Kenner at Children's Hospital in Omaha (updated 8/28/08)

Wow! This has been quite a week. Praise GOD for all the medical professionals and medicine out...they have saved my baby:) Here's the story:

Kenner went to World's of Fun with my mom and dad this weekend. I met them in Beatrice on Sunday night and then we went home. He woke up on Monday morning with a very barky cough. Thanks to my babysitting days, I put him in the shower and thought that is all I had to do. He was fine, but just a bad cough. I got a call from daycare saying his cough was worse and he had diaherha (sp?). I ran over got him and made an appoitment in Crete...because I didn't think it was too bad. The doctor didn't notice anything wrong and I had to point out that he sounds like a monster breathing and a dog when he breathes. Oh she said and she gave us breathing treatments with a nebulizer. He had RSV before so again I was thinking this was a routine thing. Never think you child being sick isn't too bad...a cough can turn into this story!

We got breathing treatments to do every 4 hours with Mucinex and Tylenol every 4. Both Casey and I were up all night on Monday night with two boys who weren't feeling well (Patton just needed Tylenol to get rid of his fever). I left for the pediatrician's office at 7:15 sharp without an appointment...I needed more answers to his difficulty breathing. He was not breathing well. Not seeing Kenner for more than 2 seconds the dr said he has croup and we need to take immediate action.

They gave him 6 mil sternoids and an "eppy" something breathing treatment. He seemed to get a little better. We were there for 1.5 hours and then sent home. My grandparents Jim and Jan came to help Casey put in windows* and my Grandma was there to help me with two boys.

Kenner continued to have diffuculty breathing and called back to the dr's office two to three times. They said if he isn't getting better to take him to the ER, so I had it and took Kenner to the ER at 8:00 pm. I was raised in a house that you only went to the ER when you broke something (love you dad!), so I was very unsure to take him BUT I was sure that he wasn't breathing!

The ER immediately got things going and he would get better with a breathing treatment, but then 40 minutes later he would get worse again. His doctor Walsh came in at 11:00 pm and said that we needed to keep him in the hospital to continue to give breathing treatments. Everyone would tell me, "Once we get these steriods in him and a breathing treatment...kids just pop out of it." So I am thinking great! One hour or two and we will be back home and Kenner will be better.
EMAIL FROM MY AUNT KENDRA:
I just got off of the phone with Rhiannon and if you don’t already know they put Kenner in the hospital last night because he was having problems breathing. He is at Saint Elizabeth. They thought it might be croup (sp?) but they gave him the steroids and it doesn’t seem to be making him better so the doctor just came in and said that they are going to start a new antibiotic through his IV and it might be a step virus that is making him so sick because he has a rash that is coming out of his body at this point.
Poor little guy when I was talking to Rhiannon I said what is that noise and she started to cry and said it was Kenner trying to cough. She said it just hurts him to swallow or cough and it sounds like a little calf trying to cough when they are first born.
Please pray and pray for Rhiannon as she has not slept for two days now and she is a bit emotional.
I will keep you posted as I know more.
Kendra

Kenner just kept saying, "Mommy I go nigh-night?" He didn't want any more shots, breathing treatments, nor an IV!!! Those were the most words he said all day and note that he said only one word per utterance...due to lack of breath. Every treatment helped less. Around 9:00 am this morning (Wed), Kenner's room began to be that "ONE" room. Have you ever been in a hospital and saw that "one" room and thought, "I sure hope everything is okay in there! There are more and more people coming in and out, quicker and quicker." I was there by myself, because we had the thinking - one more hour and he will be better, one more steriod and he will be better. I am not sure what I would have done without Trevor. Thanks to my new Uncle Trevor (who works at St. E's)! He was there at the right time. I could see him briefly through all the people and I summoned him over with my finger aka GET OVER HERE NOW! He was there for me, because Casey was taking a break at home. I was there by myself when things got really really bad.

Trevor was there to be my support. All the doctors were talking code (that they were trying to talk over my head but thanks to my great education at UNL I knew what they were talking about unfortunately). I was freaking out but trying to stay calm...calm and Kenner not breathing...I DON'T THINK SO! Casey got there and my Aunt Kendra also was there.

Kenner at this point was literally drowning in our own air. It was the most horrific face and part of my life that I will never forget! He was climbing all over just like he might find a pocket of air somewhere.

The team of nurses and doctors (I say team, because there were 8-10 at this point!!) clearing the way to the Critical Care Unit and FAST. They intubated him and as much as it hurt to see him lying there I was relieved to see him get a good breath! The nurses described his breathing as his sternum touching the his back...his breaths were so hard.

They intubated him around noon and supposedly had an ambulance waiting for him, so everyone left and I was there to ride in the ambulance. Then we had more trouble with logistics....The 1st ambulance didn't have a medic...um not okay with my son who is relying on someone to breath for him. I stayed calm and waited with my Pastor Keith (another God story...he showed up the second my family left for Omaha thinking I wouldn't be there very long by myself). 2nd ambulance came with 2 medics, but they weren't confident hand bagging my son!!! for 40 minutes...neither was I. FREAKING OUT IN SIDE, BUT TRYING TO STAY CALM. Finally one of the medics asked if they had called the Helicopter from Omaha....no they had just called the helicopter in Lincoln. Another God thing, there was one in Omaha and enroute. My son would be able to be put on a machine ventilator for 20 minutes in the air versus 40+ minutes being hand bagged. PRAISE GOD!

The nurses said he was the most popular kid there with visitors already there when he had only been at Children's Hospital for 30 seconds. We were told that he has a bacterial infection and once the culture grows more each day we will begin to find out more about what is going on. We do know that his vocal folds are very swollen. So swollen in fact that they had to put a smaller tube down his throat due to his inflammation. Thank God that they were able to put a tube....or we could be even worse. Kenner is on a ventilator for 4-5 days in order for him to get rid of the bacterial infection that he has somewhere in his body. We hope it is in his vocal cords. He is unable to breath on his own and his body isn't able to relax, because his vocal cords are very swollen. I have been praying for all those families and particularly mothers that have to see their own child receive medical treatment like Kenner. It is extremely hard to see your vibrant little boy laying down in a bed with this monsterous system looming over him with cords running all over. Praise God that we are Children's not because of an accident or missing or bad body pat (heart, etc). Kenner looks peaceful and will just be taking a nap for 4-5 days. I may remember praying for this a month ago, when I just wanted to have some time by myself (jokingly of course). I can't wait to see Kenner run with his McQueen shoes, have his brother repeat words in order to teach him how to talk and read books together with him.

At this point we don't need anything (except sleep) and PRAYERS!!! Please pray for our little guy that the doctor's will have the wisdom and God will lay his hands on Kenner to protect him from any other difficulties.

Also pray for the other families on this floor...Freshman boy who collapsed with a heart attack, a 2 year old boy with heart failure.

Praise God for your healthy children and give them all a special hug and kiss from the Svitak's. We appreciate your prayers! Check back for more updates...because this is the easiest way to keep the stories straight:)

Love you all and good night! Rhiannon


*We ordered new kitchen cabinets on Saturday and began to tear down our kitchen (plaster, lathe and all) on Sunday. So Casey had been working tirelessly on getting that done in our 3 week window of cabinet making. Our yard is also 4 feet tall, because we were waiting for the time to be right to kill the entire yard, till, and plant grass. We have sprinklers, so if you drive by our house. It might look like no one lives there at the moment:) All things happen for a reason and we know that there isn't anything that we can't handle without the strength of God!