Good News!

Thank you for the prayers you sent up on behalf of Ethan today.  I am pleased to report that we had a most EXCELLENT morning at Dr. I's office!

Since January, I have seen a significant increase in the way Ethan comprehends what we're saying to him.  On the way to his appointment this morning, I talked about all the things Dr. I would want to do.  I was honest about the things that might not feel so great (EKG stickers, the squeeze of the blood pressure cuff), and I reassured him about the things that wouldn't hurt (Echo gel, checking his pacemaker).  After I talked for a couple of minutes, I paused to let it soak in.

"Okay", I heard him say from the backseat.  And that was it.

My son, who usually fights us tooth and nail just to see how tall he is, held out his arm for the blood pressure cuff and sat perfectly still through the duration of the reading.  In fact, when I asked if he wanted to sit in the chair by himself, or if he wanted me to hold him, he responded so confidently with, "Sit by self."  And he did.  He cooperated through blood pressure (105/59), temperature (97.5), and oxygen saturation (97%) readings, an echo with EKG, and a pacemaker check ... all on his own with no tears, no fighting, no fear.

I praise God that He is in the midst of answering one of my original prayers; to protect Ethan's mind from anxiety and worry, and to equip him with the patience and tolerance he'll need for his lifetime of special needs.  I am humbled, and so very thankful.

So, onto today's report.  For starters, Dr. I was super impressed with Ethan's growth! He weighed 27.8 pounds (30th percentile ... 30th percentile, y'all!) and stood 35.5 inches tall (45th percentile).  Needless to say, we're all thrilled with those numbers!

The echo results remained unchanged from the post-cath images back in May.  This means the stent is doing its job, and doing it very well! The pressure gradient is still in the low 50s and, while not perfect, is just right for Ethan right now.  On top of all that, his heart function looks great ... we'll take it!

The only concern resulting from today's appointment is that Ethan's top chambers seem to be entering into some sort of arrhythmia.  Dr. I has seen this twice now, both times during the pacemaker interrogation.  We're not sure if his atria are speeding up as a result of that process, or if he's experiencing this irregular rhythm on a regular basis.  The last Holter report came back fine, and nothing of note is showing up on the pacemaker call-ins, so we're just going to keep an eye on it for now.  If any Mamas of pacemaker-dependent kiddos have experience with this, I'd love to hear it!

So, with all that said, what exactly does a cardiologist do with an extraordinarily active two-year old with stellar weight gain and "normal" heart function?

He smiles and says, "See you in 6 months."

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."

-Matthew 21:22