EXCERPT OF EMAIL TO A FRIEND WHO HADN'T HEARD ALL OF OUR EARLIER NEWS
"I guess you've heard that after a blissful first fortnight with Rose, we started on the very stressful road to finding out that she has a serious liver condition called biliary atresia. Since then, she's had a hospital admission for major surgery, and another hospital admission for suspected cholangitis. 17 days in all - more days in hospital than Shane, Lewis, Hannah and me in our combined lifetimes!
Things seem to be settling down now, she's finally gaining a bit of weight, and we're all getting used to the idea that she'll be living with this condition. The big idea to get used to is that she'll in all likelihood need a liver transplant at some stage. Very scary. Until then, we need to grow her as big as possible, and medically manage the tricky things that can be associated with the biliary atresia.
Rose is getting on with life despite all this - she's doing all the stuff a 10-week-old should be doing. She's a contented, happy little girl, but Jesus, she's so tiny! We'll be relieved when she chubs up a bit - she's started to do it in the last fortnight since adding a whizzbang formula containing fats that she can actually digest. (The fats in my breastmilk are no good to her - heartbreaking to a black-belt breastfeeder like me! But she's still drinking it, for all the other benefits.)
Rose is gorgeous - a "Lewis style" of baby in looks - and we're all very grateful to have her here. She's heaps of fun, and worth all the sleeplessness and worry."
"I guess you've heard that after a blissful first fortnight with Rose, we started on the very stressful road to finding out that she has a serious liver condition called biliary atresia. Since then, she's had a hospital admission for major surgery, and another hospital admission for suspected cholangitis. 17 days in all - more days in hospital than Shane, Lewis, Hannah and me in our combined lifetimes!
Things seem to be settling down now, she's finally gaining a bit of weight, and we're all getting used to the idea that she'll be living with this condition. The big idea to get used to is that she'll in all likelihood need a liver transplant at some stage. Very scary. Until then, we need to grow her as big as possible, and medically manage the tricky things that can be associated with the biliary atresia.
Rose is getting on with life despite all this - she's doing all the stuff a 10-week-old should be doing. She's a contented, happy little girl, but Jesus, she's so tiny! We'll be relieved when she chubs up a bit - she's started to do it in the last fortnight since adding a whizzbang formula containing fats that she can actually digest. (The fats in my breastmilk are no good to her - heartbreaking to a black-belt breastfeeder like me! But she's still drinking it, for all the other benefits.)
Rose is gorgeous - a "Lewis style" of baby in looks - and we're all very grateful to have her here. She's heaps of fun, and worth all the sleeplessness and worry."
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