Surgery Day: Mommy’s Point of View

This will be two parts – one factual with everything we’ve learned, one from the mommy point of view. This is my point of view…

Procedures shouldn’t be scheduled for the afternoon. All that waiting, then all of the sudden it is time. Not fun.

We went out to a nice breakfast and took Pip to a park to get some wiggles out. He was in an exceptional mood, which helped. He had a good night sleep and his Nana was there – what else could a boy want?!

Soon it was time to head to Dr. Jesse’s office. We arrive early to fill out paperwork and were greeted by a nice receptionist in a beautiful waiting room.  Soon we were ushered back into a very large procedure room. There was a bit of a wait at that point, and Pip became restless. So we wandered the halls a bit. Everyone was very sweet, greeting him with waves and smiles. It definitely helped us all feel a tad relaxed.

When Dr. Jesse walked in, he greeted everyone and struck up conversation with me. We “geeked out” for a bit on Liam’s diagnosis, his prognosis, the lack of education on this across professions … It was a conversation that definitely put me at ease.

Diagnosis: Liam’s lip tie was extremely severe – definitely a class 4. He should  have struggled with reflux, been a “failure to thrive” and never should have been able to nurse. His tongue tie was moderate severe with a good chance of impacting lower jaw development and causing sleep apnea.

They had Oliver lay down in the dentist chair with Pip on his chest. His job was to talk to Liam , while using his arms to hold his body still. Two nurses hold his head steady. My mom helped hold his feet and I stayed “out of sight”. We wanted to give him someone “safe” to return to after we were finished.

That was a very long 6 minutes … second only to the length of time for his surgery at 4 weeks old. I could not in good conscience leave the room. If a procedure is being done to my son and I don’t have the stomach to watch, how can I subject him to it?

So I stood. In the corner.

Listening to my baby scream at the top of his lungs.

Crying myself.

Cursing the lactation consultant at his birth.

Praying for it to end quickly.

Throughout the whole procedure Dr. Jesse was amazing. First they numbed him with and adult dose. Dr. Jesse assured me his older patients all reported not feeling anything with that dose. They gave that a good bit to settle, then they began the procedure. Pip bit Dr. Jesse a few times. VERY hard. And never once did he jump, become loud, etc. His voice stayed calm, soothing and friendly. More than once I heard “That was a good bite! What a strong jaw you have! Can I have my finger back? I need it so we can finish buddy…” Amazing.

In hindsight, it was over quickly. I couldn’t get to my baby quick enough. I scooped him up in my arms as he struggled to catch his breath. My mom assured me she watched his eyes the whole time. It was anger with a little fear, not pain, that had him hysterical. By the time we left he was still working to catch his breath, but waved goodbye to Dr. Jesse and his nurses.

Dr. Jesse was very happy with the outcome, we were given the post-op instructions and took him back to the hotel. I gave him tylenol, teething tabs, rubbed copaiba on his lip, diffused gentle baby and worked to settle him. He couldn’t nurse – partially due to being numb and partially because he couldn’t figure out his new mouth. It was like trying to breastfeed a newborn. He rammed his face into my chest, couldn’t hold a latch and just sobbed. My mom (bless her) was finally able to rock him to sleep.

He slept for hours. Still working to catch his breath – even in his sleep.

The next few weeks opened our eyes to how much the lip and tongue tie really impacted him…

Next week: The Facts and an Update

❤ Tara