Lyra is doing well, getting fed every three hours through a tube that goes through her nose and down to her stomach. Maren is working with occupational therepy people to teach Lyra how to eat normally, but it's slow going. From what I've been able to discover, this is fairly typical for HLHS babies. With the stress of the surgery and the time spent on a ventilator, Lyra doesn't have the strength yet to breast feed. She also has to be taught to do it because everything that's been done has altered her instincts. We've been told that we'll have to get used to the idea of putting in this feeding tube on our own, which is fine. If that's what we have to do, that's just what we have to do. The goal is to keep her growing until the second stage of the surgery.
Still, she's just like other babies in some ways, sleeps a lot, but of course is wide awake from 4-6 in the morning.
Posted by Tim at February 28, 2004 10:43 AM