Yesterday was a busy day.  We were mostly at MCH (Montreal Children’s Hospital).  We started out at the Shriner’s for a quick OT assessment.  They were checking Ben’s mobility and sense of touch as well as measuring him for some upcoming equipment.  This will set the baseline standards for him.  We also got to meet a little girl currently in halo traction.  I struggled with this decision because I didn’t want to worry him excessively, but I also need him to trust me.  I was worried that he would wake up and be utterly shocked finding his head in a steel halo.  He was very quiet through the day after that.  As we were leaving Shriners, they gave us a big teddy bear to take with us.

After that we went to MCH and met with a nurse who gathered all of our information.  Following that we went to see a pediatrician who assessed us and answered questions for us.  We were discussing not only the surgery tomorrow (Wednesday), but also the major one in March.  We then went to Pulmonology to do some lung function testing.  Ben was told he got 110%, which he wanted to make sure I told people about. I have no idea what that number means.  We have previously not had great success in our lung function tests, but I think that has more to do with the testers teaching and explaining the task  than the actual test itself.  The lady who tested us yesterday was awesome!!!

We then ran back to pre-op to meet with our anesthesiologist and go over questions.  After that, we went for bloodwork.  That didn’t go so well.  Ben is always calm and patient, but the lady who took his blood was a bit rushed and not kid-friendly at all.  During the procedure I noticed him get quite pale and clammy.  We decided that maybe he looked too much during the procedure and freaked himself out.  At this point we had been there for about 6 hours and had not had a break.  I called a timeout (which I should have done earlier) to get some snacks and relax for a few minutes.

After that, we went back upstairs and did xrays.  When that was done we did an ECG then we were done at MCH and ran back to Shriner’s.  They were great at MCH, but everything at Shriner’s is beyond exceptional, so there is no comparison.  It was nice to be back at the “hospital I like” according to Ben.