Detour

By now, we’ve learned that heading into a hospital stay with any sort of expectations is a recipe for frustration. But as usual, the knowing and the experiencing are two very different things.

On Thursday evening we were getting the final pieces in place for Whitney’s procedure, which was scheduled for 7am on Friday. The days prior were particularly challenging for all of us, but especially for Whitney.

We flew to Edmonton on Wednesday morning and got situated here at the hospital just after noon. After getting Whitney all set up and hooked up we started doing all of her tests. The tests, which included a couple blood tests, echocardiogram, an ECG, ultrasound and an Xray (in a contraption that looked slightly like a medieval torture device) lasted about 4hrs and took quite the toll on Whitney.

It’s hard as a father to sit by while your child is screaming and in pain/discomfort while being unable to do anything about it. I personally find it especially hard that I have nowhere to channel the rage and aggression that builds up inside. The reality in this situation is that nobody is doing anything wrong. We’re here because Whitney needs the care that this hospital can provide and these tests are an essential part of that process. But holding your child’s hand as they scream for hours eats away at you the same as if someone was intentionally harming her.

In the back of our minds we anticipated this would be a short trip and we could handle a couple hard days to do this and head back home. So when we got the news from our catheterization specialist (Dr Slim) that her blood tests showed elevated CRP levels (inflammatory marker) and a high white blood cell count - we knew our plans would quickly change.

It’s essential for this procedure that Whitney isn’t sick at all, as the work they’re doing in her heart can turn south if the body is already fighting an infection. As such, her procedure has been delayed until next week.

In the meantime we are making the most of our situation. We sweet-talked our cardiologist into letting us get a day pass, and sweet-talked our nurses into letting us take hospital equipment off-property so we could stroller over to our favourite bakery, Breadland. We also have more mental capacity than our last time here and we roam the halls on our ward a little more freely. We’ve made friends and have encouraged new parents who are looking for others to relate to. Sarah found her favourite doctor from our last trip and they hugged and started talking shop about mental health support systems in the hospital. Parents in the family lounge have accepted prayer and others have asked us to visit their rooms to see their children. It’s a difficult and beautiful thing to be both struggling and helping others struggle less, simultaneously.

The medical team knows we are comfortable with our care of Whitney, and if all is well tomorrow they will discharge us to the hotel with Whitney until her heart cath mid next week. A shout-out to family of family of family here in Edmonton who are helping us procure a playpen, stroller, etc so we can safely bring Whitney over to the hotel with us safely.

So if all goes well tomorrow, we have big plans! Mainly Sarah wants to go to Safeway to get her favourite chicken pot pie. That’s about it, really.

Thanks for following along and keeping us on your hearts and in your prayers.

Talk soon,

Ryan + Sarah