Last Thursday, we brought M to the pediatrician for his 4 months check up. This was a new pediatrician, and we were hopeful that we would like this office and doctor more than the previous one we'd used. The appointment was going wonderfully and we, M included, really liked the CRNP that was treating him. We were almost done with the appointment when she did the requisite check of his head and soft spots.
Somehow we went from a great visit to being written an Rx for a CT scan of M's head in 2 seconds flat.
It seems that when she was feeling his head, she couldn't feel the soft spot at the front of his head open. As I later learned, this is called the anterior fontanel and it doesn't usually start closing until about 9 months. We were reassured that if it had closed, it wasn't a major health issue. Of course, it would still require a referral to a pediatric neurosurgeon.
Let me tell you, the words, "PEDIATRIC NEUROSURGEON" were flashing before my eyes like they were on a Vegas marquee.
We were sent on our merry (scary) way, with reassurances that the imaging office would contact us to set up an appointment that afternoon. I dropped J and M off at home and went back to work. I'm not quite sure how I managed to be productive, as I was staring at my phone every 45 seconds willing it to ring.
In my rational mind, I knew there was nothing more that I could do that day. But the inner Mama was screaming, "What are my next steps?! Let's get a plan of action! I need to DO something."
We were able to schedule the CT scan for the next afternoon. I have done some difficult things in my lifetime. I have had a baby cut out of my body! I have been there as people and animals I love have died. Looking back on it now, I don't think that anything I have done was as difficult as seeing the terror in M's eyes as he was strapped into the CT machine, hearing his cries, and having to walk out of the room. Thankfully we were using new technology, and the flash CT only took 45 seconds to complete the scans.
On Monday and Tuesday, I tried to wait patiently for the results. I managed to only call the pediatrician's office once each day. On Tuesday afternoon the nurse called me back and let me know that she spoke to the imaging office and would have the report the next morning. C tells me that I have more patience than most people she knows. I didn't feel it.
Wednesday morning, I woke up to the most beautiful voice mail I have ever received. M's anterior fontanel was not prematurely fused at all. He's just thick headed, like his daddy. And, to be fair, his mama too.
Life has been extremely stressful these past few months. J has been laid off twice this year when the companies he worked for went under. And in between those, he thought it would be cute to get appendicitis at the same time I had crippling edema from my pregnancy. Which, of course, was 2 weeks before we were moving into our current house. And those are just some of the highlights.
After the last week, it's all gravy. My boy is healthy and happy. God is good, and I am blessed.
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