A New Eye Exam

On the hottest day on record (113 degrees in LA), I drew the straw to drive Natalie to her eye exam in Los Angeles (actually we never considered having Cindy do it since she's still Dominik's only feeding source).

If you live in Southern California you know that there are not too many times of the day that driving to L.A. on the freeway is fun. Fortunately leaving at 5:10 am to go to L.A. Children's Hospital for our 6:00 a.m. check-in was not terrible. We checked in and waited with the assortment of parents and children getting procedures performed that day. What struck me was that of the eight children waiting, four of them wore hats and had masks on. More about that later.

We got settled in the pre-op area and Natalie was visited by the anesthesiologist's nurse, the anesthesiologist, the surgical nurse, the doctor, the health and welfare staff person from the hospital and the pre-op nurse. How many people is that? Everyone was so nice to Natalie. By the time the ophthalmologist came, Natalie's eyes were already dilated and she was under the influence of her tranquilizer and stickers (the staff gave her a half dozen stars after she peeled off her hospital tag--remember, stickers are Natalie's crack). I coaxed Natalie out of the tent I made with the bed sheet and she giggled and smiled for the doctor. It was then that I thought how lucky we are that Natalie was only going under to have her eyes examined and photographed. No surgery. No chemo.

It was Natalie's turn and she left with the smiling nurses singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star with her doll Jessie in her arms.

I checked into the waiting room, which had a really nice view of the Griffith Observatory and the Hollywood hills. I took a brief trip downstairs to get something to eat and had another dose of reality. While I waited for the elevator a doctor in his sixties joined me in the hall. I started a conversation after we were waiting a long time for the elevator. I asked him if he was having a good day, or busy day, or something like that, and he soberly said, "I do what I can". No smile. "I do what I can". I thought of those children that were being treated for cancer. I thought of the children that are not there for outpatient surgery/procedures.

Natalie was in for about 45 minutes and the doctor came and consulted with me. The doctor was able to get good pictures of Natalie's eyes' internal structures for future comparison. Natalie's pressures were acceptable, which means the eye drops are doing their job. There are no congenital defects causing Glaucoma, or symptoms like Glaucoma. Does she just have high pressure? The doctor requested a future appointment, which will be one of many.

I was taken to Natalie's bed in the post-op and she was fast asleep with Jessie laying next to her. She had that new-roll-of-carpet smell about her from the anesthesia. I looked up at the I.V. and the monitors monitoring her heart rate, breathing, pressure and oxygen. I flashed back almost five years ago when she was in the NICU. I was briefly choked up, and then I thought how lucky we are.

After spending a nice time with all of the nice post-op staff, we headed home. On the first floor there was a musician performing for the children. Natalie was still under the effects of the sedation, so I do not know if she was really enjoying the performance. I enjoyed watching the children and found myself moved again at the sight of children waiting to be treated or recovering from who knows what. I am thankful for the people who took care of Natalie today, and I know that there are so many children that need our prayers.

In other medical news, the neurology office called Cindy back after she called again today. Natalie has an appointment scheduled for next week. Hurray!