We are 22 weeks/5 days and what a relief it's been since we made our decision to continue the pregnancy. After learning of Caleb's CDH diagnosis, we felt helpless as we had never heard of the birth defect. Therefore, we did what most every adult does and started researching the internet, which in itself can be an incredible place for information yet extremely scary and overwhelming.
There were thousands of stories, both successful and tragic, and we realized quickly that no CDH story was the same. We were intrigued by a blog about a boy in a neighboring town that was a six-year-old CDH survivor who was born at Hopkins. It caught our eye because he was born on our due date of October 9th and he played in the same soccer league and wore the same jersey as Brody last fall. We reached out to his family and learned, that although he is surviving CDH, it is not without many trials and tribulations as he remains on a feeding tube, requires oxygen at night, and has a nurse around the clock to help monitor his daily intakes. Even though he has had a few setbacks and lingering issues, he functions like any other six-year-old boy as he attends school, plays sports, and is very active. His story gave us hope, but in all honesty it also scared the hell out of us.
Wyatt James Koger's Blog
They were nice enough to invite Tim, Brody, and I into their home tonight and they shared their countless stories with us while Brody, Wyatt, and Wyatt's older sister, Chloe played. It was nice to speak with a family who has dealt with and survived the challenges of CDH. Their abundance of information with regards to supplemental health plans, medical supplies, and home health care were extremely helpful. In addition, their positive experiences regarding the many doctors and nurses that treated Wyatt at Hopkins were very comforting. It's times like these that will help prepare and guide us in our upcoming journey.
There were thousands of stories, both successful and tragic, and we realized quickly that no CDH story was the same. We were intrigued by a blog about a boy in a neighboring town that was a six-year-old CDH survivor who was born at Hopkins. It caught our eye because he was born on our due date of October 9th and he played in the same soccer league and wore the same jersey as Brody last fall. We reached out to his family and learned, that although he is surviving CDH, it is not without many trials and tribulations as he remains on a feeding tube, requires oxygen at night, and has a nurse around the clock to help monitor his daily intakes. Even though he has had a few setbacks and lingering issues, he functions like any other six-year-old boy as he attends school, plays sports, and is very active. His story gave us hope, but in all honesty it also scared the hell out of us.
Wyatt James Koger's Blog
They were nice enough to invite Tim, Brody, and I into their home tonight and they shared their countless stories with us while Brody, Wyatt, and Wyatt's older sister, Chloe played. It was nice to speak with a family who has dealt with and survived the challenges of CDH. Their abundance of information with regards to supplemental health plans, medical supplies, and home health care were extremely helpful. In addition, their positive experiences regarding the many doctors and nurses that treated Wyatt at Hopkins were very comforting. It's times like these that will help prepare and guide us in our upcoming journey.
