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I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:14

Update 4/3/13


Poor Carter.  That is where I have to begin. Our hearts hurt for all that he has had to go through today.  This morning Carter woke up at 2:45 screaming. He has never screamed and cried like that before.  I hit  the button on his PCA pump for it to give him an extra dose or Morphine.  Nothing... It did not help at all.  I checked his temperature and it was 104.9.  I called the nurse and she promptly went into action. We started IV Tylenol immediately and put ice packs under Carter.  It took a few hours, but his fever did go down to 99. He continually dropped his oxygen saturation requiring him to receive more oxygen.  I could tell he was going down and going down fast.

Carter's Orthopedic Doctor came by a short while later to check on him, and I voiced my concerns.  He agreed will all of them, but being an orthopedic Doctor he does not do much medical management. He told me he would talk to the hospitalist and we would get all of it figured out.  Carter was prepared to go to surgery at 11 am to have a GJ tube placed, so the hospitalist wanted to see him before going to the operating room.  She came in and continually stated she thought Carter had a viral bug and he would just need to wait it out.  I expressed my concerns that I was positive this is more than a virus with her several times before requesting another Doctor come look at Carter.  Before the other Doctor arrived, the Anesthesiologist, who was going to sedate Carter for his GJ tube placement, called with concerns about Carter's labs (results from blood work).  He was certain, like Brandon and I, that Carter was in septic shock and there was no way he would sedate him for surgery.  He said Carter was too unstable. The new Doctor that came in to see Carter also agreed.  They did a chest x-ray, new labs, ultrasound, catheterized Carter's kidneys and performed a ton of other test.  The Chest X-ray showed that Carter's pneumonia had worsened, which is the reason for more oxygen.  His labs showed that his White Blood Cells had dropped tremendously. They dropped so low that Carter had to be placed on Neutropenic Precautions which means everyone has to wash up and wear a mask when coming into Carter's room. His immune system is too weak to fight off anything.  Carter's blood levels had also dropped.  I knew the results before they even came back.  Every time Carter becomes septic all of these signs rear their ugly heads.  I voiced this concern to the new Doctor and she agreed.  They started Carter on new antibiotics and we are waiting to see if they will do the trick.  We are still waiting for the results from the urine collected by catheterizing Carter's kidneys and the ultrasound that will determine if Carter has any blood clots.  He is still on a lot of oxygen and fighting a fever.  Since starting the antibiotic his blood pressure and heart rate have lowered.  We are praying this is a sign that we have started the right antibiotic and it is fighting the infection causing these symptoms.

Carter is extremely sick right now.  The few times that he has been awake, he has coughed constantly and is unable to maintain his oxygen saturation.  They then have to give him more sedatives and he about stops breathing from being so sedated.  It is an awful cycle that we are ready to have stopped.  Please continue to pray for Carter.  We know he has pneumonia that has worsened and he is in septic shock, but we just can not find the source of infection.  Pray for his weak body to fight off this infection so he can start the healing process.  Pray for wisdom and guidance for the Doctor's and peace for Brandon and I.  We never imagined Carter would have these type of complications.  We know God has big plans for Carter and is in complete control.  As always...To Him be the Glory!!!

I know it may be hard for some to understand, but we miss our little boy so much.  We are ready to have him back!  Our arms feel so empty and we cannot wait until we can hold him again. All we can do is pray he is feeling no pain and is happy playing with angels in his dreams right now.


21 comments:

  1. My prayers have continually been with you and Carter and will not cease

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  2. I am praying continually! I am so sorry he has had to go through all these complications and I cannot imagine how much your arms ache to hold him.

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  3. Have been following Carter's journey for over a year now, but have never commented before. My heart aches for you and your husband and you are both in my prayers, as is Carter -- that he will be spared any more pain and that the doctors will have wisdom in treating him. He is so precious and it must be horrible for you to see him suffering so much. May God comfort you and give you peace as you wait by Carter's side.

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  4. prayers are with you from the Craft house hold. Make sure they keep a close eye on his BUN and Creatinine level, make sure they watch it even after he comes out of this struggle. I know that you do not know me, I am a friend of Paige Smith, and I have been praying for you and your sweet baby.

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  5. Dream big, brave Carter. You are in my prayers....every day.

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  6. My prayers are with your sweet baby, Carter. I can't imagine what you are going through and it breaks my heart to hear that he is having so many complications. I'm thinking about him lots.

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  7. Praying for your precious son. May God give guidance to all who care for him and give you the peace that you need.

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  8. My prayers and thoughts are with you and this precious baby. I work with Debbie and we all keep up on his progress. My heart goes out to all of you!!! I pray for all the doctors and nurses as well that God give them the wisdom and guidance to care for him. ~ Tonya G

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  9. I am friends with someone who shared this story on a social network so I decided to read it!! My heart and prayers go out to you and your family and especially little carter!! I have no children of my own so I can't even imagine your pain but one things for sure it has opened my eyes that all the petty troubles I have could be much worse!! Thank you for sharing your story and I will be praying for you all!! God bless your family!!

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  10. Praying for your little boy, that God with reach down,touch and heal..Praying you and your family for strength and comfort.
    Pat K..

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  11. I'm praying that God's promise of his all sufficient grace will be yours every moment of every day, and that Carter will be healed soon.

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  12. Praying for the medical staff, that they will have wisdom, compassion, and the ability to listen as well as hear you as parents. Praying the Holy Spirit provides you and Brandon peace as well as strength and good health to get through this. Lifting up Carter, praying for his complications to be quickly resolved and his path to healing resumed.

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  13. Thinking about Carter everday! Sending lots of hugs and prayers!

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  14. Praying for healing and peace.

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  15. My heart aches for little Carter and all the pain he has to endure. I can't imagine having to sit by and watch your baby face all of these struggles. I know that God has a great plan for Carter; WOW! what a testimony this little guy will have. I have my first grandchild on the way, due in August, and all I can do is continually pray for a healthy baby. I pray for guidance for the doctors & medical staff to keep Carter comfortable. I pray a hedge around your precious family to keep Satan from putting any doubt in your minds, and for that sweet peace that only He can give while you wait for that little dreaming angel to wake up with a BIG smile on his face.
    Love in Christ, Cindy W.

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  16. I am glad you stuck with your mother's intuition. My thoughts are with Carter today to make his day as painfree as possible and with you all for the strenght you need.

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  17. Moms know their children and you were right to fight for him! I am praying for this darling little guy and God's will be done!! I just can't imagine the pain you all are going thru watching him going thru this! May God give you both comfort, peace and rest.

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  18. Praying that Carter's gaurdian angel's surround him and heal his body. I cannot fathom what you are going thru as parents. I will pray for sweet Carter and all of his family.

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  19. Praying multiple times a day for Carter, your family and the medical staff. As another commenter said, I have been reading your blog for over a year now but have never commented. Carter's strength and your courage are an inspiration. Thank you for sharing. Continual love and prayers from Virginia.

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  20. Sending prayers your way from your Minnesota blog followers.

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  21. Fierce prayers and positive thoughts from Tennessee! Danielle Buck

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