Today my niece had to have emergency surgery to reattach the tip of her finger. I can not imagine the pain and emotions her parents endured in just those few hours of the initial trauma and surgery. I can't even imagine how they are coping now after so much has happened. I can however, find happiness in the fact that they rely so well on God and his power and grace. My niece is a month older than Charlie.
When I was pregnant with Charlie we learned about a condition she had that "could be no big deal and could be serious". Gee, thanks for the peace of mind. Charlie has a kidney disfunction and deformity that grants her routine trips to see a Pediatric Urologist and all the invasive tests her doctor wants, so far we at about 3 different ones. Isn't life grand. At first her visits were few and far between and it was made to seem that we were in the "no big deal" category. We were pending a move, thanks to my job, and now looking back it seems the medical personnel there just didn't want to deal with us and get us out the door. Once at our new home, the great state of Alaska, we quickly learned that we were more in the "could be serious" category than the other. Charlie got a really bad UTI and we learned that the previous medical facility failed to mention a UTI in December that had gone untreated. Since the second UTI Charlie has been on a prophylactic dose of an antibiotic with ridiculous side affects! But, she needs it, so she gets it.
Around Charlie's first birthday we will see the doctor again, not before undergoing another round of invasive tests that she's done before but doesn't mean it's easier. The doctor said at that appointment we will discuss the intricacies of her surgery, what exactly he'll have to remove or "fix", where it will be, WHEN it will be. He said the older the better but not too old as one of her kidneys function isn't the best.
After learning about my niece this morning and praying and crying and praying some more I started to wonder. What is easier? Or is it ever easier? To have the long wait and build to the surgery or to rush in to surgery and with in hours be emotionally drained? Every time we talk to the doctor about the surgery or Charlie's failing organ I want to cry (sometimes I do). How could my baby, my perfect, adorable baby really have something wrong with her? She LOOKS normal. She ACTS normal.
So, I wonder, if you've been through a surgery on your child, what were the conditions and how did you handle the wait or the rush?
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