An update from the hospital

If you are Facebook friends with me, you are aware that our family has been hit with the influenza A virus.  Abagalye came home from school last friday feeling yucky, McKenzy succumbed to it Sunday by noon, Sidney woke us up at 3am Monday morning and Keyan spiked a fever at 4:30 that same morning.  Because Keyan has an indwelling central IV line, anytime that she has a fever over 100.4, we have to follow a strict protocol which includes 48 hours of IV antibiotics inpatient at the hospital. It was at the ER that we got the positive influenza test.  We immediately started Keyan, Sidney and McKenzy on antiviral medication and hoped for the best.  It has been a rough week!

At this point, Abagayle is finally up and playing a little bit throughout the day.  McKenzy and Sidney aren't getting far from the couch or their bed but they seem to be done with the high temperatures, and Keyan remains in the hospital.  On Keyan's good days, her body does not have much of a reserve to help fight off an infection.  Therefore, this flu has left her very depleted and her body is having a hard time balancing things like fluids and electrolytes.  So, what we were all hoping would be a 48 hours stay to make sure her central line was protected, has turned out to be much more than that.  

We need to get her fluids balanced and in the right place in her body, we need her kidneys and liver to settle down, we need to get several of her electrolytes back to their normal levels, we need to control her nausea and gagging, and get her more comfortable.  That is our plan for the day.

Paul and Jamahl have stayed feeling healthy and we are so thankful for that.   After I woke up with body aches, fever and chest congestion yesterday, I have started Tamiflu and while I don't feel great, it could be A LOT worse.  I did my best to wash my hands like crazy but when you are dealing with trach secretions and all types of bodily fluids, your body can only fight for so long.  

I think the hardest part about this week has just been our family being separated.  While there was once a time when this was our norm, we have moved on from that time very purposefully.  The kids are older and feel the separation differently then when they were toddlers.  Keyan hates being away from her family and home and Paul and I are missing each other something fierce. We are trying to make decisions on the phone and keep things running at home and it is so hard to do effectively.  Thanks so much for those of you who have been praying, dropped off a meal to the house, and offered your help.  It means so much.  It complicates it so much with the other kids being sick and us not wanting to expose people to this nasty bug.  Continue to pray that Keyan's body can get some rest today and continue to heal and find its balance.  Pray for the rest of the kids that they don't  worry too much about her and deal with being away from mom.  Pray that Paul and I can keep trudging on, making the best decisions for everyone involved.  Thanks so much for supporting us through this journey.

Feeling icky and trying to rest