Weight Check Turned Mini Nightmare

We went in for a simple weight check on Saturday and then had to come back today because my milk had barely come in and he was down to 8 1/2 lbs on Saturday. Well, today his weight was up to 9 lbs 6 ozs which is great, BUT they saw his spit up on his bib and were alarmed by the color of it. It was bright yellow, almost neon, but all my kids have had this until all the colostrum was out of my milk. I told them that, and asked if we could wait a day and see if it changes with my milk. However, the doctor insisted that it could be bile, bile would be life threatening (bowel torsion,) and that I needed an immediate upper GI for him. I was very hesitant and got a second opinion from the NICU pediatrician on call and a third from my friend Tiffani, who is a doctor and a mom. Brian was with the other kids at Mass and could not be reached during this chaotic time. I have given into tests in the past for the kids that were invasive and unnecessary because I didn't ask for a second opinion. I was trying to be wise and not just a panicky mom. All doctors agreed that it was worth the non-invasive procedure just to make sure. I was freaking out a bit, mostly hormones and just the thought of possible emergency surgery that very day. But in the back of my mind, I was almost sure that it was just the color of my milk, not bile, that he was spitting up. These poor doctors and nurses were sweet to put up with my constant stream of tears during all this. The pediatric radiologist was called in immediately, and we did the procedure right then. (By this time, I had gotten a hold of Brian and he was praying for Drew.) It turned out to be a lot less traumatic of a test than I was envisioning. He drank the Barium readily from the bottle which was a blessing that avoided tube feeding him. He didn't even cry much while being held down by myself and the radiologist which is surprising because he is somewhat of a fussy baby so far.

So, in the end it turned out fine. All was normal in his intestines and there was no emergency surgery being scheduled or us being rushed to the NICU. Praise the Lord for that! I headed home with my declared healthy (and exhausted!) baby boy!

(You can see the spit up on his bib in the picture.)

Later that day, I cleaned my barely used breast pump, pumped some milk, and Surprise! my milk was bright yellow. Today his spit up is much less yellow because my milk is changing gradually. I know everyone was just being careful, but I am glad that I do know something after having four babies.