Off of Vapotherm

Well, we hit a pretty big milestone today—Charlotte has graduated off of her Vapotherm to a regular oxygen cannula. She’s one step closer to leaving the ICU and heading up to the cardiology floor. We think they’ll keep her in ICU for a few days to observe her and make sure that everything is good. So far her respiration rate is within acceptable limits.

Of course, Charlotte didn’t like having the tape pulled off of her to swap out the cannulas. Or, maybe she was hungry. Whatever it was, she pitched a fit for several hours today, screaming at the top of her little lungs. Philippe points out that she’s graduated off of the Vapotherm; I say she’s graduated from a “tiny-tude” to a “mini-tude.” And the fact that she kept it up nearly non-stop (I kid you not, it was audible throughout half of the PICU), demonstrates to me that she has some serious stamina. Those little lungs must be recovering!

Charlotte’s “screamin’ Mimi” imitation may lead us to another milestone. She’s lost a little weight in the past few days, which concerns us. The screaming may have been pure hunger. So…the Nutrition department raised her feeds to 59ml every 3 hours. The Speech department is going to evaluate her today or tomorrow for suck and swallow. They may then allow bottle feeding on demand (with the same 58ml limit).

We’re closer and closer to having our little honey home with us. It will be so great to get into a routine that doesn’t involve driving to the hospital and having the security guards recognize us and the nurses greet us like old friends.