Unplugged

Its been about 2 weeks now that Ethan has been wire-free. He left the NICU with a heart and lung monitor that would sound an alarm any time he had an "event." He was put on Caffeine to help stimulate brain growth and prevent him from entering a REM sleep pattern.

We've gone through a lot with this poor kid over the last 3 months (Yes, he's 3 months old today!) Since leaving the hospital he has been "event-free" and is on his way to being a normal, healthy baby.

At first I thought it would be more stressful having him off the monitor because there would be no alarms if he should stop breathing. But, now I find myself excited to be past that stage in his life.

It's difficult trying to put your baby in a swaddle, and then trying to figure out where the wires will stick out so you don't wrap them up in the blanket. Or worrying about what he's wearing because the wires need to stick out so you can plug them in; zippered pjs were difficult because when you zipped it up the wires would need to come out near his neck which could be dangerous. If he wore a onesie the wires came out in the crotch area. If he wore snap-up pjs then the wires would come out near his belly button.


There is also no more worries about the wires slipping. If he got sweaty the wires would slip away from his chest, and then the alarm would sound. If you picked him up and grabbed the wire wrong it would unstick, and the alarm would sound. If he had shallow breathing the alarm would sound. All hours of the day and night, the alarm would sound.

Not to mention the ugly "purse" that the monitor was attached to. (You can see it in the picture of Chris.) It was kept in this ugly blue canvas bag and came everywhere. I'd walk into a restaurant with...a purse, a diaper bag, and a monitor bag on my shoulder...3 bags!

So, no more wires...

no more strings...

no more plugs...

no more sticky leads...

no more purse...

and no more alarms...........

He's running on his own batteries now!