WHAT NOW......

Where do I begin.....well Cooper finally got out of surgery around 5:00pm or so. Sherri had came over to sit with us and it was nice to have someone else there while Coop's 5 hour surgery turned into a 10 hour marathon! It took a little while for them to get him ready for us to see but about 5:30pm we were able to see him. I thought I remembered what it was like to see him for the first time after surgery but obviously I didn't. Walking into the little area where he is was crushing. There he lay completely lifeless with machines and more tubes coming out of him than I want to think about. I don't remember a thing they said to us, all I could do was stand there and cry. So that is what I did, stood there and cried, until about 8 pm. Tatum came to visit and stood and cried with me for awhile, thank you Tatum!!!! Your face and hugs really helped remind how lucky we really are to have such great family and friends. I finally choked back enough tears to ask what everything is and how Cooper really is doing. This is what I found out.

Cooper's lungs are working fine and the heart surgery went well. The problem is that the lungs don't seem to understand that their job is to take in the blood, remove the carbon dioxide, give it oxygen and send it back to the heart so the heart can pump it to the rest of the body. Understand that for 6 months not only has Coop's heart not worked properly but his lungs have also been altered. So the plan is for Cooper to stay on a machine called and ECMO and a ventilator. The ventilator obviously breathes for him and the ECMO takes the blood from his heart into this crazy big machine which takes out the carbon dioxide and puts in the oxygen and then shoots it back into his body. Right now his blood pressure and respiratory rate are virtually non existent because the machines are doing all the work. They also monitor his bleeding because he is on a very powerful blood thinner so the blood won't clot in the machine. They will do a sonogram on his head daily to make sure there is no bleeding and will also monitor his organs. We have been told by the nurses that the average time on the ECMO is 5 days to 2 weeks but they have one 8 month old right now that has been on for 3 weeks. I guess we will take it one day at a time. Cooper is being kept completely sedated and his chest is remaining open. They basically want his lungs and heart to completely rest for the next few days.

What do I think of all this? My eyes burn, my head is killing me and I haven't eaten for over 12 hours so I don't know what I think, I will let you know that tomorrow. I am trying to stay positive and not get all stressed out or even think about the days and nights I will be spending in this little room or how once again I will miss my sweet little Raelynn who I have already been without for 5 days and just focus on my precious little boy who is resting peacefully but has quite a fight ahead of him.