2bliss

Update: Bunny is doing very well. Only 2 of her feeds are via the nasal tube now. She is drinking 8 bottles and has started to breastfeed a bit. She weighs 1.920kg which is more than double her birth weight! Hearing test has been passed with flying colours. I'm sure she will be going home soon. Below are pics of Bunny in her new accommodations (no more spaceship) and another of her being held. She is so peaceful and sleeps in all her pics. I don't even know what colour her eyes are! Mom says it is hard to tell, but they think perhaps blue like her daddy's.

Karmi's parents are going through a rough time. The little boy mentioned a few pages back, also born at 28 weeks, passed away yesterday. They are not only sympathizing with the parents, but are reliving the death of Karmi's twin. A parent never really gets over the death of a child but with their attention having been focused on Karmi's wellbeing and nothing else, I don't think they've really been able to grieve for her brother. Please hold in your hearts the parents of the little guy who lost a brave fight yesterday.

There is no stopping Bunny! She is on four bottles (and Mommy), but still has the NG tube too. She has passed her hearing test with flying colours. The doc says that if she continues to improve at this rate that she will probably go home in a week or so

It's Friday and we can have some fun as things are going so well

Lemme hear a whoop-whoop!!! Bunny is hopping over from NICU (neonatal ICU) to PICU (peadiatric ICU) today. She is getting three bottle feeds per day now and Mum got to give one for the first time! Complete closure of the hole in her heart has been confirmed by ultrasound and the ophthalmologist says there are no detectable abnormalities in her eyes. They have been checking and rechecking her eyes, but she was too small to say for sure with previous examinations.

Awwww... shame man. Just goes to show the extent of trauma and stress parents of these little miracles go through.

@Escapee: Thanks for sharing. Your little ones are beautiful! Bunny will also be going home when she reaches 2 kg. Most people don't realise just how small a baby is at that weight. Her parents are both excited and petrified at the prospect of taking her home. They were traumatised by witnessing a number of resuscitations. (I did not include much of the really bad stuff early on in this thread.) Luckily they were gifted the Snuza device. Glad to hear you guys found it effective Mum and dad also received first-aid training just to be safe. Bunny is managing with two of her feeds being bottles now. However, the extra energy expenditure of drinking from bottles, taking baths and being treated more like a full-term baby has slowed her weight gain a bit. She is up from 1.740kg to 1.810kg. Almost there...

Over the past two months I've received PMs from quite a number of Hubbers who had their babies born prematurely. Did a quick Google search and it turns out the estimated rate of preterm birth in SA is 14% (and on the rise)! I had no idea it happens so frequently. Granted, not all are very premature like Bunny. Question for preemie parents (please PM if you do not wish to respond publicly): How to cope with the anxiety associated with taking home a tiny 2 kg baby with a history of intermittent apnoea and the increased risk of SIDS all preemies face? Do you buy a monitor for pulse rate and blood oxygen? Do you take a chance with a monitor based on movement? Do you take turns sleeping and watching baby? Do you just trust / believe all will be well? (We've already ensured Bunny will be sleeping in HaloR swaddle sleeping bags - no loose blankets near her sweet face!) EDIT: Let's have a "like" for NICU awareness month (September) http://www.nicuawareness.org/

The Daily Cuteness: So, two days ago it took Bunny 25 minutes to finish one bottle. Yesterday she shaved 10 minutes off her "PB" to make it 15 minutes. (She sounds like a Hubber already! ) This impressed the doc so much that, as of today, two of her feeds will be bottles. The little monkey pulled out her feeding tube AGAIN - can't say I blame her as I would not want a tube down my nose either! Today is "weigh-day" and we can't wait to see how much she has grown. All seems well and she is the little star of the NICU

Forgot to mention: Karmi is two months old today! (Her actual due date.)

Good morning guys and gals Apologies for my absence - had a minor surgical procedure on Thursday. So, here follows almost a week's worth of Karmi updates: She is receiving 33ml fortified breast-milk per feed and her O2 sats are at or near 100% most of the time breathing regular air. She is still receiving Cayona to stimulate her lungs. She sleeps well and the nursing staff says that she is a very peaceful baby. Kangaroo care is going well at last. She weighs 1.740kg (almost twice as much as at birth), has had two real baths, had her hair washed and has had her first mani-pedi Yesterday she had her first bottle. It took her 25 minutes to finish it and was quite a struggle. After a couple of swallows she would cry from ingested air, but after burping she would seek out the the bottle immediately. The doc says they will take it slow and give just one of her daily feeds with a bottle for now.

Daily update: Karmi continues to surprise. She is really doing well. Her fortified milk has been increased to 30ml per feed. The doc says they can start trying bottle feeding next week. It may be tricky, because some preemies "forget" to breath when drinking from a bottle. Also her mouth is so small... eish... we'll have to see how it goes. Would be great if it works, because then they will be able to ditch the feeding tube she keeps pulling out.

Daily update: Bunny has gained 80g since Wednesday, which makes 120g for the week. She now weighs 1.52kg. She has had her second real bath and especially enjoys stretching whilst being dressed. She is a little angel and rarely cries.

Thank you from Bunny and parents. (I've not yet received the daily update.) EDIT: Yes, that is a regular A4 paper.

Karmi continues to improve. She sleeps well, has a healthy appetite and is growing at a good rate at last. Dad had another turn at kangaroo care today. Ouch! His chest hair is probably thinning rapidly! The doc says, barring any complications, Bunny can go home when she reaches 2kg. I find that surprising as full-term newborns usually weigh quite a bit more than that. Tomorrow is weigh-day. Holding my breath to see how much she has grown. What follows is in Afrikaans, and I apologise to those who don't understand, but it is something Karmi's mum wrote:

Karmi is doing really well! She had her first real bath today, didn't cry and seemed to enjoy the experience. Blood tests showed that she is starting to make at least some of her own blood cells On a more sobering note, please send healing vibes to an as yet unnamed baby boy born at the same hospital (also at 28 weeks). He is very, very ill and fighting for his life in the isolation NICU. May the little guy and his parents find the strength to make it through this. (EDIT: NOT the start of another fundraising effort.) Below is a pic of Karmi. EDIT: Second pic. High five!!!

More blood tests will be performed tomorrow, but this time they will be for routine checks instead of diagnosing problems like before Bunny loves her pacifier and gets to wear tiny outfits every day now. I will ask for another picture to post.

Daily update: Bunny now gets 28ml of fortified milk per feed. Apparently she has learned to tell time, because she starts crying just as her next meal is due. She has gained 40g since Sunday, so that brings her up to 1.44kg. As long as she gains weight and infections are avoided, all is well

It has happened before and she knows that apnea of prematurity is an ongoing challenge, but it must still have been a shock. Luckily mom is a strong, brave lady.

Good evening everyone. Bunny had a short period of apnea whilst mum was holding her tonight, but the monitors picked up on it and the nursing staff stepped in quickly. She has come such a long way but is still a very small preemie, so there will be scares like these until she is more developed neurologically. A Hubber who wishes to remain anonymous made a donation which brings the total to R25 000.

Bunny's regular pediatrician returned from vacation today and was very pleasantly surprised by her recent progress. He said: "Sy raak nou 'n groot meisie." (She is becoming a big girl.) Her condition is stable and unchanged. Thank you, kind stranger, for a donation which brings the total to R24 500.

Thank you, guys. You have me all teary-eyed now. Was feeling very blue. I will continue to post then, but will probably just cut down a bit on the frequency so as to be less in the faces of those who feel obliged to read threads they don't like. Today is "weigh day". Karmi gained 100g from Wednesday to Sunday and now weighs 1.4kg! Fortified milk has been increased to 26ml per feeding. It has been quite a while since she has required a blood transfusion - touch wood - which means that the hole in her heart has closed. (Thank you, V12man, for explaining how blood cells get "chopped up" quickly by such a hole.) Bunny has had a good week

Following certain comments in another thread, I have learnt that my frequent messages of thanks and updates on Karmi's condition may be irritating fellow Hubbers. This has certainly never been the intent but, if so, I apologise and will stop posting now. For those who have been following the thread, this is the current status: Bunny is just half the size of a full-term newborn. She is in NICU, stable, breathing regular air and receiving fortified human milk via a nasal tube. The major threat she still faces is infection, because she does not have much of an immune system yet. Thank you to all who have been so very supportive, for all the kind messages, prayers and healing vibes. Feel free to PM me if you would like an update on Bunny in the future. Kind regards Nicole EDIT: If anyone were to be so kind as to make a donation in future, please use your Bikehub name as reference so that I may thank you via PM.

Basically, if all continues to go well and she doesn't get any infections, Bunny should be able to leave the hospital by mid- or end October.

We drove to Fourways today and had lunch with Karmi's mum. She was upbeat and positive, and looked beautiful despite not getting much sleep. This must be due to all the good news: Bunny is still doing well with no extra oxygen and her sats are actually very good at 97-98%. She now gets 24ml milk per feeding. Tomorrow is "weigh-day" when we will know how much she has grown this past week. Are those little cheeks just a bit rounder, or is it my imagination? Bunny in her "spaceship"!