DR'S ORDERS

Hello all! You might notice that my posts are coming later in the day. That is because the doctor rounds on the sick babies first. So, the later the better in my opinion!!

Today, Justin is doing great. The doctor is changing his regular nasal cannula to a high-flow cannula. He had a high-flow cannula right when he was taken off the CPAP but they changed it to a regular one shortly after. Today, he is requiring a little more oxygen (very normal and nothing to worry about) so they will give him a higher flow of air while using less oxygen. They want to keep the oxygen requirements as low as possible. Dr. Hoekstra reassured me that this is completely normal and absolutely nothing to worry about. I asked why he needs more oxygen sometimes and not as much others. He explained to me that because he is not at full feedings yet, he doesn't have the protein in his system for his lungs to properly function. He said that proteins keep water/fluid in our lungs (basically just keeping them wet) and without the full amount of protein, his lungs don't have that. So, by changing him to a higher flow, it simply makes him have to work to breathe a little less. He does not want Justin to struggle and this is what helps him keep his lungs open. He will be on 1 liter (when he started high-flow a while ago he was on 3 liters) of air and they will dial his oxygen needs down as he tolerates it.

He adjusted his feedings today to .1ml increase every three hours versus every six. Today when I was at the hospital, he was at 2.7 mls per hour so that number will continue to climb especially now that they increase it every three hours. Dr. Hoekstra explained that as they increase his milk every three hours, they will decrease his IV nutrients. So, .1ml+ of milk = .1ml- of IV nutrients every three hours. The goal is to be completely off his IV by this weekend and get that thing taken out! He also gained 10 grams today. 30 grams = 1 ounce. He is still at 2 lbs 12 ounces but slowly creaping up! Tonight, Jason and I will go down so we can hold him. We have also started reading to him at night. They call it Wee Read. They recommend 5 minutes per night and it helps babies recognize your voice. Last night while I held him, Jason read Jack and the Beanstalk. Tonight, Jason will hold him and I plan on bringing some of his own books to read to him. That's all for today!