One Of The Shortest ICU Stays In History

Make sure you read this first, so you know what is going on ;)

We got to the ER and the doctors did not believe at first that Cole was seizing. Non-convulsive status is so tricky! I read the chart and it said "admitted for seizure?? Patient arrives to room breathing, crying, no obvious seizure activity and color normal".

Pretty quick, they caught on that I knew what I was talking about (with some help from Dr Miller) and went through the process of trying to get that blasted enemy of ours-an IV, in him. They finally got one right above his ankle. They gave him a bolus dose of IV Versed and prepared a drip. Dr Miller let them know that I wasn't crazy, he was probably still seizing and suggested Depakote, but I told the staff I wanted Versed. They listened to me! Awesome.

Slugger alerted me a FOURTH time. So I knew something must still be happening. I can't believe him-Cole still smelled like a seizure! I have had two big alerts in one day, but that was after we had given Cole a bath and washed the seizure smell off. I was in awe of Slugger! We were admitted to the PICU and got an EEG (with some Fentanyl) just to make sure that he was not still seizing. By the time they hooked him up, he had already "choked" (aka vomited), which is our signal that it is over. This entire status episode lasted over 3 hours.

There are a few things that I learned/re-learned yesterday:
*As much as Slugger does stupid stuff like chewing up an iPad charger (thank goodness it wasn't plugged in) I am SO, SO, SO grateful for this dog. He has changed our life so much and he is my baby's guardian angel.
*Dr Miller is a rockstar. He answered when our ER (in a different state) called, he told them what he thought they should do AND gave them his cellphone number.

*Act like you own the place (nicely) and you can get things to happen a lot faster.

*I LOVE our local hospital. Yeah, we have had some not-so-nice experiences with hospitals. I love Miami. However, I have never been to their ER. I will say this, I wondered about being admitted, since we have not been on the floor yet at this hospital-but it was the same throughout! We have frequented the ER, but the PICU was just as great! No one wants to be in the hospital, but it sure helps when you have an excellent, friendly staff that is willing to listen to you and get you out of there as soon as possible.

*Slugger is such a comfort to Cole. Plus he makes a really great pillow.
*My Mini-Hulk is so strong! He can withstand crazy amounts of drugs and pain. Here he is, sitting up, talking to everyone when he has 2.5 mg of diazepam, 3 regular doses (about 4.5 mg) and a huge bolus dose of Versed, 10 mg of Diastat, and Fentayl in him. Mercy, that would knock most people out for 48 hours. He is up running around, acting like nothing ever happened. I remember though.*Our new tradition when we are in the hospital is Cafe Rio. Even Cole participates.

EEG basically looks like he is drunk, because he is! A little bit of myoclonic activity here and there, but that is normal.

*EEG glue is one of the banes of my existence.
*I don't think that anyone has been admitted to the PICU at 6 and is out by 10 (alive). This is including an EEG. I told them in the ER I wanted to be out of there as soon as possible, since Cole always leaves a hospital sicker than when he came in. He is talented at picking up whatever is floating in the air. They listened! Epic Awesomeness!
*My boy will knock the socks off of any medical staff. They all waved good-bye, said they wished he had stayed because he was so cute. He waved, smiled, and walked himself right out of there. You would have never known he was on the brink of death a few hours earlier.*Crisis separates the sheep from the goats.
*Even that special shampoo cap will not remove the EEG glue. Oh, wait...I already said it was the bane of my existence. Cole's too.
We are home and taking it easy. The up/down, hot/cold of it all is exhausting to a parent. Cole-you would never know. He is talking about being a rockstar and pulling Sluggie's tail. Just another day in our life!