Pre-Op Day:I

Pre-Op went as well as could be expected.

Parking at MCV is a baffling ordeal, but we managed it. They've switched departments around, so we took a couple of detours before we found the right one. Aerin had a fantastic time waiting for our anesthesia appointment. The waiting room is more like a lobby and she ran around with glee. In typical Aerin fashion, she brought a smile to the faces of everyone who saw her. Even exhausted interns and residents couldn't resist her.

After the usual paperwork, we went into the clinic. It was just a brief physical and history, followed by blood work. I brought the medical history that I've written for Aerin and it was immensely helpful. I strongly encourage all parents to write one up for their children, even healthy ones. Aerin's is 2 pages long and includes prenatal history. It has saved me a lot of time and stress.

Having blood drawn was a bad scene. I sat in the chair and held Aerin on my lap. They can't draw blood for the hemangioma arm, so there's only 1 chance for a stick. Unfortunately, Aerin has inherited my weak, roll-y veins. The second the tech got the needle in, the vein rolled. She was a lovely and skilled lady and decided not to dig around for it or try again. Instead, she just took what she needed from Aerin's finger. Aerin has a high threshold of pain and didn't cry or scream when she was stuck. She hates to be held down, however, so she flipped out when she tried to move her arm and hand, which I was holding down. Andrew helped by feeding her Gerber Juice Treats, which we only allow in situations like this. She kept ripping the band aids off, so we had to stay in the room holding gauze on her finger until she stopped bleeding. The tech was so good that Aerin didn't bruise at all.

Afterwards, we headed to the 7th floor of the main hospital for our tour. A Child Life Program specialist, Ilona Scanlon, took us through the pediatric unit, PICU, and the step-down unit. They were all too familiar to us. They have many amenities to make things easier for parents - a playroom for each age group (toddlers, school age, and teen), a parent lounge with a washer and dryer and fridge, snack machines. Mrs. Scanlon answered all of our questions and spoke with us about what to expect and ways to prepare Aerin for both the surgery and the hospital stay. She gave us caps and masks to wear at home this week, so that Aerin gets used to them. We also happened to run into Dr. Haynes, which was a nice surprise.

The day was about what I expected it to be. It was hard. I just kept thinking how much I didn't want us to be there.