Pre-Op

As I am typing this my heart is pounding and I am pretty sure I am having a mini panic attack at the thought of my child having open heart surgery tomorrow.  I must say that the pre-op has eased some (emphasis on some) of my nerves.

We arrived at the hospital around 10am and they took us right back to do all of the registration, history, and blood work (Carson did not like that part).  We also met with the child life specialist who gave us "beads of courage" (http://www.beadsofcourage.org/) and talked to us about getting through it all and how to talk to Kaylee about it all.  She also gave us a bag of goodies for Kaylee to play hospital with.  Then she walked us over to the Cardiac ICU Unit and gave us a tour.  This is where we met the surgeons' PA who walked us through the surgery and recovery.  We then went to do chest x-rays to make sure Carson's lungs were clear.  He was a real trooper through everything.  Finally we were able to meet Dr. Mendeloff, Carson's surgeon.  He was wonderful and walked us through everything step-by-step and drew it all out for us.  Ha, I think I know the whole anatomy of the heart now.  We learned that the surgery will take about 3.5 to 4 hours.  He will then go from the OR to the Cardiac unit where he will get situated for another hour or so.  We will get to sneak a kiss in between the two.  Carson will be in the cardiac unit for 1-3 days and then a step down room for another 1-2 days.  It was comforting to know that the surgeon does 400 surgeries a year and has been doing this for 17 years.  Even though it is a huge big deal to us, it is just a normal day in the office for him.

Thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers.  Please forgive us if we don't get back to everyone.  We will try to keep this updated as often as possible tomorrow.