One forward two back

We had been warned that often in NICU babies take a few steps forward and then face various setbacks. 

Clem had his first major one last night when he spiked a temperature and his belly became distended. X-rays indicated that most likely the repair (anastomosis) they did on his intestines (for jejeunal atresia) last week was leaking for some reason, and a second surgery was scheduled a few hours later. 

Surgery day was just as scary for us the second time around, but once again things went really well. They found the initial repair was leaking, but the cause was a previously unseen twist (volvulus) further up the bowel. 

This evening when we saw him he was resting comfortably with even little earmuffs on to help reduce stimulation so he can be less disturbed and start to heal. 

It's been a very big day for all of us, feeling grateful that we're in the right place where things like this can be treated within hours. From here, we go back to nil-by-mouth until his gut has healed enough to gradually re-introduce tiny breastmilk feeds again, most likely not til next week. 

So our already unknown recovery timeframe is going to be even longer than we'd hoped, but thankfully Clem is stable and in good hands.