Rejection

I did not have a good feeling about labs yesterday, and unfortunately I was right. We had an appointment with Dr. Gillis Friday morning that revealed one of Thatcher's liver numbers was elevated - indicating likely rejection. Thatcher is also getting his molars and gave us a scare last week with a low grade fever. He, Amelia, and myself have colds and have not been sleeping well. All this to say, things have been a little off for Thatch lately.

We are very disappointed at the likelihood of rejection but have the weekend to prepare for next week. We have repeat labs Monday and an ultrasound. If his labs are still elevated, we have a biopsy scheduled for Tuesday afternoon which will determine if it is actually rejection. He will stay over night in the hospital Tuesday night, and if the biopsy determines it is in fact rejection, we will be there for 5 days on IV Prednisone and meds to treat the rejection. We have not had a biopsy before. He will be put under for this and a needle will take a very small portion of his liver to examine. However, he is not to eat before the procedure, which is always awful.

Smelling Mommy's anniversary flowers

I was slightly comforted by Dr. Gillis' reaction to the elevated numbers. It is concerning, and not at all fun, but this is an expected part of transplant. 80 percent of pediatric transplant cases experience rejection. I suppose we wish we had already had our 1 incidence early on, but that is just not realistic. We knew rejection was part of the transplant process, but it is still scary. The good thing is that this is treatable and manageable. Maybe one of the bad parts is that we have to start Prednisone again as we enter into flu season/the holidays (Prednisone is used to further suppress his immune system making him more susceptible to illness).

Between the drool and the snot...his shirts have stayed wet lately

As his mother, I'm full of worry, but it is my job to be strong and take care of him. One of the most important lessons I have learned through this process is to stay calm and take it 1 day at a time. It does no good to borrow trouble and worry about the future. Pray, hope, and don't worry about the rest. I still plan for Thatcher to grow up, live a quality life, go to school, and for this to all get better every day/year we get further from transplant.

He likes to play with momma's necklaces