Monday, June 2, 2008

I don't really have much time to write this, but I just wanted to get a post up letting everyone know what is going on. Last night Bela went into heart failure twice. They have gotten her stabablized now. We noticed Bela was very weak yesterday, not alert, and had very bad color. She all the sudden started to looked pale and gray. We hooked her up to her pulse ox and her saturations were in the 50's. I wanted to throw up. We have never seen them go below 75. We called her cardiologist and he stayed on the phone with us as we tried to wake her up and see if her sats would come up at all. They began dropping into the 40's. They got to 38, she was completley blue. I thought I might be losing her. We hung up the phone, Tanner gave her a very quick blessing that she would make it to the hospital and got in the car. I sat in the backseat with her, held her hand and kept telling her to breathe baby, breathe. She was struggling to breathe, her notstils were flaring and her lungs were pulling in. But a little into the drive she started to look much better. Her breathing calmed down a bit and she didn't look quite as blue. When we got to the ER and got her admitted, they hooked her up to the machines and she was back in the 80's, although her coloring was still pretty grayish blue. Everyone was very surprised to see 80's. (80 is good for Bela, normal sats are in the high 90's-100, just to clarify). We got her up to the Cardiac ICU and the dr. kept saying that she knew her sats looked okay but she was extremely worried about the way Bela looked. She started telling us that she didn't want to wait any longer for her sats to go down, she felt more comfortable just intubating her right then to help her breathe a little better and take some work off of her heart. Just as she was telling us this Bela's sats and heart rate started dropping fast. She yelled that she was coding and everyone who was standing by waiting to intubate her jumped into action. There were 8 drs and nurses in here working on her. It took 2 hours to get her stabalized. Then she started dropping again. They had to give her more manual breaths and she stabalized again after another hour or so. We still don't really know what caused it to come on so sudden, but they think it may be due to a leaking tricuspid valve. She has too much fluid in her lungs and heart and they are having a very difficult time getting it to stay off. They get her stabalized for awhile, then her sats start to drop some again. Nothing like they did last night, she's much more stable now, but still not in the clear. We will not know much more until all her tests and cultures come back and she goes into the cath lab over the next couple days.
Everything happened so quickly and we got her in without a second to spare. I have no doubt that the Lord sustained her heart until she got here and could receive the care she needed. We will update when we know more.

20 comments:

Alison (Abby's Mom) said...

Prayers from our heart family to yours. Praying, praying, praying.

Matt and Jennae Porter said...

Ugh, I don't even know what to say. I can't even fathom what you guys are going through. We love you all so much and have been praying for Bela non-stop. Hang in there little princess.

Anonymous said...

That happened so all of a sudden, I can't imagine how you must have felt. Bela is the most precious little baby, she is here for a reason there is no doubt about it. We will be praying for her.

Shannon said...

So sorry to hear this latest. I was hoping things had stabilized a bit. Has your mom gotten here, yet? Let us know if we can help at all.

Life Unscripted said...

Oh My Avery, I have tears running down my face and a huge lump in my throat...visions of Lily all over again just flashed through my mind...I wish I was there to give you a big hug and give you another shoulder to lean on...I needed many....I will continue to pray and place Bela on our churchs prayer chain...I was planning on taking a trip to St.Joes to make our rounds and say hello, so hopefully you will be in when I do. God be with you sweetheart! If you ever need to talk don't hesitate to call..602-682-5134. God Bless!

S and K said...

As always you guys are so strong to be enduring this and we hope everything starts to get better MUCH better. I feel for you having to see your sweet girl go through this. She is such a blessing to all of us and we love her and hope she keeps on fighing true Bela style! Love you guys and let me know if there is anything I can do to help you! I still feel terrible, terrible, terrible that I missed your call, I just wish I could have been there for you. SO SORRY!

Sally Jensen Interiors said...

Oh Ave...I cant handle it! I'm praying for your little family. Bela is one little fighter and I guess she wants her parents to be too. Please tell me if you need anything.

Anonymous said...

Hi, you don't know me but, I read your blog often to check on your little girl, I am SO incredibly sorry to hear this, it breaks my heart, I think of your family often and pray that your little girl will pull through. I just recently had my first baby and couldn't imagine going through what you are going through, you are a true inspiration as a mother! i will keep your family in my thoughts and prayers!

The Ridgway Family said...

I am so sorry Avery, but I am so thankful that Bela made it to the hospital. I know exactly how fragile these little babies are and I also know that they are strong beyond measure. We continue to pray that little Bela and little Eden will one day be able to run and play together. Our prayers are with you, Tanner, Benson and Bela. We love you and hope for a quick recovery.

Keisa

Branton Family said...

Please know both Ray and I are praying for you and your sweet Bela. Amy

Jennifer said...

I'm so sorry...This is another huge bump in the very long road you have been hauling. I know the last few days you have been running on almost empty. You are in our prayers and you know the Lord is giving you strength to make it through this next challenge. Bela has done so amazing and is such a strong little fighter...just like her mom. Please let me know if you need any help with Benson. Hang in there, my friend. I love you and pray for your whole family...especially your sweet Bela.

Dana said...

I am so grateful that the Lord has blessed this little girl to fight as hard as she does - she is such a special daughter of God and has a definite purpose here upon the earth. We love you guys and will pray for all of you. You are amazing parents and your strength inspires me - hang in there!

cait said...

oh my gosh...what a scary night. She is such a fighter, so are you both t & a. we love you & are praying constantly for baby bela.

The Simmons Family said...

I am so sorry for all that you are going through... NOTHING can be more terrifying!! I will PRAY that you get some answers as all the tests and cath results come back!

It is scary to hear the words "heart failure" as I've heard them many times. Continue to be strong and know that Heavenly Father is watching over you!

Bela has proved to overcome the odds thus far!! PRAYERS FOR BELA!

Erin said...

Avery I am so sorry for this setback...how scary. But as her mom you once again did what was needed and took care of her. The Lord is guiding you and is not going to let you down now, no matter what happens. You are such an epitomy of strength and just know you have many, many people praying and pulling for your family. Hang in there and know we will help where we can.

Anonymous said...

Hello from another heart family. My parents live in Mesa and mentioned Bela and we've been following her story. This might sound totally callous, but I hope you're able to catch up on your sleep while she is in the hospital. We're so glad for the blessings of the Lord and answers to prayers. I hope your little Bela does well and know that the Lord will bless and be with her every step of her journey.
Best wishes,
Amy (mom to Daniel, HLHS)
Pennsylvania

Erika said...

You have been on my mind all day. We had a similar scare with Sammy when he was about 4 months old and I remember how absolutely terrifying it was. I hope she is stable and they figure out what caused it and get her back on the path to doing well.

Carrie said...

Avery I'm sorry to hear of Bela's scare the other night. You are amazing to jump into action and get that little sweet gal to the hospital. We would love to have Benson come and play anytime. We sure do love your family and pray for you guys all the time! ♥

The Joslyn Family said...

I'm so sad to hear that news. We will be praying for Bella and your family.

Anonymous said...

I happened to stumble on your blog from a link on a friends site months ago and have been reading and praying ever since...even during the pregnancy. I just thought I would finally speak up and let you know that prayers are being lifted up daily for your family...her name is put in every time I go to the temple, too. This precious girl has touched so many lives already and will continue to touch many more. May your family find comfort in these times and may little Bela be blessed and continue to fight this great fight. You are loved!