For me, this surgery was harder than the first. The risks associated with the Norwood are higher, but now I had had Leif at home for several months. I was the one who knew how to take care of him. I knew how he responded to things. And here we were, handing our seemingly healthy baby over for another sugery. He played in bed for hours the morning prior to surgery.
Post-surgery, things moved much faster than I had expected. I knew the doctors and surgeons said average hospital stay was 7-10 days, but I had a difficult time believing it. After all, we had done nearly two months the first time! On March 14, things still seemed to be moving relatively slow, and he was still on the vent, which had been our biggest obstacle with Stage 1.
Progress happened quickly after the 15th. This picture is of Leif's chest scars, exactly one week after surgery.
Leif came home March 19, merely 9 days after surgery. He was a completely different baby afterwards: bigger appetitie, more energy, fleshy skin instead of the purple tinge, O2 sats in the 80s.
