Parker had to do one last test before they could start growth hormone treatment. He had a Growth Hormone Stimulus test done at Primary Children's Hospital. He was admitted to the hospital for the day. They put us in a nice big room with his own bed, tv and unlimited movies. Parker thought it was awesome and was having so much fun, until...
They began poking him! They had to place an IV line in his arm. Because he was fasting, he was dehydrated and it was extremely hard to find a good vein. Also, they had to put in a fairly large IV because of the procedure. He had two nurses poking him and trying to get a vein for 30 minutes. It was so awful! Parker is really brave and he barely cried or whined. I kept telling him that it was okay if he wanted to cry, because I wanted to! As you can see by his face, after the torture he was not very happy.
He was so exhausted from the trauma of the IV line that he fell asleep. For the test, they gave him medication through an IV in order to stimulate his hormones to see how much, if any, hormones he is producing. They had to draw his blood before the procedure and then every 30 minutes during the 4 hour procedure. Every time the nurse had to draw his blood it was torture again. Because they were not able to get a good vein and place a big enough IV line, they basically had to irritate his arm so much just to get blood out. Once again, it was pretty miserable for Parker.
As always, Parker was a champ. He was so happy when the procedure was over and he could finally eat. He got to order anything he wanted from the awesome menu. He ordered a big pretzel, chocolate milkshake and banana. Yummy! They had to make sure his stats were normal before he left so he had some time to pick out a treasure and enjoy his lunch.
These tests have been exhausting for all of us, but we feel so blessed. We feel blessed that we have amazing doctors, medicine and health insurance to help us provide the necessary help Parker needs. We also feel blessed that Parker is not dealing with anything life threatening. We'll take this little trial compared to the many other children who are suffering with much more. We feel blessed that Parker is having so much fun with all the attention.
Since this test, we have found out that the insurance company has given pre-approval for his growth hormone medication. He will begin getting daily shots and hopefully, start growing. He's excited and keeps asking, "when is my medicine going to get here?" Unfortunately, he doesn't know that it will be given in the form of a shot. We are optimistic that he will continue to have a great attitude and enjoy the attention! Thanks to everyone for your amazing support. We have such a great support system of people who truly care about what is going on with Parker.
Thank you!
3 comments:
What a brave little man. Hope all goes well!
Brittany that sounds awful! It is amazing to me how much these little ones can go through and still come out smiling.
If you are ever going to go back up there for testing or poking, give us a call. We know all the best IV guys up there. The ones who get the vein the first time every time. We also have tips for how to get the veins to show themselves. I'd love to pass along what we have learned!!!
These pictures of Parker make me want to cry! He is so sweet! Good luck with everything!
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