11/09/2009
by Michael Wells The time is 1:45am Monday morning and oh what a night! Brady’s condition is not good. His breathing is once again erratic and his blood pressure is now of concern as it is lower than desired. This combined with the temperature spike and Brady got an official visit from the PICU team and after much discussion Brady is going to stay put for now. The outcome of all the discussions; Brady has yet another couple of pieces of hardware added to his growing array of crap. He is now hooked up to an EKG machine and some sort of device that gives him heated and humidified oxygen. Both of these devices have been a trip to watch my son pull off time after time. Finally, I think he’s asleep but because he got a bolus of IV (a large dose of fluids in a short period of time) he is peeing every 15 minutes. So, he should be awake in about 10 minutes. The bolus is supposedly used to help improve the blood pressure go up. I wonder if they have an anti-bolus for me to help my blood pressure go down. This has been just a wonderful night and to top things off I have a business meeting in Greenwich Connecticut for a meeting at the Greenwich Hospital tomorrow at 10:30am. Brady just started crying out again and the nurses came a running. So, until next time; Please, Please keep Brady in your thoughts. Prayers and hugs..Some disappointing news; Brady will shortly be moved to the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit). The cause for this move is Brady’s continuous erratic breathing. It is the right place for him at this point in time and hopefully it will be for a short period of time. So, once again please keep Brady in your thoughts, prays and hugs…
So many people have asked us what they can do to help, so Sherrie and I have come up with a plan to help ease our anxiety and hopefully put a positive spin on a horrible situation. We are asking all of Brady’s family members, friends, and anyone who has been touched by our son to hug someone in honor of Brady. That’s right we want to start: “Hugs for Brady” Start today; in fact start right now! Give someone you love, someone you hate, anyone who needs a hug a – Hugs for Brady. And let us know how many hugs you’ve given in his honor. All we want to see are the numbers – it will really mean a lot to us and most importantly; Brady! Also, anyone who would like to register as a bone marrow donor can do so on-line, just go to www.marrow.org/ . Registering as a bone marrow donor will help someone, but not necessarily Brady, as donors are on a random basis. Another idea that would be simply a wonderful gesture on Brady’s behalf would be to donate blood or platelets. He has needed several transfusions in such a short amount of time and it will only continue. You can donate at: Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick Affiliated Hospital Blood Center, Donor Recruitment (732) 235-8100 ext. 244. I have found some very good information online and if anyone is interested the site I have found most informative is: The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) www.leukemia-lymphoma.org. This site is very educational and a good source of information. My personal thanks for the overwhelming outpouring of love and well wishes for our son Brady, it means more than we can possibly express. Until next time, please keep Brady in your thoughts, prayers and hugs…
“8 Years Later—Still No Cure for Pediatric Cancer” is a series of posts revisiting the journal kept by Sherrie and Michael Wells during the cancer diagnosis and treatment of their son, Brady Michael. Hopefully these entires will provide an understanding of the journey families face when dealing with these horrific diseases and of the important work the Hugs for Brady Foundation does.