I lost track of which folks were doctors, which were therapists, and which were nurse practitioners.
Last Thursday was a marathon morning at UNC Hospital. We started the day with Willa' NICU follow-up. Of course, before any visit, there is the measurement portion. Willa weighed in at 12lb 11oz and 26.5 inches in length. I think she might have hit 13lb if she hadn't have pooped right before being placed on the scale.
The NICU follow-up consisted of a rotating door of folks giving Willa a work up. The first part looked like fun and games. The woman used toys to get Willa to look in all different directions. Willa also had her reflexes, flexibility, hearing and eyesight tested. I think she passed this portion with flying colors.
Next up was a visit from occupational therapy/physical therapy. This was our old friend Lisa - the same one who made Willa's turtle shell. Lisa found issues with Willa's lack of core strength, balance, and muscle tone. Much of this seemed to be duplicate of what we are already working on with PT.
The third person to look at Willa was the speech pathologist. It was also about this time that Willa started to get hungry. Willa did great eating her baby food but there was some concern with her "technique" of taking the bottle. Willa eats at her own pace. Often, she is distracted by her surroundings and loses suction on the nipple. Also, the lack of volume was concerning. We discussed her occasion spitting up and hiccups. They thought it sounded like silent reflux. Willa is being put on a medicine to be taken twice a day. Hopefully, this will be the cure that gets her to eat more. I'm skeptical but I do hope it works.
I don't even know the title of the fourth person. It almost seemed like a big wrap up of the previous folks as well as discussing Willa's lack of weight gain. We were told that Willa might not be eating large amounts because she is fatiguing due to low muscle tone. The work done in PT should help with this. Also, we were told to stop using the excersaucer and the johnny jump up because it is creating the bad habit of not using the core for standing.
I thought the NICU follow-up was a very helpful visit. With that being said, I wish it had occurred during the normal 3-6m timeframe (as stated in the informational brochure). I just think about how much further ahead we could be on solving some of these issues had the visit occurred sooner than 9m. They want to see us back in 3 months. Also, we are to call in with weekly weight checks.
Next came two doctors from plastic surgery. We requested a consult to have them look at Willa's flat spot and potential need for a helmet. Thankfully, Willa's head is fine and no helmet is needed.
After plastics came a visit with the nutritionist. Again, we talked about Willa's eating and lack of weight gain. Willa is supposed to be drinking 24oz of breast milk a day. We are not coming close to that number. We now have the okay to wake Willa at night to get in an extra feeding. We are also going back to charting her fluid intake.
We ended the day with Dr Adamson. He is still pleased with the surgery site. He did mention that he is unsure of what the scar will look like as Willa gets bigger. The optimal window for a potential redo on the belly button would be between the ages of 5-8.
That ended day at UNC. Willa was a champ b/c it was a long morning without a nap. So, as I said, we are back to charting her feedings and I'm fairly certain that I will be getting up most nights to sneak in an extra bottle. Please excuse me if I seem tired.
