was present but incorrectly labeled as the rectum. She called it a mesonephric duct cyst and said that it needed to be checked out by a urologist.
Which brings us to today and our trip to see the urologist, Dr. Sumfest. We first got another ultrasound done and Trafton was great! He was so cooperative throughout the procedure; it was wonderful! Then we saw Dr. Sumfest. He said that this mesonephric duct cyst was enlarged quite a bit from the ultrasound six months ago. His theory is that this mass is not a cyst at all, but actually a very, very small second kidney that is not functioning properly. While I was pregnant, one of the high risk doctors that we saw mentioned that a kidney remnant may be found after Trafton was born. None was ever found on subsequent ultrasounds. Because ultrasounds are not very detailed, Dr. Sumfest said that he would like an MRI done to confirm that this cyst is, in fact, a second kidney. During the MRI, Trafton would need what the doctor called heavy sedation so that he would be able to lie very still for up to 45 minutes. They would use propophol and Trafton would need to be able to breathe on his own. Dr. Sumfest assured us that he would be very closely monitored by the pediatric radiology department and that they are excellent. He said that many departments needed to approve this MRI, so although he put the order in for the MRI immediately, it may take up to one month for someone to call us and schedule it.
If, after this MRI, it can be confirmed that this cyst is a small kidney, and that it is being enlarged because small amounts of urine (he said maybe like one teaspoon per month) are being trapped inside of there, then the removal of this kidney would be necessary. I asked him how invasive of a procedure this would be and he stated that it was "extremely rare" and "pretty invasive because we are taking an organ out of a small child." Yikes. He said also that he is not concerned about cancer in any way at this time, because he does not believe it is a cyst. If the MRI confirms everything that he is thinking, the removal of this kidney would be necessary because as it grows larger, there is an increased chance of it causing all sorts of "serious infections."
So, at this point, we are waiting for the next month to be contacted by someone from the urology department giving us the approval to schedule the MRI with pediatric radiology.
Trafton, throughout the appointments this afternoon, was pretty well-behaved. He walked the halls, climbed on benches, charmed the nurses, played with a pinwheel one of the nurses gave him, drank a smoothie, ate half an apple, played the animal sounds game on our iPad, ate an entire bowlful of graham-cracker bears, looked inside of trashcans (a new and disgusting habit!), and only had one temper tantrum on the long walk out of the hospital when we were finished. Can't blame him - he missed his nap through all this :) Needless to say, we are all exhausted!
Five days later Trafton had another ultrasound done where they injected him with dye through a catheter to see if kidney/urine reflux was present. There was not and this was good news. We saw a nephrologist (kidney specialist) who told us that we would need to come back one time each year to monitor the function of the one kidney that Trafton did have.
Last summer when Trafton was one year old, we saw the nephrologist again. This ultrasound showed that Trafton's one kidney was enlarged (again, good news) to the size of a seven-year-old's kidney. This was expected due to the need for overcompensation for the missing kidney. Everything looked good except the nephrologist noticed a small mass located on Trafton's bladder. When she looked back at the ultrasound from Trafton's birth, she saw that the mass was present but incorrectly labeled as the rectum. She called it a mesonephric duct cyst and said that it needed to be checked out by a urologist.
Which brings us to today and our trip to see the urologist, Dr. Sumfest. We first got another ultrasound done and Trafton was great! He was so cooperative throughout the procedure; it was wonderful! Then we saw Dr. Sumfest. He said that this mesonephric duct cyst was enlarged quite a bit from the ultrasound six months ago. His theory is that this mass is not a cyst at all, but actually a very, very small second kidney that is not functioning properly. While I was pregnant, one of the high risk doctors that we saw mentioned that a kidney remnant may be found after Trafton was born. None was ever found on subsequent ultrasounds. Because ultrasounds are not very detailed, Dr. Sumfest said that he would like an MRI done to confirm that this cyst is, in fact, a second kidney. During the MRI, Trafton would need what the doctor called heavy sedation so that he would be able to lie very still for up to 45 minutes. They would use propophol and Trafton would need to be able to breathe on his own. Dr. Sumfest assured us that he would be very closely monitored by the pediatric radiology department and that they are excellent. He said that many departments needed to approve this MRI, so although he put the order in for the MRI immediately, it may take up to one month for someone to call us and schedule it.
If, after this MRI, it can be confirmed that this cyst is a small kidney, and that it is being enlarged because small amounts of urine (he said maybe like one teaspoon per month) are being trapped inside of there, then the removal of this kidney would be necessary. I asked him how invasive of a procedure this would be and he stated that it was "extremely rare" and "pretty invasive because we are taking an organ out of a small child." Yikes. He said also that he is not concerned about cancer in any way at this time, because he does not believe it is a cyst. If the MRI confirms everything that he is thinking, the removal of this kidney would be necessary because as it grows larger, there is an increased chance of it causing all sorts of "serious infections."
So, at this point, we are waiting for the next month to be contacted by someone from the urology department giving us the approval to schedule the MRI with pediatric radiology.
Trafton, throughout the appointments this afternoon, was pretty well-behaved. He walked the halls, climbed on benches, charmed the nurses, played with a pinwheel one of the nurses gave him, drank a smoothie, ate half an apple, played the animal sounds game on our iPad, ate an entire bowlful of graham-cracker bears, looked inside of trashcans (a new and disgusting habit!), and only had one temper tantrum on the long walk out of the hospital when we were finished. Can't blame him - he missed his nap through all this :) Needless to say, we are all exhausted!
Cristl
Today marks Cristl's 12th day in a coma. Although minor things have fluctuated, such as infections, body temperature, and eye blinks, she still remains unresponsive at this time. We are still hoping for a miracle.
She will be moved to a rehabilitation home in the coming days. The hospital feels that there is nothing more that can be done for Cristl in her current condition.
She will be moved to a rehabilitation home in the coming days. The hospital feels that there is nothing more that can be done for Cristl in her current condition.
Snow Day - January 21st
Our first substantial snow of the year fell on Saturday, January 21st. No school closings since it was the weekend, but it shut the roads down for a while. We probably got about 5 or 6 inches of wonderfully fluffy powder. This was Trafton's first time since being a little baby to be out in the snow. He seemed to have mixed feelings. He likes to be outside in general, so that was fun for him. He was intrigued by it all. He did not like to walk in it - he only wanted to go where Daniel had shoveled or in the street. He also did not like to touch it at all! A couple of times he fell down (since he was so insulated, he didn't have the greatest range of motion) and when he got snow on his snow pants, he did not like this. I believe the entire neighborhood was aware of when he fell, he was so angry.
Trafton was okay walking in the backyard where Daddy made a path.
He even let me hold him as long as he wasn't sitting in the snow.
He did not enjoy being in the yard where it came up to his knees.
Trafton was very interested in helping his daddy shovel the sidewalk.
The sun even came out for a while after it stopped snowing.
Trafton was okay walking in the backyard where Daddy made a path. 
He even let me hold him as long as he wasn't sitting in the snow.
He did not enjoy being in the yard where it came up to his knees.
Trafton was very interested in helping his daddy shovel the sidewalk.
The sun even came out for a while after it stopped snowing.Sunday, January 22, 2012
Cristl
This past Thursday morning, my best friend, Cristl, slipped into a coma. She is being treated at Howard County General Hospital in Maryland. Today is her fourth day in the coma, and, while she is stable, she is mostly unresponsive. She has shown very slight responses a very few times to voices and touch. Her breathing and heart rate are stable. She has been diagnosed with sepsis, which is a poisoning of the blood, although the cause of the sepsis is still unknown. Her neurological function is low, but that may not necessarily be a bad sign at this time.
We grew up across the street from each other when my family moved to the neighborhood when Cristl and I were both seven years old. We made it through everything imaginable together, moved to Colorado when we were 19, and have continued to stay friends no matter how many states separated us at different times. I cannot imagine the world without her.
Please keep her in your thoughts as she is fighting for her life.
We grew up across the street from each other when my family moved to the neighborhood when Cristl and I were both seven years old. We made it through everything imaginable together, moved to Colorado when we were 19, and have continued to stay friends no matter how many states separated us at different times. I cannot imagine the world without her.
Please keep her in your thoughts as she is fighting for her life.
The morning after our first overnight trip on Cristl's family's boat - 1987
Ready for school - sometime in the late 1980s
On my porch - high school era
Balloons for my 17th birthday! 1996
Ready to go to our 5-year high school reunion - 2002
Hanging in Baltimore with Cristl's mom and Caroline - the 1990s
One of many shopping trips to Fell's Point in Baltimore - 1990s
Cristl the snow bunny! We went on so many ski trips, I can't begin to imagine where or when this one occurred.
Mini golf - 2004
We spent many warm-weather weekends in high school and early college camping at Wilmer's Park at the music festivals held there. We always took the time to set up the O'Hare Family Tent - which was massive! 1990s
King's Dominion - there was a period of time when Cristl and me and a bunch of our friends spent Cristl's birthday every year at Kings Dominion Amusement Park in Virginia. 1990s
Cristl's first car - also something massive . . . a hooptie :) 1996
Hanging at our friend, Alyson's, college for the weekend - Frostburg State University 1997
My bridal shower - the maid of honor and the future bride - 2007
Spending time with Cristl's mom in our current Colorado home - 1998
My beautiful maid of honor - 2007
Lettin' loose at Equinox XI in Dallas, PA (with Diamond Dog, of course!) - 2006
Hangin' with Amy at Equinox XII - 2007
The Willowtree Inn - 2007
More Equinox good times - 2008
Rockin' it at DelFest with Tara in our portable weekend home - 2009
A rainy Equinox with Amy - 2009
My baby shower - Cristl planned the funniest game called 'Birth the Baby" where everyone was given an ice cube with a miniature baby frozen inside and whoever got the baby out first won - hilarious! 2010
Cristl and Trafton meet in Bloomsburg - 2010
The last Equinox Celebration that Cristl and I shared - 2010 Saturday, January 7, 2012
Sonogram Number Two
On January 4th, I had my second sonogram. It was for a quad screen where they test for the risk of chromosomal abnormalities. Everything went well and we got some more pictures of the little one!
Close - up of the facial profile
This one is my favorite! It's so neat how the arms are already formed!
Close - up of the facial profile
This one is my favorite! It's so neat how the arms are already formed!
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