Doji Grovesai

Plastics Make it Possible

Remember that slogan from the 90's campaign to boost sales of plastic products? Where they show the falling ketchup bottle, the guy with one leg winning a race and the premature baby in the incubator? Thought so. Today made me think of that. So here's the "dirty low-down"...

At about 10:30 am, Juli went into pre-op for a c-section to take the baby. I sat there and watched these doctors work, and I was blown away. It was about 20 minutes between pre-op (where I couldn't be) to the actual surgery (where I was), but when the actual surgery took place, I was shocked at the speed and efficiency. Getting the baby out took maybe 4 minutes, tops. Ok, could be 10, but I doubt it. Then it took an hour to stitch her back up.

So this glorious day of April 17, 2004 at the hour of 11 am, brings Ian Rivers Groves into the world. About 2 months premature, he's 2 lbs 3.1 oz and 14 inches. He's doing great and there will be pictures posted as soon as I can get a l337 looking skin for JAlbum going. Let me again reiterate how incredibly amazed I am at the progress medical technology has made.

Less 12 years ago, a family I know back in Simi had a premature baby, and his hands are permanently scarred from all the attempts to put an IV into his tiny hands. When Ian came out, they left about half an inch of umbilical cord and used that. I asked about it, and they said the procedure is only a few years old. To hit even closer to home, if I was born in my son's situation I would not be here. In 1980, premature babies had a survival rate of less than 60% (on average, I have no idea what the actual numbers are). Ian has a 95%+ chance of survival, and about 65% chance of perfect normalcy (no complications, deficiencies related to premature birth, etc.)

The whole issue was that Juli developed severe preeclampsia as a result of prenatal hypertension. In "I'm not a doctor" terms, that means that the protiens and such that I brought to the party just didn't go well with Juli, and thus her body spent too much time trying to reject the baby. Well, only part of her body. The rest of it knew what was going on, and did a bang-up job of protecting him. Such a good job, in fact, that any part of her body that purifies things and fights disease was beginning to fail. Most imprtantly the liver and kidneys. The only cure for preeclampsia right now is delivering the child. More conjecture states that next time she is pregnant, she won't be as allergic to the fetus as she was to Ian. I say conjecture because nobody really knows why women get preeclampsia in the first place, and why some get it every time they get pregnant.

So that's the story. Juli's in the hospital still, and will be till about Wednesday. Ian is also doing remarkable compared to infants in similar situations, and he'll be in NICU (Nursery Intensive Care Unit) for about 8 weeks (prayers and such still requested for him). And now I'm off to go back to the hospital while I keep Juli company and alternate between finishing my Non-Fiction class project and playing Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo (both on the laptop).

I still can't comprehend the fact that I'm a father.