Thursday, April 19, 2012

No, Seriously, Never a Dull Moment

I've been lax about updating lately, I know. And, there's about a million other things I'd like to be updating you all about, but today I must let you know of our latest escapade with Elijah.

Pout unrelated to this particular story
On Wednesday morning, I got a call from Elijah's school letting me know he'd burnt his hand on a steam pipe they didn't realize was exposed.  They said I needed to pick him up and that he probably needed to be seen by a doctor.

So I took him to the doctor immediately. Upon examining the wounds - which were on the back of the fingers on his right hand - the doctor said she thought it was a third degree burn. Then she told me it would probably leave a scar and that since it covered a joint, it was possible he would lose some mobility in his hand and the scarring could make his fingers tight and difficult to bend. I had been thinking the burn wasn't too serious up to this point, but when I heard the words "3rd degree" and "loss of mobility" my heart sunk.

When I got home, I broke down. How could there be yet another thing working against our sweet little man? The use of his hands is already difficult for Elijah and here I was being told that he could lose more mobility. Not to mention, it's his right hand -which just so happens to the hand that he uses the most.

The doctor did give me the number and address for the Burn Unit if we wanted to take a more aggressive approach, which could mean skin grafting or surgery. She left that decision up to me. Andy and I thought it would be best to get a second opinion and see if there was anything else we could do to prevent any long-term effects - from those who deal with burns all the time.

So today, Thursday, we went to the Burn Unit. And, thankfully, they had better news for us. They think Elijah's burn looks more like a second degree burn, that it won't affect his mobility, and that it probably won't scar (at least not too bad). They can't tell for sure because the blisters are still intact (we can't tell the depth of the burn until the blisters break, so there is still a chance that the burn is more serious), but it sounds like this hopefully won't be affecting Elijah long-term.

In the meantime, we need to keep Elijah's fingers clean and then be diligent about wrapping it once the blisters are broken to prevent infection. We'll see what the next couple of weeks bring, but we're hopeful that this will all be a distant memory soon.
First Day Ouchie Blisters
So, all in all, it's been an eventful couple of days. We're confident that everything is going to work out fine, but we'd be grateful if you'd send a prayer in little guy's direction. Elijah sure has been through a lot in his little life, but I don't know anyone with a better attitude and demeanor than our little man. He's been such a trooper and we're so, so proud.

6 comments:

Murzelmom said...

Oh Lisa, poor Elijah!

Praying for you for sure. (You don't know my but I introduced myself by a Facebook message).

I was already praying for you because you hadn't updated for more than a month and I didn't know what to make of that, I was concerned because you're pregnant and the due date is getting nearer, right? And now that one with Elijah's little hand. Poor guy.

I started to read blogs like yours because of my own NICU experience in the first place. It's not about my (typical) daughter, but because I didn't know how to handle my own experience. Then I discovered that big treasure in all of your blogs. You don't take things for granted, neither do I. You savour the cuteness of your children and the little things in our lives - so do I - and that is why I can't stop reading your blogs.

With Elijah's story I have now come to June 2009. Like other moms out there, you've been writing a novel. A very interesting one!

Those first entries of yours brought back all my feelings as a new mom to me. The way you wrote about your own feelings - so candidly! - and the fact that you trust in God has helped me a whole lot. Thanks, Lisa!

Now that my hubby has taught me (he's a computer specialist like yours) how to, I've added some comments, too.

Today I will continue to pray for Elijah's little fingers to get healed very soon!

Love from Britta

Anonymous said...

Lisa,
I'm going to share with you the moment that Jeff and I feel that we failed Brandon as a baby. We had a wood burning stove, and the afternoon that he had been exposed to chickenpox and we were discussing it as Jeff was emptying out the ashes from the stove. When we bought the shovel for the stove we had picked up an identical shovel for Brandon. When Jeff was finished, being distracted by our discussion we missed that Brandon came into the room and was playing with both shovels. All of the sudden Brandon cried out. We had no idea how long he had been holding the just used shovel and his palm was already massively blistered. The burn was so bad that they ended up slicing the blister open and draining it several days later. He wore a wrapped hand for weeks and to this day he still hates the song "Hot Hot Hot", but all these years later the scar is gone. We & the doctors were sure that there would be a permanent scar and I'm pretty sure it was gone before he turned 5.
We will keep you guys in our prayers, hoping that it turns out like it did for Brandon.

Love you guys!!!!!
Your cousin,
Rachel

Anonymous said...

Sending up prayers for Elijah. I was burned once on my arm was third degree. What helped me with the pain, was the salve and keeping it wrapped. The air really hurt. Give him a kiss from me. Tell him we love him and you sweetie. Hugs

Grandpa Dennis said...

Lisa

Just re-read Britta's comments. And what a fine comment it was. It brought tears to my eyes and I am an old man.

Wanted to say the picture of Elijah was special. It reminded me of one of his grandpa's, but I can't remember which one.

And God will heal up Elijah just fine.
No doubt.

Soon Elijah's brother will be here. How exciting is that?

Love from Grandpa Dennis

Anonymous said...

Will definately keep him in our prayers!

Murzelmom said...

Grandpa Dennis,

Your comment made me teary-eyed, too. Thanks for being who you are!

I am not all that young either, though. Will be 49 in October, our girl is turning four by the end of July. God had promised me to become a Mom after many childless years and after the first of three miscarriages - with a word about Abraham - because I had asked Him "why?" His promise went under the condition that I believe Him against the odds.

Lisa,

I'll keep praying for a quick and entire recovery of Elijah's hand - for an easy birth of your second baby with no complications - for Elijah to figure out how to talk to you at last. This last one is my long term prayer for Elijah and Andy and you.

Like you, I really do believe he'll get there some day.

Am praying that Elijah will get the knack of talking along with lil Bro!

Another train of thought: Do you think Elijah could use letters? Alphablocs of "cbeebies" from the BBC on the web?
Or could he benefit from the interactive games on "cbeebies"?
My daughter does, as we are Germans this is not her mother tongue, and yet she can handle that.

So, if Elijah doesn't understand all of it, perhaps he could benefit nevertheless ... perhaps his speech could be triggered that way?

This might be a silly thought of mine, but I just told you in case it is not.

Way to go, Elijah!

Love from Britta

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