MRI at 4:30. I don't think we will know until afterward if we are going home tonight or not.

I spontaneously went into labor with five of my six babies prior to 39 weeks. Earliest was 37, latest was 38w5d. Nobody tried to stop the labor. I actually did have an induction scheduled with the sixth for just shy of 39 weeks, but that was for medical reasons. He came a full week before that date. Inducing or scheduling c-sections prior to 39 weeks without a compelling medical reason is sound policy because it reduces the risk of complications for both mother and baby (assuming both are healthy, which is the population this policy targets). Applying this policy to every situation is absurd. There will always be spontaneous labors that happen before 39 weeks and labor should not be stopped after 36/37 weeks (again, depending on the individual circumstances). There will always be medical reasons to end a pregnancy artificially (induction or c-section), whether that's at 27 weeks or 41.

Neurology was called in, but after talking to the attending pediatrician I think they were there to confirm somebody's hunch of a migraine (because she responded to the meds they gave in the ER). They definitely were NOT there with an open-minded view of it could be migraine or X or Y. The neuro exam showed normal motor function. Which, yeah, she's fine right now. Is she going to stay fine? No one knows. I'll sleep better with the MRI all clear. If it shows something, well, then, it proves to everyone that they shouldn't be dismissive *%%es about things like this.

Just met with them. It went well. She's getting MRI today if possible. If they can't fit her in, we will have an outpatient appointment. They're going to speak to that resident about what she said last night, too. She was the chief resident, which makes it worse, IMO. She should know better.

I asked to speak to someone in Patient Relations. A representative is supposed to come to dd's room. I don't expect it to really do anything, but I want someone to hear that I am leaving dissatisfied and upset. That conversation last night with the chief resident is still echoing in my ears. A parent should not feel bullied or shamed into deferring to their child's medical team.

Dd didn't throw up last night. This is the longest she's gone in 20 days. Maybe it's over now. We won't know for a few days. I'm pissed off at most of the doctors we saw yesterday, but if she's feeling well and we have a good discharge plan when/if symptoms return I think I want to go home. I don't trust any of them to look at anything else. They never looked for anything else once they ruled out bleeding and masses with the CT. Neuro diagnosed her with migraines while she was still in the ER and they hadn't even seen her. Maybe they're right, but the way this all went down leaves me feeling extremely frustrated and dismissed. The emergency department checked her for UTI on Wednesday. The dip was negative, but they cultured it anyway. Last night she started an antibiotic because something grew. She's not complaining of UTI symptoms at all. She was checked for UTI five or six days into the vomiting and the dip was negative then, too. Her stomach and head hurt again last night, but Tylenol was sufficient to make her comfortable enough to fall asleep. Tylenol being effective for a migraine is laughable to me, but what do I know? I'm just a mom and a longtime migraine sufferer, not a team of "really smart people" with "decades of medical experience." (Paraphrased from my conversation with the resident yesterday evening during which she bullied me in an attempt to make me accept their diagnosis of migraine + UTI + anxiety.) My 14yo (migraine) goes to the outpatient neuro clinic here, with which I previously had positive experiences. My feelings are decidedly mixed now.

Yeah, I definitely don't want to leave without a more specific plan than "come back if symptoms don't improve in 1-2 days." I want to know that if it's UTI-related vomiting, I should expect improvement after X days on abx. I want to know that if vomiting continues past that, the plan is to meet with ____ doctor to discuss ____. The day nurse and new night nurse (shift change) agreed that my concerns regarding discharge instructions need to be addressed. The day nurse will be back on tomorrow.

All the docs from all the teams are saying dd doesn't need MRI because her symptoms don't match the types of things that MRI would show vs. the CT we already did. I feel bullied and like they think I'm stupid. They're willing to do it if it's the only thing that will get me on the same page, but the doc who was just in here cited decades of medical experience and lots of smart people looking at the case as reasons why I shouldn't push for one. She also said insurance might not pay for it and that dd would have a hard time with it. They did find a UTI after culturing her urine (dip test was negative). So they're comfortable with calling this UTI + migraine + anxiety. Dh feels comfortable skipping the MRI. It's not my first choice, but I can probably convince myself it's okay. Neuro would want to see her in a month to check on her headaches. If she's still vomiting at that time they'd investigate other reasons for it (still not with MRI unless she has new symptoms). Right now they think the vomiting is related to UTI and/or migraine. Thoughts?

Right? When my 14yo first started getting migraines, we did an MRI and then treated migraines after that came back normal.

She's eating a ton: two breakfasts, a snack, and two lunches so far. "Apart from all the needles and feeling sick, the hospital is pretty nice." We just got a visit from psych to discuss Somatic Symptom Disorder (physical symptoms caused by mental health). I'm not enthusiastic about that. We also discussed ways of managing her anxiety and depression. I just don't want all of this to be dismissed as psychological.

One person from neuro came by to go over symptoms and history again. I emphasized my desire to be thorough just to make sure we don't miss anything. She's going to go back to the team to discuss a plan.

Still waiting for neurology. Saw the pediatric team. They summarized all the normal test and lab results and said they're out of their league for what to recommend until we get visits from psych and neurology. The psych visit is to investigate the possible connection between her symptoms and her anxiety/depression. I don't think that's our answer, but I agreed to investigate it.

Dh has been asked what salary range he's looking for, but I don't think he's ever been asked for previous salary info. That's bizarre to me. All that matters is if a potential employee is willing to do the work for the amount an employer is willing to pay.

I'm glad you're being treated. That sounds miserable! ((hugs))

I attended births as a doula for several years, so I have experience balancing firm and nice. My friend (also a doula) gave me a mantra to repeat today about recognizing the medical staff's humanity while insisting on appropriate care for my child. It's really sobering being here, though. Another child in dd's unit coded this morning.

That's interesting. Dd was diagnosed with mild scoliosis at her well checkup last month. It's one of the conditions associated with Chiari.

Also, we did an in patient stay last year and that put us on a better trajectory. It was a really difficult time for the whole family, but life is more stable on the other side.

I'm so sorry. My oldest has struggled with mental health for the past six years. Isolation makes things worse, IME, and finding the right medication or combo of medication can take years. It's so frustrating. My child is now with a better therapist. This therapist only sees teens and children, which is important, IMO. Teens need a different approach from adults. I hope you find better solutions with meds and therapy moving forward. It's so hard as a parent to deal with this and I'm sure it's hard as the teen as well.

My earlier post didn't make a lot of sense. Ha. Everyone who comes into her room is hearing about my frustration. I know we're going to get a massive bill from neurology. I want them to do a thorough work-up instead of trying to push this onto migraine. My gut says this is not migraine. I'm willing to accept that I could be wrong, but just do the @&$!-ing MRI already.

Neuro nixed the MRI for now. They want to examine her first. I've had hundreds of migraine. She didn't throw up last night, so perhaps the migraine cocktail they gave her helped in some way. Or perhaps this is another 36 hour break in the action. Too early to tell, IMO.

Dd is settled into her room. It's a teaching children's hospital, so I've given her history many times today. Everyone is stumped so far. Most likely she'll be getting an MRI under sedation in the morning (neurology will weigh in on that). She'll probably also get a consultation with GI. She's allowed to eat whatever she wants tonight. She ordered a bunch of baked goods because they sounded good to her very empty stomach. At the moment she's watching Harry Potter and she's feeling okay-ish even though she'd much rather be home. I'll be sleeping here tonight. They have a couch/bed in her room, but I wore jeans today. :-/ I'm going to ask my mom or my husband to bring me some comfy yoga pants tomorrow. And I really don't care if anyone objects to "athletic wear" being worn while not exercising. :p Thanks for supporting me through this. :)

They're admitting her. I hope we finally get a good answer and (more importantly) a correct treatment plan.

Thanks. We ran a metabolic panel on Monday. I had my husband call for the results today. He texted on his way out the door that the only abnormal things were low vitamin B and elevated CBC (no idea which levels or how high). This is our third trip to the ED. We've also visited her primary care provider three times. Failed outpatient treatment is so very accurate. This has been awful.

I had a couple of migraines like that back in 2008. Freaky stuff. She's not presenting with one-sided anything. Everything is bilateral.

The doc just popped in to say neurologist thinks really bad migraine (I disagree--18 days? Didn't respond to Maxalt). The GI doc is still thinking. Both were phone consults with the ER doc. They just swabbed her nose and drew blood. She is utterly miserable (screaming, crying, shaking). They did a basic neuro exam (squeezing hands, walking across the room, following light, etc.). They also did an eye test (reading letters). She collapsed during the eye test (shaky legs).