We left about 5:40am, with Makayla and Savannah in tow. Kinsey stayed sleeping in her bed and luckily my parents were in town (for their own appointment) and able to get her ready and to school for us.
Check in at 6:15, up to the 9th floor by 6:45, they called her back around 6:55. She wanted Roy to take her back, sweet little daddy's girl that she is. I gave a quick hug and kiss and tried not to get to emotional in front of her. She knew she was going to drink some medicine, take a nap and wake up- but what does that really mean to a 3 year old? Surgery is really just another random word for something a Dr does at a hospital at this age.
I was left with Savannah, tearing up in a waiting room watching the sun rise over the city. I knew she was in good hands, but it nearly killed me to not be by her side.
Back with Roy they talked to the Anesthesiologist, she drank her sedative, and they were told it would be about 10-15 minutes to start to see the effects, with a full 30 minutes until she was really sedated and ready to be brought back to the operating room. Roy was a great companion, taking a million 'selfies' from every angle of her and her favorite stuffies, tigger and sock monkey, that she had brought for comfort.
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| Selfies while they waited on the sedatives |
The time came for Roy to leave her side, and while she was pretty sleepy at that point he said it was just awful saying goodbye and seeing the fear in her eyes. Talk about having your heart ripped out of your chest.
Surgery started about 7:35am, and her Dr came to let us know everything was over around 8:38am. He said she did well, but obviously only time would show us the results of the surgery as her eyes heal.
10 minutes later they brought be back to the recovery room to a sleepy, loopy, trashing and yelling little girl. It was a rough 20 minutes or so while the worst of the anesthesia wore off, and then she became more coherent and peaceful, with periods of sleeping on my chest mixed with wakeful grumpiness.
Some of her most repeated phrases:
"I only want mommy's water from home"
"my sister....I want my sister"
"my eyes hurt"
"what's on my face" (nothing was at that point)
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| A peaceful moment in the recovery room |
Finally she drank a few sips of the hospitals water after I convinced her is was mine. At 9:40 they said we could go and took out her IVs and Pulse Ox monitor. They wheeled us out to the car, where Roy and a crying/hungry/tired Savannah were waiting. We drove over to a nearby parking lot so I could feed the baby and as soon as I got her out Makayla started vomiting. It was chaotic moment, but soon we were back on the road for the trip home. Makayla slept the whole ride.
Back at home she crashed on the sofa for the next 3 hours, with periods of waking, drinking water, vomiting, and then more sleeping. She said the cool rag across her eyes really felt good, so it stayed on her face for most of those 3 hours. Around 2 she began to be more wakeful, sat up to eat some crackers and drink water (kept it all down!) and took some ibuprofen. She was laughing and told us that "there's two daddy's!" At which point we figured she was definitely experiencing some double vision, which we had been warned was a possible temporary side effect.
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| Sleeping it off at home |
At 3 we loaded up to get Kinsey from school and drive back downtown for a post-surgical checkup with her Dr. At this point Makayla was fully awake and in good spirits. She didn't complain about pain or mention being tired at all.
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| On our way for Post-Op Checkup |
The Ophthalmologist seemed pleased with the results already! YAY!!!! He said her eyes already appear to be pretty straight, which is great news to us! He gave her great praise from his staff on how well she did during prep and recovery- they were all amazed at her bravery, calmness and maturity at only 3 years old.
We go back in two weeks for more testing, and in the meantime her double vision should fully subside (it already is much, much better) She already looks different to me- whether it is just the swelling and redness, the dilation of her pupils, or the fact that her eyes are more centered and straight is just too hard to tell right now. I don't remember her looking so different after the first surgery, so I'm hoping this is a good sign.
She slept all night and woke up only complaining a small amount about her eyes hurting. After meds and the cool rag she is now back to her normal, happy and carefree self. We basically have to keep reminding her to be calm and play quietly! Her eyes will be swollen and red for several days, with prolonged redness for up to a month. She's pretty good about wearing her princess sunglasses when we go outside, so hopefully she will be healed up quickly in time for a fun summer in the pool!
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| This morning- eyes closed they look nearly normal |
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| This morning- she wasn't being very cooperative for a photo |
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| She wanted me to take a picture of her new paw patrol toy not her eyes |
Praying that this is the last of her eye surgeries and we are over the worst of the recovery process! Thanks to all our family and friends for their continued prayers and positive thoughts during this process.
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