August Update

Tyson has had a pretty good summer.   After he fully recovered from a bad cold in June (one that I thought he would have needed some oxygen to help him get over...but he made it through!) we managed to wean him off his nebulizer mask and switched him over to puffers instead.  He did really well with that and we enjoyed most of July with him only using his aerochamber, which was an awesome time-saving tool in the mornings and evenings.  Instead of a mask that takes anywhere from 10-30 minutes, he would just have a few puffs through his aerochamber each morning and evening!  It was great! 

In July a really nasty cold went around and Addisyn caught it as well.  She is finally getting over it now, and it's been 4 full weeks since she started her symptoms.  Within 2 weeks or so, despite my efforts to keep him away from Addi, Tyson caught it as well. But we weren't as willing to let him ride it out for the full 4 weeks like we can with our other heart-healthy children.

He started symptoms of coughing two weeks ago, so we immediately switched him from his puffers back to ventolin & pulmicort through his nebulizer mask again.  We went camping for a week at Albion Hills with the Kottelenberg family, and during that time he managed ok.  His energy levels were still fine then, and he even learned how to ride a two-wheeler that week!  (A very proud day for us all!)  

At camp, we kept up with his ventolin & pulmicort 4X day and he was coping ok.  Once we got home his cough started sounding very wet and it sounded to me like the virus was settling into his lungs and he was starting to come down with pneumonia.  Having said the same thing during his last cold in May but seeing how he got over that one on his own alright, we decided to give Tyson's body a chance to fight this cold on his own before rushing him in to the Dr.  But by early the next week he had a low-grade fever, was starting to really slow down, and he didn't want to go and play outside anymore.  Once a cold messes with his energy level, his sats drop, and his nailbeds turn blue, it's time to admit he can't fight it on his own and may need some help. Since he's so prone to pneumonia, we knew he'd likely either
a) need antibiotic help if he does have pneumonia
or
b) be admitted to hospital if we don't see a Dr soon.  

Since I know how much fun it is to be in a hospital, on Tuesday I took Tyson in to see his family Dr to make sure he was still ok.  Dr didn't hear any pneumonia specifically, but admitted it's very difficult to hear on Ty because his heart murmur is so loud.  Sats were 86 in Dr office, which isn't horrible for Tyson.  Because of his past history with pneumonia and how wet his cough sounded, and considering how long Addisyn's cold lasted her, Dr prescribed oral antibiotics to try improve his symptoms.  The plan was to try the oral first and if we didn't see any improvement within 24-48 hours, or if his condition deteriorated at all, he'd have to be admitted to Headwaters to start IV antibiotics.  We took him home, prayed the drugs worked and...within 24 hours Tyson's energy levels improved greatly and the cough slowly started to go away.  We're thankful that the oral antibiotics worked so quickly and that Tyson could bounce back without a stay in hospital!  Tyson's pneumonias can sometimes be stubborn and take time to improve even on IV antibiotics and oxygen therapy in hospital, so we're thankful the oral meds worked well this time :)  Especially because we have a very exciting weekend planned this coming weekend! 

Our family has been asked to participate in a promotional video for Cardiac Kids.  On Thursday, our whole family is making the trek out to Toronto for the video shoot where there will be hair stylists and make-up artists on set, activities for the kids between shooting, and snacks & lunch provided.  The video will be put up on their website to increase awareness about Congenital Heart Defects and what Cardiac Kids does for children & families affected by CHDs.  We are so excited to get to participate in this exciting event!  Stay tuned to this blog where I will for sure post a link of the video.  This could be an emotional day for us, because we have to speak about how CHD has affected our family, and everything Cardiac Kids has done for us, so please pray I don't blubber like a fool through the whole filming :)

Then from TO we are heading to Niagara Falls for one night to take advantage of free admission to 9 different attractions, generously donated to us when we left the GKTW village after Tyson's wish trip to Florida in February.

Then from Niagara Falls we travel into the USA to Darien Lake for two days of amusement park and waterslide fun!  Again, park admission generously donated to us when we left Give Kids the World.  

With Brian being so busy with work this summer, he's worked a lot of evenings and most Saturdays too, so we're thankful for the opportunity for our family to get away together.  (Brian didn't even get to camp with us at Albion Hills with his family - I went on my own with all 5 kids and a puppy....so we're both looking forward to this mini-vacay!)

I'm sure I'll post lots of pics soon!