Procedures and Unpredictables

It is true that the events of our lives are unpredictable.  We do not know what will happen tomorrow, or even in the next hour.  We make plans and create schedules, but all of that can change.

After waking up with a fever on Tuesday morning, Isaac continued to decline.  He spent two and a half days laying on the couch.  He didn't eat or sleep much.  Then we got the call that sent us to the emergency room at Primary Children's.

 When we were sitting in the ER Isaac was complaining about his itchy hospital bracelet.  He looked away with his sick eyes and said, "Mom, you were wrong."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
He looked up at me with those heavy green eyes. "You said I was getting better, and you were wrong."

 The first attempt to place an IV failed, so we had to go through that process twice.  Isaac is so brave, though.  Braver than a lot of people a lot older than him.

 After the IV was placed, Isaac had a CT scan of his chest to see exactly what was going on in there.

  They found a pocket of infected fluid about the size of a golf ball in the lower lobe of his left lung.  The fluid isn't making it hard for him to breathe but it is making him sick.

 After the labs and CT, it was time to move from the ER to the Children's Medical Unit.  On the way here, Isaac said, "I hope I get to go back to J."  We are in a different unit now, but Isaac seems ok with that.

 After we got into our room, Isaac announced that he was hungry, which was very good news considering he hasn't wanted to eat anything for the past three days.  We went to the cafeteria for a grilled ham and cheese and chocolate milk.

 And I got another yellow badge.  This says I am Isaac's mom.  It says I can sign the forms.  It means I can be with him.  It means I have a sick child and that we have to stay here together away from our family and our home.  It also means that we are at a place where Isaac is getting the best care possible.  Under the circumstances, I really wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

I was taking a shower this morning when the Child Life Specialists came with playdough and puzzles.  Isaac was set until it was time to go down for surgery.

He got to ride in a wagon down for his procedure.

 The experts at this amazing hospital kept Isaac distracted while the specialists discussed Isaac's procedure with me.  Treatment options for an abscess like this typically range from antibiotic treatment on the conservative end to drainage through a chest tube to removing part of the lung on the aggressive end.  Isaac was going in to drain the abscess and place a chest tube.  Since the abscess is inside the lung, some of the risks involve bursting the infected abscess and spreading the infection, and puncturing the lining of the lung creating an air leak into the pleural space.  The physician explained that these risks are minimal but real, and took time to answer all of my questions.

 I stayed with Isaac while they sedated and prepped him for the procedure.

 He just wanted to get it over with so he could eat lunch.

I felt uneasy when I left the special procedures room as Isaac fell into sedation.  I came back to his room to pray and think and write and wait for them to call.

Many of the unknowns about our situation - how long we will be here, what the results of surgery will be, what this all means long term - are a lot like the unknowns in life.  Regardless of research and evidence and studies and labs and treatment plans, life simply remains unpredictable.  There are very few things we can know for sure.  I know this:
I know my Heavenly Father knows me and loves me.
I know that He has a plan for me and I trust that plan completely.
I know that miracles are real and take place every day.
I know that there are angels around us, both seen and unseen.
I know that the power of prayer is real.  I have both felt and seen the effects of faithful prayer.
I know that the power of the Atonement can heal and change.
I know that the family is ordained of God and that He placed us in families to help us become who He wants us to be.
I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior.