Surgery Canceled

All the arrangements, all the anxiety, all the preparation, and surgery has been canceled.

On Saturday night, Zane began to exhibit sick-like behavior: crankiness, sleepiness, sneezing, and nasal congestion. We put him to bed early and decided to wait until morning to see how he was.

Yesterday morning—the planned day to head to Denver—arrived. Zane still had signs of a cold coming on. I called the surgeon’s answering service and talked with the surgeon on call. He sounded a bit cranky himself at 7:30 in the morning. He told me in a clipped tone that nasal congestion is not a reason to cancel surgery…until I mentioned that Zane has both a Trisomy 18 and asthma diagnosis. Then he paused. Still, he said he and Zane’s surgeon could not make the final call. It would be up to the anesthesiologist. I didn’t have that phone number. So my mom, Zane, and I headed out, knowing we could be turned away for surgery in the morning. We stopped to have breakfast in town.

However, Zane fell asleep at the restaurant table—not a typical behavior for him at all. Normally, he is loud and happy and disruptive in restaurants. When I lifted his head, green snot dribbled from his nose. I called Zane’s amazing pediatrician—who did not have a clipped tone on Sunday morning. Did I mention she is amazing? After discussing the specifics, she believed that with Zane’s asthma he would be turned away in the morning. We canceled the surgery. I undid the numerous things I did to make the trip a go: canceled room reservations, contacted my employer about the vacation hours I didn’t need to use, ordered the antibiotic I thought Zane would not longer have to take, unpacked, and tried to shift my frame of mind out of surgery mode and back into daily routine/sick child mode.

I am exhausted.

At this point, I am not sure what will happen with Zane’s kidney surgery. I am waiting to hear from the surgeon today. Jeff and I both agree it is now best to wait for spring. Neither of us wants to drive over the passes with snow on the horizon. Zane could have surgery in October, but that would put his six-week follow-up appointment in November. Right now it is moment to moment, wait to see.

As for my mom, she is now taking a Colorado vacationJ

Thanks again for the prayers and support you have given to Zane and to us. It means everything!