Bradley is currently at MUSC in the NNICU. He has been diagnosed with a Diaphragmatic Hernia. Simply put, this is where the small intestines are up in his chest cavity, preventing his heart and lungs to completely develop and function. Our family asks for your continued love and prayers at this time. Brooks and I will be staying at the Ronald McDonald House while we are here in Charleston.
Wednesday, July 15th. 10:55AM
Last night they had to put Bradley on "ECMO"(This is a heart/lung bypass machine). They said this would allow his heart and lungs to rest and heal. He had a good night, they are trying to adjust his blood pressure. To all that have been praying non-stop, thank you! We could not make it through this without your thoughts and prayers! We love you all and will update when we get more.
Wednesday, July 15th. 12:30PM
Here are two new pictures of Bradley. He has a good bit of swelling going on right now in his face and arms but that was expected and will go away as he starts to get better. Andrew was up here with us last night. He was very excited to be with his mom and new little brother.
As you can see his eyes are swollen shut, but they will start to go down as he gets better.
This is another picture of Bradley. He should start to open his eyes in the next day or so.Again we appreciate all of the calls and prayers we are getting and ask that you all keep it up.
Wednesday, July 15th
Tonight Bradley decided to show us just what kind of fight he had in him. He was getting very agitated, causing his heart rate to go way up and his pressure to drop down. He had another ultrasound of his head, in which the nurse and the technician thought looked good and no change from yesterday, but we will not have the official reading until tomorrow morning. Again, I would like to thank everyone who is and has been praying for us. Andrew will be here in the morning also to see Bradley for the second time. Please pray that God will place his hand on the family as a whole in these hard and frustrating times.
Thursday, July 16
Today we had a really good day. The ultrasound that was done last night came back normal, with no bleed in his head. Also they had to change a part on his "ECMO" machine and they took him off for 2 minutes and he did not miss a beat. He seems to be coming along very well. We are not out of the woods yet, but we are moving in the right direction. He also is off of both of his blood pressure medicines, but is still on the pain meds to keep him from getting to irritated. Sorry no pictures today but we will have plenty of them tomorrow, he is trying to open his eyes and we didn't want to scare him and set him back any so we will post more tomorrow. Please when you read this and have any questions, don't hesitate to call us or post a question in the comment section. Again, we deeply appreciate all the prayers and support from all the friends and family and friends of friends or family, please pray without ceasing for little Bradley!
Friday, July 17
Today we have seen his eyes, we had pictures but are having some technical difficulties with the cameras and memory cards. We will post more pictures this afternoon. We have some great news to pass to everyone. The new plan is to try to take him off the "ECMO" machine monday and see how he does. The goal for today is to be down to 50% on the machine, by tomorrow. Later on today we will put more pictures on the page. Thank you for all of your continued prayers and support.
Saturday, July 18
We met our goal of being down to 50% support on the "ECMO" machine. He almost pushed himself off of the bed last night, the nurse was checking his machine and looked up and he was just about to the edge of the bed. He has very good body strength. We are definitely moving in the right direction. Here are the pictures that we promised yesterday.
HERE HE IS PLAYING HIDE AND SEEK WITH IS EYES.
These pictures are of the "ECMO" machine that he is on. As you can see it is amazing with the things that they can do in medicine today. The picture above is the artificial lungs. The right picture is the part that pumps the blood just like an artificial heart. Hopefully we will be off of this wonderful machine by Monday. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
Sunday, July 19
We got some very good news this morning. Bradley had an scan done of his heart and it looked so good that they have decided to do a trial run of taking him off of ECMO. He will be monitored for a period of four hours and then if he does really well they will take him off for good. Please pray that he does well. Getting off ECMO puts us one step closer to getting the surgery that he needs to repair his hernia. We also need prayer that Bradley will remain calm while coming off of ECMO. God has blessed us with such a strong little boy and he has developed a tendency over the past couple of days to having temper tantrums. He needs to remain calm so that his surgery will be possible. Please also pray for Brooks. She is having a hard time being away from Andrew. He is doing well staying with his cousins at the beach, but this is the longest that she has been away from him. We are so thankful for all of the support that we have received and pray that each and every person who has helped us is well aware of how much that we love and appreciate you. Please don't stop praying for our sweet baby Bradley.
Monday, July 20
Bradley is in the process of his trial run off of ECMO, and so far he is doing beautifully. Hopefully in the next couple of hours we will know when they will be able to do his surgery. Please be in prayer that he continues to do well throughout the second half of his trial run off of ECMO. We will let everyone know what the doctors and surgeons say in a few hours.
Monday Night
Bradley did beautifully off of the ECMO machine and he had a small surgery to take him off of for good. His surgery is most likely going to be on Wednesday, but his surgeon was off today and will not be back until tomorrow. We will know tomorrow exactly when Bradley will have surgery. Our sweet boy has been through so much already, and, even though we are through this very large step towards recovery, there is still a long way to go. Please pray for Bradley whenever he pops into your mind. We will make sure that we post all of the details about his surgery whenever we find them out. Adam and I would like to thank everyone for all of there support. We are humbled everyday by the love and generosity that we receive from our family, friends, church family, and even people that are perfect strangers to us. Bradley is a true miracle and I know that God has an awesome purpose for his life. We love you all very much and appreciate all that everyone does.
Tuesday July 21
Bradley is having his surgery at 7:30 in the morning. Please pray that he does well during as well as after surgery. We will post an update as soon as we can after he is out of the surgery.
Wednesday July 22, 8:00AM
Bradley was just taken to surgery about thirty minutes ago. Please anyone who is online now pray very hard that he comes through well. We love everyone who has been following and appreciate all that has been done for us.
10:00AM
Bradley just got out of surgery and it went very well. The doctor said that he could not have been more pleased. There was only a small hole in the diaphragm and they were able to sew it up, and they also removed his appendix. Soon they will start trying to get him off of the ventilator. He is on 30% oxygen (room air is 28%). We will update as soon as we can get back to see him and take pictures. We still ask that you continue to pray for Bradley and the family also.
Bradley, Adam and Andrew. Andrew wanted to tickle Bradley's foot.
Thursday July 23
Bradley is doing very well today. He is beginning to be weaned off the vent, and they are decreasing his sedation some so that he is able to breathe on his own better. They are concerned about his pain level so they are trying to balance between decreasing the sedation and making sure that he is comfortable. All is going very well. Please continue to pray for Bradley's comfort, for him to be able to wean off of the vent quickly, and for him to begin eating soon. Thanks to everyone for all of your love and support.
Friday July 24
Today has been a very eventful day for us. Most of it has been wonderful. The only downside has been that Adam and Andrew have gone home. Due to our wonderful friends and family I will never have to be here alone, but I will miss both of them very much. Please keep them in your prayers as it was very difficult for both of them to leave Bradley and me today. Now for the good stuff. This morning I was able to hold Bradley for the first time. I was completely taken off guard when I was told, but I was very excited. I was able to sit with him for 2 hours before I had to put him back in his bed. It was the most wonderful feeling. I can not explain to anyone how unnatural it is for a mother not to be able to hold her baby. Just like I can not explain how wonderful it is to just be able to sit and look at him after you are finally able. Tonight was a very big milestone for us as well. Bradley has been taken completely off of the vent. They took him off tonight around 10:00, and Ms. Sally and I stayed until around 11:30. He was doing very well when we left. This is a really good sign. The only step to be taken now is for him to eat well. The doctors say that this can be very difficult for babies who have diaphragmatic hernias, but I know at least 2 reasons why Bradley's case will be different. We have an awesome God who has brought him a long way in a very short period of time, and Adam and I are his parents. If there is one thing that we do well it is eat. I have no doubt that we are almost on our way home. Please continue to pray for us. We love you all!!!
Sunday July 26th
Today Bradley had a very good day. I have been able to hold him several times and am now able to do all of the mommy stuff. I can change his clothes, his diapers, and I can hold him without it being a big ordeal. All of the IV's are gone out of his hands and there is only one tube that suctions out his tummy. All we are waiting on is for him to eat. I know that we will be home soon. I would like to thank everyone for all of their encouragement. We have been so uplifted by the comments that people have posted on the blog as well as all of the phone calls. Adam and I are so appreciative of all of the kindness that has been shown to us. There is no way that we will be able to express our heart felt gratitude to everyone on an individual basis. Please know that we love you all very much, and could never have made it through this without your love and support. Please continue to pray for us-especially Adam. He is still having a hard time while our family is separated. Now that our prayers have been answered and we know that Bradley will be fine, our family being apart is one of the hardest parts of this experience. We should have several pictures up in the next couple of days. We have had some computer issues lately, so we have lots to show you!! We love you.
Monday, July 27Here are some pictures. Finally!!!
LOOK NO TUBES!!!
MOMMY AND HER SWEET BOYSNOBODY GET MAD BUT GRAMMY GOT TO HOLD HIM TOO!!
Tomorrow we will begin trying to feed Bradley. They have taken the last tube out that drains his stomach. We ask that you keep us in your prayers as we tackle this next hurdle. As I said earlier if Adam and I are any indication of how he will eat, we will be home in no time.
Wednesday July 29
Today we are working on Bradley's eating. He is having a hard time learning to suck. The Occupational Therapist will be coming to work with him tomorrow, and I am hopeful that they will be able to help him. The doctors are weaning his medications as well. He is on Morphine and Ativan and we found out today that weaning him off of those medications may take several weeks. The reason is because they are concerned about him going through withdrawals from the medications that he has been on since birth. Please continue to pray for us. Andrew has strep throat, and I am having a difficult time being away from him. I have two sick babies and I can't be there for one of them. I know that he is in good hands, and I am so thankful for all of our family that has pitched in to help. I also know that this is just a bump in the road and that we will be through it very soon. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. We love you all!!
Friday July, 31
Today was a good day. Bradley decided tonight he would show us he could suck on a paci for a short time. This means we are one step closer to coming home, but yet still so far away. The nurse practitioner said that they maybe able to wean him off of his morphine by next week. We thank everyone that has been and are still praying for all of us. We love all of you and couldn't do it without your love and support.
Saturday, August 1
Today Bradley had an MRI done. He took a big step foward this morning, on the way to have the MRI his nurse gave him his paci and he sucked on it for about 5 min. on the way. Once he was in the MRI tube, he took it again for about 2 min. As soon as we find out about the results of the MRI we will update. In the meanwhile here are some new pictures.
Daddy and Bradley. Daddy had to wait a long time for this!!!!
Bradley and Gully.
Pop and Bradley.
Tuesday, August 4th
Bradley ate today!!!! The nurse fed him almost one ounce, and they are also moving him out of the NICU and into the Special Care Nursery. These are two very big steps for him. We are so excited!! I will be going home in the morning to spend some time with Andrew and get him registered for school. Please continue to pray for us as we travel and continue to get closer to going home for good.
Friday, August 7th
We got back to Charleston today, and learned that Bradley has been taken off of the Morphine and Adivan, but is still on the Zantac. He has eaten from the bottle twice today, and hopefully with Brooks being back down here he will have a chance to start eating more from a bottle.
Sunday, August 9th
Bradley was moved from the Special Care Nursery to the Level 2 Nursery today. He was moved because he was stable and all the nurses have to concentrate on is getting him to eat. The nurses where he was moved to are there for just those purposes. That has given us a lot of hope that he will be able to focus on eating from the bottle and gaining weight. All of the doctors and nurses that we have spoken to have told us that this is the most frustrating part of the process of getting him better. They were exactly right. If Bradley does not begin to eat in the next couple of weeks they may have to put in a feeding tube in his stomach. Please continue to pray for Bradley to eat so that he can come home. We want to thank everyone for all of the prayer and support. We could not have made it this far without you all!
Tuesday, August 11th
Bradley is doing wonderfully. Last night he ate almost an entire ounce on his own and today at each feeding that he was awake for he ate an ounce. I was able to feed him for the first time as well. That was very exciting for me, and it was long overdue. He is doing better by the day and I believe that he will be coming home soon. The occupational therapist said that one day he is going to figure out how to suck swallow and breathe at the same time and he will begin to eat. Rie (that is Angie for those of you who don't know who Rie is)says that it will be on his birthday. Bradley will be one month old on August 13th. I hope she is right. I feel like he will be home soon, and we still ask for you continued prayer. We love you.
Tuesday, August 18th
We are sorry that we have not been posting anything new for the past week. The reason is that Bradley has not progressed at all. He has actually begun to eat less instead of more. This is a very long and frustrating progress for us. Last week at this time, we were hoping that we could possibly be home by now. They are not even talking about letting him go home yet. Please continue to pray for us. This is really beginning to take its toll on everyone. Bradley is trying very hard to eat, but he is having a lot of problems. He gets very tired during feedings and falls asleep. He also has a very sensitive stomach. After he eats about an ounce of milk he has a lot of pain. We are all trying very hard not to get to frustrated, but it is very difficult. Please continue to pray for all of us.
Saturday, August 22nd
Bradley has started doing well again. He is eating about 2 ounces of food every time that he is eating. He has to get to almost 3 ounces every 3 hours before he is able to come home. We are very close and hopefully he will continue on this path. Since school has started back we are making several trips a week back and forth to Charleston. Please pray for Bradley to continue to do increase in the amount of food that he eats and safety as we travel back and forth. Thank you all for your support. We love you all very much.
Friday, September 4
We want to apologize for not updating the page like we should. Bradley has had a very hard week, he started throwing up monday, the 31, and they started running test to find out what was going on. As we found out today he has a partially obstructed small bowel. He has been moved back to the Special Care Nursery, and has been scheduled for surgery on Thursday, Sept. 10th. There is a chance if he can pass the obstruction that he may not have to have the surgery, but it may be a long shot. Please continue to pray for Baby Bradley, and also pray for Adam, Brooks, and Andrew. Especially remember Andrew, he understands that Bradley is sick, but doesn't understand why "mommy has moved to Charleston". Please pray that God will help all of us come through this and bring us home as a family again soon. We love all of you very much and there is no way we could ever show how much we apreciate your love and support. Again we say THANK YOU for all you have done for our family through this troubling time.
Monday, Sept. 14th
Bradley had another surgery this morning and it went very well. The surgery took over 4 hours, they had only planned for 2 hours but once they got started there was alot of scar tissue that had to be cut out. Dr. Smith was wonderful, he was able to cut on the same incission that was used to repair his hernia so that he wouldn't have two seperate scars on his belly. They also put a G-tube in while they were in the O.R. Bradley is now on a ventilator and will be for the next few days. Also they had to remove about a one inch piece of his bowel that was pinched and wasn't going to be able to fix itself without the surgery. We appreciate all of the calls and texts that we have recieved and also all of the people who have been praying for our little miricle baby. We love all of you and can't wait to get him back home for all to see him.
Also we have a twitter account set up. We will update it as well as this to make it easier for people to follow what is going on with Bradley. Just go to http://www.twitter.com/adam8502 and sign up to follow.
