A Warm Blanket : Parents
Please note that the
following represent each family's individual experiences
and beliefs. Every family is different, and the needs and
feelings of the children involved will be unique. We
encourage you to seek professional advice if you have
concerns or questions with regard to these issues. Responses
to Family Room
As a mom of an infant with SVT and mild pulmonary
stenosis, nursing my baby in the NICU comforted my baby and
me. When I was denied access to my baby and told to pump my
milk, I was a basketcase. Being able to hold and nurse him,
despite all the wires, made me feel empowered to comfort and
help him when I could do little else. I am convinced, as
were the NICU nurses, that he preferred a warm, loving mom
to a silicone nipple, and found comfort in my touch.
M. E.
|
When my daughter Hannah, had heart surgery for coarctation
of the aorta, I had no clue what I or she was in for.
All I was told by the pediatrician was to get her to the
children's hospital immediately- no time for an ambulance,
no time to call my husband, no time to find a sitter for
her twin sister- both 7 days old at the time.
Her liver was severely enlarged when I got her to the
doctor, and when we arrived at the ER, they had a call
from the pediatrician to alert them of her coming.
They quickly whisked her away from me, and started hooking
her up to all kinds of machines, and all kinds of IV's and
needles, and it all happened so fast.
After a while, I was told it was her heart, that she
needed emergency surgery and I needed to consent to
it. I was overwhelmed to say the least, as just 7
days ago, I had given birth to what I thought were 2
healthy baby girls.
This particular hospital was WONDERUL-- the "warm
blankets" they gave I am sure I can't even begin
to remember them all. I think the first one was the
cardiologist, sitting in a room with me, explaining her
heart defects and re-explaining and re-explaining. I just
didn't want to believe it, I didn't want to hear it, and I
didn't want to accept it.
He then took me to her, and explained all the machines
she was hooked up to,the procedure she was about to
endure, and with her being a full-term twin at 5 pounds 10
ounces, her chances were good. This hospital also
gave me housing directly across the street while she was
in critical care. They bent the rules for me as I had her
twin sister, just 8 days old by now, breastfeeding.
The support and amount of nurses and social workers
that came to my aide, answered my questions, and were just
there for me- and everyone calling her by name- Hannah-
made it that much more personal to me.
After the operation, the doctor came outside with a
huge smile that, I think, was the most comforting "warm
blanket" of the whole thing. At that point,
I knew she had made it and was in recovery.
She was in the hospital for about 4 weeks- and still,
they continued to bend the rules for me with her twin in
the waiting room (no children were supposed to be there)
and the nurses would even hold the twin sis, Alaina, for
me while I went in with Hannah for a while.
I can never express my thanks to the children's
hospital for saving the life of my daughter, and all they
did to help me cope. When it comes to the next round of
surgeries, I believe they will even put a REAL warm
blanket on me several times in that waiting room- just
waiting for my baby to recover and complete our family
with her twin sister and older brother. :)
V.R.
|
I have experienced many " warm blanket"
moments during our stays in hospital. My son Rhys is 5, and
has undergone two open heart surgeries.
I remember (with a smile) the doctor who held my baby up
against his chest and gently rubbed his chin on my sons
head, as he sat explaining ' blue spells' to me. The nurse,
who walked him up and down the ward, singing to him quietly
as I took much needed and appreciated time-out to gather my
thoughts. The play lady, who visited each morning on the
ward, bearing gifts of reading material, videos, what ever
she could find about my son's then favorite character of all
time, Thomas the Tank Engine. The nurse who offered to take
all of my laundry home with her. The Priest, who visiting
another patient, saw that we were in need of comfort when my
son was unsettled and fretful, asked if he could say a
prayer over him, and in doing this, sent him into a sound
sleep. The Doctors who paid special attention to 'Buzz
Lightyear' and shared my sons delight in 'ToyStory'.
So many good memories at a frightening time in our lives,
special and heart-warming.
T.
|
| My daughter's "warm blanket"
while she was hospitalized was the wonderful care she received
from her CICU nurses.
They put bows in her hair. They cooed over her, talked to
her, and stood over her and us the three grueling days it took
to get over a fever she developed right after surgery. They
were her security.
We love them for their dedication. Not to mention,
her pediatric cardiologist who came everyday with a little
something for her bed. God bless them all for what they
did for my daughter.
D.I.
|
My son Adam (7) had a very rough summer of '99. A lead
fracture on his pacemaker required emergency surgery in
June, a GI tube in July, and another lead fracture in
August.
As our children with CHD get older, they become much more
knowledgeable about their procedures. Adam absolutely hates
getting pre-medicated for his surgeries, so we ask to speak
with the anesthesiologist about how we could lessen his
anxieties.
She listened to Adam and spoke to him one on one.
he allowed HIM to chose the way he would go into the OR.
Pre-meds by mouth, by injection, or walk in holding his
mommy's hand and sit on the OR table and breath nice and
deeply into the mask. He was so brave. He chose to walk with
me into that OR and breath in the mask until he fell asleep!
I still cry thinking about it.
It was such a nice, pleasant experience (if you can
imagine!). We didn't have to struggle with him taking the
meds orally, or fight with an IV or injection.
I thank God for that doctor that listened to our petition
and talked WITH my son, concerning his treatment.
D.H.
|
A warm blanket is having a doctor, surgeons, and PICU
nurses that take the time to explain what is happening to
your child. They take the time to explain what
everything is, and show genuine concern for your child's
comfort even if your child is under sedation.
We received wonderful care at our hospital, and I say
"we" because I feel they did just as much to help
me as they did to heal my son. The whole staff made a
terrifying experience seem manageable. I really really
appreciated the social worker that took such good care of me
in the hours I waited for my husband to make the four hour
trip to the hospital by land. I was a basketcase, and
she saw to it that I was comfortable and had a room at the
Ronald McDonald House later that evening. She knew it
was difficult for me to get around, still recovering myself
from a cesarean delivery. She even pushed me through
the hospital to the RM family room to get a hot shower.
A warm blanket is a total stranger that brings you
a change of clothes only because she heard about your
situation from another. A warm blanket is an
air ambulance EMT that stops to give you a hug before they
return home. A warm blanket is a nurse that
offers to take a picture of you holding your child for the
first time in days that seemed more like an eternity.
A warm blanket is praying for strangers in the next
room with a sick child.
A warm blanket is realizing that there are always
stories sadder and scarier than your own...
S.C.
|
| A warm blanket is the fuzzy green security
blanket that our 3 month old used to hide himself from
the cardiologists after his coarctation of the aorta was
corrected with angioplasty. 16 months later it's a little
rattier, but still as loved.
T.R.
|
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