Officially a Father!

[over the mountain]

congrats good man.

[skinsguy]

Thank you again guys!

My wife told me that the doctor had informed us that he has a heart murmur, but wasn't displaying any concerning symptoms. Naturally, that makes me feel very uneasy. They're running some tests on him today. I know people live with heart murmurs all the time and are perfectly healthy, but it's hard enough having to leaving him in the NICU and now learning that he has a heart murmur.

It was hard enough concentrating on my work - now it's really hard to concentrate!

[over the mountain]

my newest niece is in NICU right now as well.

it is very rare that a pregnancy goes perfect.

when my daughter was born, we were right around the due date and was at a hospital radiology dept for an ultrasound to monitor the babies progress and whether she had passed the fibroids. we were told to immediately rush over to another hospital's maternity ward, something about low embiotic fluid etc .. after some very tense moments and emergency c section, my daughter was born and is a happy healthy 2 1/2 year old.

hang in there skinsguy. my advice is to stay positive and try to maintain a consistent level of calm. NICU has amazing doctors and these lil itty bitty babies are resilient.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by over the mountain

my newest niece is in NICU right now as well.

it is very rare that a pregnancy goes perfect.

when my daughter was born, we were right around the due date and was at a hospital radiology dept for an ultrasound to monitor the babies progress and whether she had passed the fibroids. we were told to immediately rush over to another hospital's maternity ward, something about low embiotic fluid etc .. after some very tense moments and emergency c section, my daughter was born and is a happy healthy 2 1/2 year old.

hang in there skinsguy. my advice is to stay positive and try to maintain a consistent level of calm. NICU has amazing doctors and these lil itty bitty babies are resilient.

Over the mountain: Thanks so much for your words of encouragement. I'm trying to remain as positive as I can be. For the most part, I have, but hearing things like "heart murmur" scares me to death! I read up on it and it sounds like it's really common in preemies, but it's also much more serious in preemies than full term newborns. Which, of course, scares me to death. Medicine is usually the treatment with worst case scenario being surgery. It's a condition called PDA. Then again, he hasn't displayed any symptoms of labored breathing (except when he first came out which is almost always the case with preemies) nor elevated blood pressure or heart rate, so I'm hoping it's simply just an innocent murmur, which goes away as the kid ages.

But you're absolutely right...it's almost a rarity for any pregnancy to ever go completely smooth.

[los panda]

congrats!

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by skinsguy

Thank you again guys!

My wife told me that the doctor had informed us that he has a heart murmur, but wasn't displaying any concerning symptoms. Naturally, that makes me feel very uneasy. They're running some tests on him today. I know people live with heart murmurs all the time and are perfectly healthy, but it's hard enough having to leaving him in the NICU and now learning that he has a heart murmur.

It was hard enough concentrating on my work - now it's really hard to concentrate!

My middle grandson was born with a bad valve in his hart and at the age of 2 days had angioplasty to open the valve ,what they can do today is amazing they are in good hands .My grandson today is 7 and plays ,football , soccer and basketball................and is a skins fan ,I've ask my daughter if the Doctor can change that ,I said I would pay for it ,she said no .

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by Giantone

My middle grandson was born with a bad valve in his hart and at the age of 2 days had angioplasty to open the valve ,what they can do today is amazing they are in good hands .My grandson today is 7 and plays ,football , soccer and basketball................and is a skins fan ,I've ask my daughter if the Doctor can change that ,I said I would pay for it ,she said no .

LOL! Well, he sounds like a very smart young man! Yeah, the medical world is so advanced nowadays that people don't even blink at the thoughts of open-heart surgery anymore.

[Chico23231]

I'm an uncle for the second time, Halloween baby too!

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by Chico23231

I'm an uncle for the second time, Halloween baby too!

Congrats , hope all are well .

[Chico23231]

Originally Posted by Giantone

Congrats , hope all are well .

Thanx, she is a month early so she is
in nicu.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by Chico23231

Thanx, she is a month early so she is
in nicu.

Congrats chico! The NICU has an amazing group of nurses - at least the one my boy is currently in. It takes a very special person to work with these babies. She will probably get to go home pretty soon! What's taking my son awhile is that he is still being fed with a feeding tube, plus they discovered a couple of heart defects. So, he's probably going to be in there at least past Thanksgiving.

[mredskins]

Originally Posted by skinsguy

Congrats chico! The NICU has an amazing group of nurses - at least the one my boy is currently in. It takes a very special person to work with these babies. She will probably get to go home pretty soon! What's taking my son awhile is that he is still being fed with a feeding tube, plus they discovered a couple of heart defects. So, he's probably going to be in there at least past Thanksgiving.

Dude wow! Stay strong your in my thoughts.

For those that are not parents, here is something that changed for me when I had kids. Ever get that feel when you are about to fall, it is like tingle at least for guys your nuts kind of go up. Well you get the same feeling when you sense your kid might be about ready to get hurt.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by mredskins

Dude wow! Stay strong your in my thoughts.

For those that are not parents, here is something that changed for me when I had kids. Ever get that feel when you are about to fall, it is like tingle at least for guys your nuts kind of go up. Well you get the same feeling when you sense your kid might be about ready to get hurt.

Pretty much! We have still yet to sit down with a cardiologist, but the pediatric physicians that have came to see us in the NICU all seem to give a different variation of what our little boy's heart issues are. But all seem to point to him doing well, otherwise, and at worst, requiring the surgery to correct the defects. But, they leave open the possibility of his heart defects correcting themselves, thus nixing the requirement of surgery. Ultimately, that's what I'd want, because the thoughts of my little man going under the knife is scary as all get out. At the same time, knowing that they could correct his issues with one surgery and us never having to worry about these heart issues again is something to really consider as well. So, as a new parent with a preemie, having to face that possibility is very unnerving. But, it's a real possibility and it's scares me to death!