We got to the hospital at 6:30 a.m. (keep in mind I have the most amazing kids who love to sleep late...so this was a stretch for Mia!). When we arrived, the receptionist informed us that there was an "emergency case" right before Mia's scheduled appointment. So, after getting Mia settled in the play room, off to Starbucks I went and indulged myself in my drink of choice - a Grande Toffee Nut Soy Latte, hold the whip - and was ready for the events of the day. Or, so I thought.
Shortly after I returned, with piping hot java in-hand, they took us down to the ER to get Mia ready. Jay and I walked into the room, holding her hand and she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw all these people in "blue costumes" with "blue hats" tromping about in an absolute hurry. It made ME nervous so I can only imagine what was going through her little head.
Our designated nurse walked us over to a "room," which was actually just a curtained-off room with a gurney. After we got Mia into her hospital gown and hospital socks the dreaded wait began. Just imagine trying to keep a three year old happy in a not-so-happy place - it was a challenge! In the meantime, there were a large handful of doctors and anesthesiologists who "popped in" to introduce themselves to us and to Mia. She was schedule to go in around 7:30 a.m. which ended up being closer to 9:00 a.m. Unlike last time where they just put some numbing cream on her hand and then did the IV, this time they put a watermelon-flavored mask on her face and put her to sleep first before doing the IV. And they only allowed one parent to be in the room with her. This time it was me.
So, I got all dressed up in my "space suit" and entered the room with her. I sat there and held her on my lap while they put the mask on her. After several moments of fighting it, she went limp and was out. I think that was the point where I decided I was truly tired of all of this - tired of putting her through everything, tired of being in pain, tired of being on the JRA rollercoaster. I felt really bad for her and kept asking myself all day long, "How the H*LL did this happen to her??? Where did this come from?? Why did it happen to MY baby?" Questions I am sure every JRA mom asks herself. I was just that tired.
They injected a dye into her arm to be able to see exactly where they needed to inject the steroid. They extracted about 3 cc's of fluid from her arm and, per our request, sent it off to the lab to test it for infection/bacteria. The procedure itself went well. Mia woke up and was a bit more emotional than usual. After that, we went home.
We are looking into a few other things right now for Mia and I will post more about those things soon.
Thank you to everyone for your love, prayers, and continued support. We have needed it and appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts. And, a HUGE "thank you" to all the JRA moms out there - I appreciate you more than you know.