Hello Baby, you had another great day. Grandma got to hold you for the first time!!!! You both absolutely loved it. You have two wonderful grandmothers who love you dearly. They both love holding you, and each cried their first time. You are a lucky girl to be brought in this world and immersed in a family full of such love. Mommy told me about how much she enjoyed watching her mom hold you. It was a great day for all of us.
The second half of the day was less great. Your eye exam was scheduled for noon. After the exam the eye doctor stated that your eye development problem had gotten worse. So, he recommended surgery within 24 hrs. They are worried that if the blood vessels in your retina continue to grow irregularly it will cause enough damage that some day your retinas would detach and would probably end in blindness. Retinas develop from the center out, so you have had very good development in the center, but as the development spreads out toward the edges you are showing irregularities. The doctor lasered the end of the vessels to stop the growth that would cause future damage. So this procedure will not effect the majority of your vision. The believe over 90% of your vision will be unaffected. There will likely be diminished peripheral vision. So you will likely not have wide of a screen as most. The doctors don’t think this will cause life changes and should only be slightly measurable. So, all in all it is great this was caught early, because they were just a week or so short of not being able to stop the problem. We are very thankful for the eye doctor. He was extremely knowledgeable and kind. He clearly explained and answered all of our questions.
Prior to your surgery, to prepare for the sedation, nurses had to reintubate you, and return you to the full ventilator. Yes, the terrible tube is back into your lungs. This was really hard for Mommy and I to see. You have been so comfortable the last week it feels like a huge step backwards. We had only small steps forward it seems, never a step back. Now that you understand what its like to feel comfortable it hurts to watch you go through that pain again. It really set in just how much you’ve gone through, how strong you’ve been, and what progress you’ve made. We really hope you can go back off the vent quickly. Overnight you needed it for sure. The settings weren’t really low either. As the sedative wears off hopefully you will show less and less need for it. At least we know you are sleeping well with these pain meds and sedatives still in your system. We love you and already want to hold you again soon, You are so strong!
Letters to Holland 