Stanford Here We Come!

Well we just had a whole new bomb dropped on us today....

The doctors ordered another echo on Tanner today to see if there have been any changes since the last one since a lot changes in newborns in just a few days.

The doctors came and talked to us after they reviewed everything with what their plan is now.

What is now going on, is there are still the two holes in his heart that need to be fixed. The coarctation is not technically a coarctation, which is just a small kink in his aorta, but the entire aorta is too small and narrow and needs to be repaired.

There is also something else that I don't really understand about a valve, and a part of the muscle that did not grow right and is blocking the valve that needs to be repaired as well. This is their main worry at this point.

This is the worse case scenario that we were hoping would not happen, and what I was saying would cause two surgeries instead of just one. However, what the doctors are saying, is that they do not want to stage the surgeries (have two separate surgeries), they just want to do it all in one surgery. Which is a silver lining, that this will all be fixed at once, and we will not have to put him through this a second time.

The bomb that was dropped, is that they feel that the surgeons here at Primary's do not have the experience to be able to do this surgery with as much confidence as another surgeon with more experience would. So they have referred us to other locations, and to other surgeons that have more under their belt and can handle it better. All of these other locations are out of state.

We have decided to go to Stanford in California. The hospital is working on the arrangements to transport Tanner out there tomorrow, and hopefully still do the surgery in the next day or two. I am crossing my fingers that they will be able take me with him so I do not have to be away from my baby in the air, for hours on end on a separate flight. The nurses here are telling me that I will most likely be allowed to be transported with him.

Most likely, I will be out there for 2 or 3 weeks. Kollin is going to stay here, because frankly, we just can't afford for him to take that much time off work. He is going to be working and will try to come out on the weekends, and then take time off of work when Tanner is released and comes home.

Stanford is the #1 place the surgeons are recommending to take him. My dad and Gwen both agree. It may also be a good sign since Stanford is Tanner's middle name! Let's hope so!

This is all of the information I have for now, and will hopefully still be able to get this all done and over with in a timely manner. No matter what, the surgery is going to happen this week (it NEEDS to happen this week), we're just hoping Stanford will be able to squeeze us in. If not, we will have to go to another location that the surgeons have suggested. (Wisconsin, Boston or Philadelphia)

I'll keep everyone posted!