The Beginning

Athan just a few hours old...

Athan Ryan Strebeck was born on May 29 at 3:34 p.m. at home. He was 21.5 inches long, and weighed in at 9 lb. 5 oz. Our big boy was finally here! :) Athan did wonderfully for the first few hours. He was nursing well and filling diapers just like a newborn should.

At 2 a.m., however, he would not latch on when I tried to nurse him. From that point his condition seemed to get gradually worse. We were planning a trip to a pediatrician at 9 for a check-up, but by about 7 it was apparent that he would need medical attention before our appointment. His breathing became increasingly labored, and almost stopped altogether. My mom was working with him to try to stimulate him and keep him alert and trying to breathe. His hands and feet began to turn blue. Meanwhile, Ryan was calling 911, and by the time the ambulance arrived, he was blue all over.

Athan was transported to UK hospital in Lexington, which has a Level 3 (the best) Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. In the ER, his blood sugar was found to be very VERY low (normal for infants is 40-60, and Athan's was 4). The team was able to get him stable in the ER, and he was transported up to NICU.

The next couple of days for Athan meant a battery of tests and meds. It was like drinking from a fire hose every time we talked to the doctors. They were very clear and explained to us as best they could what they were doing and why, but it was so overwhelming. He has been seen by specialists from several areas. From arrival on Wednesday morning until Thursday afternoon, it was all “test and wait.”

[As a precaution, I was also transported. Primarily, it was the best way to keep me near Athan so I could nurse him if he was able. As far as my health, everything is fine. My body is doing all of the things it is supposed to do to heal postpartum. I spent one night admitted as a patient, and we were able to spend the first night just one floor below NICU and near Athan.]

Thursday afternoon, some things began to be more clear. It appears that the heart of the problem is some kind of glandular insufficiency. Athan's adrenal glands were not producing the hormones they are supposed to, and the drop in blood sugar, respiratory distress, low blood pressure, and abnormal EEG readings seem to be a chain of results of the insufficient hormones. It also seems that his thyroid gland may not be producing adequate hormones, and they are continuing to look at his pituitary gland also. If this is indeed a glandular/metabolic issue, it is related to genetics. Tests may give us more information about this, but some of those results will not be in for 2 weeks.

This type of problem is not detectable before birth, nor readily apparent afterward. It is, however, very treatable. Athan is currently on a medication to supplement the adrenal gland, and many of the other things seems to be stabilizing as a result. He is completely off of one of the blood pressure meds he was on, and they are weaning the other also. He is still breathing with the help of a machine, but he increasingly does more of the work himself. His blood sugar is normal, and they just repeated the EEG to check again for abnormalities. That's what we know this morning.

Athan this morning...