1 month old

Bennett was one month old on Thanksgiving and BOY we sure had a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Let me start with Sunday of last week...
As Dave was changing B's diaper on Sunday night he noticed a bump in the crack of his bottom. Sorry if this is TMI, but he's just a baby. We didn't think much of it, put some cream on it and decided we would call the doctor in the morning.

Monday morning the bump still looked the same so I called the doctors office at 8am and was asked if it was hot to the touch or if he had a fever. Both of these answers were no so they scheduled us to come in for an appointment on Tuesday. Around 11:30 I was changing his diaper and pus was coming from the bump. I took his temperature again and it was 99.7 I called the doctor back and they told us to go to the ER at Dell Children's. Needless to say, I was scared! Dave hurried home and we made our way over to the hospital. As luck would have it, my good friend Stacey was coming down from Dallas to visit us for the day. She met us at the hospital as well as my brother and mom. We were seen rather quickly and put in an ER room. They came to see B and told us he had a perirectal abscess. They would have to take blood, urine, and do a spinal tap to rule out a blood infection or any other serious infections. They inserted and IV in his tiny little hands, and as he cried I did too. I'm so glad Dave was strong and Stacey was there to talk with me through the procedures.

His surgery to drain and repair the abscess was scheduled for 6pm. It was a long few hours waiting because I couldn't feed him due to the upcoming procedure. By the time he would eat again it would be 7 hours from his last feeding. He sure was hungry! We did a lot of bouncing and rocking trying to keep him as calm as possible. He has never been a pacifier baby, but he sure was enjoying it in the ER.

At 5:30 they wheeled us up to the OR floor and we talked with the surgeon and anesthesiologist about the procedure. The most difficult part of this for me was knowing that he would be put to sleep under general anesthesia. Saying "goodbye" as he was taken down to surgery was the hardest thing I've had to do so far as a mom. I'm so glad we had such a supportive group there with us to help take our mind off of the events of the day.

Around 7:30 they came to get me to come feed him in recovery. I cried as I held my baby who was still groggy from the anesthesia. These were tears of relief that he was OK and back with me. He didn't eat very well and was slow to wake up, but they assured me that this was normal and that they would monitor his heart rate and oxygen for 4 hours post-op.

It turns out that he had what they call and anal fistula. A fistula is a channel from one part of the body to another that shouldn't be there. In his case it was a small channel from his rectum which got infected. They say it is somewhat common and primarily only happens with boys. He was most likely born with it. This also explained his fussiness when he would go to the bathroom. For the few days leading up to Monday we just thought it was gas, but it was probably the infection beginning under the skin and it was causing him discomfort. We've noticed such a change now when he goes to the bathroom. I'm so glad he's not in pain anymore!

We were admitted to the hospital for 2 nights. During the stay they administered 2 IV antibiotics (one to kill staph and one to kill e-coli) every 8 hours and checked his vitals every 4. His incision gradually began to heal and we gave him tub soaks 3 times a day for 15 minutes to keep the area clean. The doctors were also keeping a close eye on his blood, urine, and spinal fluid cultures to make sure nothing was growing which would indicate a more serious infection. Luckily, everything was clear!

We were discharged on Wednesday - just in time for Thanksgiving!

This whole experience has made me so thankful for having a baby with only a small health issue. I can't imagine the stress parents of preemies or babies with severe health needs must go through. I am also blessed to have family and friends who supported us throughout the process.

B is now on oral antibiotics and the baths, but we went for a checkup on Friday and all is going great. We go back for a post-op follow up with the surgeon on Wednesday and I am expecting a clean bill of health!