Anna Grace - Cardiology Appointment

So, many of you know that Anna Grace had a cardiology appointmnet on Tuesday. Anyone who knows Anna Grace or who has followed our BLOG for any length of time knows that Anna Grace has serious anxiety around people and especially doctors. So, as her Mommy, I am always prepared for these cardiology appointments firstly with PRAYER and secondly with a whole aresenal of things to distract, bribe and otherwise entertain Anna Grace during her doctors appointments. I knew she would be having an echo done on Tuesday so I was loaded down with toys, bottle, snacks, DVD's, stuffed animals, pacifiers and anything else I could think of to keep her from screaming during her echo so they could get a good look at her heart. That being said.... they were able to get a decent echo of her heart on Tuesday after I stood on my head, spun in circles, hopped on one leg and promised her a pony (just kidding)! The findings of her echo were pretty good, kind of mixed really. Dr. R said she had good heart function, but that she now has a slight leak in her mitral (sp?) valve. He said we would have to watch that. Also you might remember that during her second open heart surgery (the Glenn) her BT shunt was not removed but it was "clipped" to restrict the blood flow through the shunt with the intention of removing it during her her third surgery (the Fontan). Well, yesterday's echo showed that there is blood flow through the shunt so he sent a copy of his findings to Dr. Bradley down at MUSC to determine what (if anything) needs to be done about this. We'll just wait and see what Dr. Bradley says about what we need to do. Also, at her appointment yesterday her sats we hanging out around 81 which was a tad bit lower than they were 6 weeks ago. Dr. R said we needed to watch that - he said it was fine if that's where they stayed, but didn't really want them to continue to decline. He did increase her medication but only because she has put on a little weight (19 pounds now)!
So... we have a scheduled appointment to see Dr. R again in December - he said that normally we would be switching to just seeing him quarterly, but with these new developments he wants to keep a close eye on her.
I have come to accept that this is just how things are going to be for her little heart. I go to these cardiology appointmens with no expectations and in the back of my mind always prepared to head to Charleston. I feel like if we get to leave her cardiology appointments and go home and not to the hospital then it was a GOOD appointment. I was so thankful last night to be crawling into my own bed with my family all under one roof and NOT making plans and preparing to go to Charleston. The Lord is merciful and I am so thankful!

(P.S. - Just to refresh your memory - Anna Grace's official diagnosis is: Tricuspid Atresia, Transposition of the Great Vessels, Aortic Coarctation, Patent Foreman Ovale, Ventricular Septal Defect, Pulmonary Stenosis)

I like this toy!


Hi Mom!


Let me take a little bite of this cookie!


Anna Grace on the scale - 19 pounds 0 ounces