Surgery 12/19/07

Savannah will be having surgery December 19th.

They are going to go in with a needle and insert dye into her joint to determine if they can put the ball back in the socket without having to do open reduction. The doctor said if they were unable to put the ball back into the joint after the dye test, they would have to do open reduction. Either way we are in a spica cast for 6 weeks, and I believe he said we come back and do a cast switch and she will have that cast for another 6 weeks, and then we are in a brace! We will have to make a decision when she is 18 months on whether or not to do surgery again with another 6 weeks in a cast or she can wear a brace for a whole year. That's our options at 18 months. If we do the surgery at 18 months.. once her 6 weeks with the cast is over...this whole ordeal should be over... same thing with the brace for a year. I don't want to make that decision this far in advance, so we are just going to take it one day at a time.

I have so many thoughts and questions going through my head right now. What kind of clothing can she wear? What size should I get with the cast and all? Is there something I can get her so I can feed her.. because her high chair won't work with the cast? What about diaper changes.. how on earth do I change a diaper with that cast? Are there any special toys or things I could get her to help make her life easier? Is she going to be in a lot of pain after surgery if they have to do the open reduction? How is she going to react to this cast? What can I expect her to be like when she wakes up for surgery? I've actually wondered what if she doesn't come out of the anethesia?.. horrible thought I know, but I am just really scared right now. I have a lot of emotions running through me right now. Matt and I both are an emotional mess. We aren't really eating well or sleeping well either. There are times when I am really optimistic and I know that I can handle all this, and then there are times I wonder how am I going to possibly deal with it all? I'm just a mess right now.

I feel horrible that I haven't responded to my post on EB regarding her upcoming surgery. You have no idea how much I appreciate all the love and support everybody has given me. I have read each response through my tears, and I appreciate each and every one of them. I will respond when I can cope and find the words. Right now, I just need some time to deal with things. I hope all you wonderful ladies can forgive me for not responding yet. I am grateful for all the support, because I need all the help I can get. I have cried all day, and my husband isn't doing much better than me. My heart feels like it's being crushed in a million pieces. It's so hard to even look at her sometimes. I just feel so helpless and sad right now.