We are back in the hospital! When he was born, the Doctor told us that Reese had jaundice but the Doctor didn’t seem too concerned about it. On Saturday his level went up to thirteen but they let us come home and never really made a big deal of it. Today was our four day check up and I was a little nervous. I have heard about Doctors pushing formula if a child looses any weight and I knew he didn’t eat well until Sunday when he finally got the whole breastfeeding thing. So the Nurse Practitioner saw us today and she wasn’t friendly at all! He weighed in at nine pounds which means he had lost 14.6 ounces and she freaked out and gave us the whole supplement talk and I was so upset. Then she ordered another test to find his levels of jaundice. He looked really yellow today and apparently if he doesn’t eat enough it can make his levels go up. Of course I cried. I have been crying for no reason at all since we left the hospital on Saturday! Two hours after the test the nurse calls and says we have to be admitted to the hospital and I cried for hours while feeding Reese and packing. I just wanted to be home with my newborn and get adjusted to having this beautiful child!
To make things a little more frustrating, the lactation consultant (which I adore!)called us just to check on us. Rich explained our situation to her and she informed us that when we left the hospital, Reese weighed in at eight pounds thirteen ounces. Which means when he weighed in today he had actually gained weight! No one ever informed us that Reese lost so much weight in the hospital. I knew we had a rough start but the nurse practitioner had made me feel like the worst mom ever! This was comforting to know that all my hard work was paying off, the baby gained weight! Luckily the Peds Doctor is wonderful and very comforting. Reese has to stay under a UV light and they test a few times a day to test his levels. We have gone done a little already tonight. He was at eighteen which is way too high. I surprisingly didn’t cry when they brought him to me with an IV in his little hand. It broke my heart though! It looks like we will be here until at least Wednesday. The Doctor is very positive that Reese will just keep getting better. It’s really hard to watch him just lay there with his eyes blindfolded, an IV, and naked. We only get to hold him during feedings which is killing us. And of course my body is really healed yet so I am still sore and tired which is making this a little more stressful. So please keep us in your prayers! Hopefully, we will be leaving here with a healthy baby in no time!
Babies so often have jaundice. The problem is they let you out of the hospital so early they may not catch it at first. As for the crying – look what you’ve been through. You’ve been through a lot in a short time (more so than an average-on-time-no-problems birth [with hormonal involvement]) so don’t worry too much about the crying. It helps you. We’re all praying for you and your family. We all love you very much. It won’t be long before you’ll all be home – sleep deprived – but loving it. Jesse
Ben had the same kinds of problems: 11 lbs 2 1/4 oz, c-section, would not eat (not a problem now) jaundiced etc. Almost 20 years later: 6’2 250lbs. and always on the go. This should give you encouragement but I’m praying as well.