Thankfully, though, this was not a reactive visit – nothing was wrong that sent us rushing in. No, the clinic appointments today were twofold: to once again establish a gastroenterologist for Namine, and to make sure she’s healthy enough to have some procedures done next week.
We haven’t had a GI doctor for Namine in two years or so, not since we walked out on the previous one. We felt then, as we still do now, that we were justified in doing so. Back then, Namine still had a g-tube; she’d had the jaw distraction and the palate repair, and was ready and willing to eat like any other child. But GI had other ideas: they wanted to increase her g-tube feeds, not decrease; this, in our opinion, was backpedaling. This filled Namine’s stomach too much, and made her prone to throwing up. (Of course it did. Try drinking a gallon of milk in a single sitting and see what happens.) Confronted with a doctor who was unwilling to revise or amend his stance on Namine’s feeds, we did what we felt was best for our daughter – we walked out and weaned her off the g-tube feeds altogether. That eventually led, of course, to Namine being able to have the g-tube removed outright.
Of course, she’s still a special needs patient, and her insides are different than a normal child. (Yeah, I know people who freak out and insist I use the word “physiotypical,” but screw all that politically correct crap. My daughter wasn’t born with a normal body, I know it and she knows it. There’s nothing to be ashamed of.) We want to make sure she’s getting the best nutrition for her body, which grows and plateaus at vastly different rates than other children; therefore, we feel it’s best to try and establish a good, working relationship with the gastroenterology department again.
I remember the old GI days, and those appointments would last upwards of three or four hours. Thankfully, that was not the case today (nor should it be, moving forward; the g-tube was the main cause of those lengthy clinic visits, and it is no more). The appointment was just a tidge over an hour (not bad); good thing, too, because we had another appointment right away – the pre-op physical. Next week Namine has a bronchoscopy – just the ENT doctor making sure her airway is still okay – and she’s having some cavities filled.
The “pre-op” part is right; Namine is being knocked out for a couple procedures next week Thursday. But it wasn’t anything so intense as what you might consider a “physical.” The doctor listened to Namine’s heart and lungs, took her blood pressure and oxygen saturation rate (a solid 85, for those of you who know what that means). Namine, of course, was a regular chatterbox; nothing wrong there. She took notes of things to consider during the procedure, like how best to get a successful IV, what to expect after the extubation, things like that. All in all, Namine is doing well, and has been cleared for surgery next week.
For your enjoyment, here are some pictures of Namine in ballet class last night. Sorry about the graininess of the ones where they’re stretching, I had to zoom in a bit.
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