Update on Liz & Jonah Part 2

12 days ago Liz was admitted to the hospital, 4 days ago she gave birth to Jonah Rule Dobson. She was diagnosed with preeclampsia and as the doctor's watched her lab work values and platelet count drop, they decided an induced labor was necessary; otherwise we'd wait until it was too late and the only option to get baby Jonah out safely & quickly would be an emergency c-section. So we induced labor on Monday, and by Thursday, October 13th at 12:13am, little Jonah was born at only 28 weeks and 2 days gestation. He was 13 inches long and tipped the scale at 1 lb & 14.1 ounces. 


Jonah is being cared for in a level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and being watched like a hawk around the clock. He suffers from respiratory distress syndrome and his new home is a nice warm, quiet plastic incubator. He has help breathing through a ventilator and is treated with oxygen. He also has jaundice and is being treated with phototherapy, so he constantly bathes under the brightest blue lights to help get his bilirubin levels back down to normal. Left untreated, jaundice can really take a toll on a babies brain. The light is very bright so he wears a little mask over his eyes so he can rest. The doctors are also watching Jonah's tummy closely, as it appears to be distended - although soft. We are hoping it is just gas and his nurse tried to help move along any blockage today with a little sliver of glycerin suppository. This was the first time mommy saw Jonah cry and it broke her heart. Luckily this helped produce a poopy diaper & Jonah probably quietly celebrated. 


Every morning Liz and Jordan are invited to attend morning rounds and listen to an amazing team of doctors and medical staff discuss Jonah's care and treatment plan for the day. Jonah has been known to be "feisty" and a "fighter", traits his mommy thinks are perfect to help him get along in life, and especially during these first two months where every day gets him closer to coming home. 


Liz was discharged as a patient from the hospital on Sunday, but is still recovering slowly from preeclampsia. The hospital is allowing her to stay for boarding as long as there is room so she can continue to visit with Jonah as often as possible. She can't wait for the day he isn't hooked up to so many monitors and machines so she can hold him for the very first time. Every day is a good day, and we feel blessed to have him being taken care of by an amazing group of medical providers. Today we turned off the bright lights over Jonah and underneath the shades was a tiny baby boy that looked just like his father.

Update on Liz & Jonah Part 1

They ran bloodwork today at 6am, then re-ran them at 12pm. I guess my platelet counts are lower than they'd like, but it just goes along with preeclampsia - and so far nothing too worrisome with my labwork. BP is still up and down, with mostly higher numbers, so they're still adjusting medications.

They're monitoring Jonah twice daily with a non-stress test, hooking up a monitor to my belly & watching his heartrate. They did that the entire 48 hours when we first got here. He is doing absolutely great and shows no signs of stress. He's been moving around a lot and giving me little punches and kicks. :)

So right now I'm on labetalol 400 mg three times daily and nifedipine xl 30 mg twice daily. They draw blood and run labs about 6am every morning, and then run the two non-stress tests on Jonah each day. I'm still on bedrest with no dietary restrictions. They're monitoring how much fluid I consume and how much I urinate. Still protein in my urine and that's not expected to go away (nor the swelling) until Jonah is born. I've gained about 15-20 lbs since Wednesday due to water retention.

The docs are hoping they're watching things closely enough that they'll know ahead of time when it's time for induction (pitocin IV drip to start labor) & I can try for a normal birth. But if my body all of a sudden gets hit hard with preeclampsia symptoms I may just have a c-section.

So, just taking it day by day, hoping he can stay in and grow bigger, but willing to do whatever is the best for both of us, and trusting in the doctors here.

Let me know if you think of any questions I should ask the doctors, they are usually in to visit with me twice a day after shift changes.

Tomorrow, Jordan and I will meet with a group of pediatricians to talk about immediate care of Jonah after he is born and what to expect in the weeks & months afterwards.