Kymani NICU Update 6/27/2017: Photos, Progress, & Daily Activities

by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff

All Images   6/27/2017 © Lyn Lomasi & Richard Rowell; All Rights Reserved

Curious about Kymani's progress in the NICU on 6/27/2017? Her update is below, along with photo slideshows, including some bonus photos from 6/26/2017. She's 19 days old today!

Kymani's Back On A Low-Flow Cannula For Light Breathing Support

Getting kangaroo care

One of the biggest parts of today's update is that Kymani was put back on oxygen support via the low-flow cannula last night. Once her feedings were increased to a certain point, she started to have some mild desaturation spells (desats) just during feedings. At first it was fairly infrequent but last night, they got frequent enough that her medical team decided she needed a little bit of help.

Don't worry, though. She's still a little fighter and this is actually normal for preemies during food increases. This is because when the stomach is full, it pushes on other organs, which can sometimes cause the lungs or other organs to work a little harder than usual.

It's important to note that if she meets all of her other milestones and is ready to go home, but is still on the low flow cannula, that will not prevent her from going home. Some preemies do go home with oxygen support and that's perfectly normal if that happens. Obviously, it would be ideal that she doesn't, but the medical staff has been working with us to make sure we know how to handle dressing and holding her with the tubes on. We are confident they will prepare us further if necessary when it's time to go home.

This may seem like bad news, but really it's neutral and doesn't mean she is doing worse. It was hard walking into the room seeing her that way this morning. But we reminded ourselves that we were told early on (and reassured today) that even preemies who had little support in the beginning may still need some later. It doesn't mean they are doing badly if they need low flow oxygen support via a nasal cannula. It can be a part of the process as they grow, develop, and eat more.

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Kymani's Weight Gain And Other Milestones

Speaking of news, Kymani gained a whole 80 grams last night! We told you she was still a fighter. She really wants to go home!

The medical team said she will be moving into an open crib sometime within about a couple days. She's creeping up on the 1800 gram weight total we talked about. She's already at 1760 now! Once she's at 1800, that's when she moves into the open crib.

She also will begin really starting to breastfeed in a week or less. As we mentioned before, she already knows to root. Whenever she does that, it's fine to let her try. Right now, I pump first because we don't want a lot to end up in her mouth while she's still trying to figure out how to swallow. But soon she will be able to try with more milk involved.

The main goal to meet for her going home is being able to eat properly, since she is already continuously gaining weight and will soon be in an open crib. So, please send positive thoughts that she will quickly learn how to feed properly so that we can bring her home soon.

More Photos of Kymani On 6/27/2017

Bonus Photos From 6/26/2017

Here are some bonus photos we took after yesterday's update was posted. Enjoy!

All Images  6/26/2017 © Lyn Lomasi & Richard Rowell; All Rights Reserved

Keep an eye on the blog for more of Kymani's journeys!