emmett's health update

It has been a really long hard past few days for Brad and I. Basically, when emmett was about 5 days old, I noticed a small cut in the diaper area. (in between the cheeks to be exact) :). So, I took him to our pediatrician and the Dr. said it looked like a bad case of diaper rash. I mean, not that I wanted to argue with my pediatrician, but I do have a kid and I know what diaper rash looks like and this was not it. I had never seen this particular Dr. before and she seemed pretty unsure of what it was. So, she just gave me a cream for it. Looking back on it now, she should have had another Dr. come in for a second opinion or sent me to a pediatric dermatologist. I should've trusted my instincts and asked for another Dr. to come in. But, I didn't.

I thought maybe emmett had reflux because he would scream his head off every time I would feed him. Then I noticed that it wasn't gas or reflux, but it was every time he would poop, that he would freak out. It was because it was hitting the wound and it was super painful.

So, the week went on and the cream was doing nothing and the cut seemed to keep growing. It turned into a large open wound about the size of a dime. So, the next week I took him back in. The dr. that I normally see said it was cellulitus and put emmett on an antibiotic. After a week of the medicine, it continued to get worse. So, again, I took him back in. At this point, I was getting kind of nervous that an anitbiotic wasn't clearing it up. So, I saw a different Dr. and this time and he told me I needed to go to the hospital and seemed a little surprised that the other doctors hadn't sent me there first thing. He told me I need to go home right away, pack a bag, and take him to fairfax hospital.

We got to Fairfax and they had him hooked up to an I.V. It took about 3 sticks before they could get a vein. I can't even begin to tell you how painful it is as a mom to watch your child go through this, especially at such a young age. The doctors were worried he had MRSA, so they put him on a very heavy duty antibiotic. It made emmett so uncomfortable. His face would turn white and his body would be red and splotchy and he would shake. Oh my gosh...it was killing me. He was too young for benedryl which is what they normally give kids with that type of reaction. So, they could just give him tylenol. He was so miserable. Then they would come in every 8 hours or so, and draw blood. My poor baby.

The next day at the hospital, a pediatric dermatologist came by to see emmett. He gave the wound one look and said, "This is not an infection. This is called an ulcerated hemangioma." A half hour later, we were discharged. So, my child was pumped full of antibiotics and pricked and poked for absolutely nothing. I asked the nurse why the dermatologist didn't come first thing and she said that it just doesn't work that way. there are only a few dermatologists and tons of kids. So, poor emmett went through so much for them to tell me there was no infection. Although, I will tell you that I was SOOOO relieved. But, the bad thing is is that he is still in so much pain. Every time we change his diaper or he poops, he screams....sometimes to the point of gagging. It's awful. The dermatologist said that sometimes it can take months and months of healing when it's in the diaper area cause there is no air. And in that area, there is higher risk of infection. So, we are meeting with him on monday to talk about lasor treatments. My poor little guy!

Yes, I got to sleep in this ever so comfortable chair that folds out into a bed. I never fell asleep that night because a nurse would come in every half hour to either take his temp, check his medicine, do blood pressure, etc. Also, I wanted to hold him, so I just held him in bed with me most of the night and sang to him. He is seriously just the sweetest baby ever.

While we were at the hospital, Brad said Maryn kept asking, "Where mommy go? Baby go?" So, when we got home, she was thrilled. I even let her hang out with emmett in his crib and she just snuggled with him. She absolutely adores him. That day, I had a bit of a break down I guess due to the stress and worry. But, we are happy that he is ok and I am anxious to see about the lasor treatments so he can feel better!
Thank you all for your prayers!!!