Once again I'm in Will's room, enjoying a day off from work -- or rather, a day off from the office; I'm still doing some work to get ready for next week -- and the chance to get online and write about Will while actually watching Will. Right now he is doing really well. His oxygen needs, while a bit higher now than they were overnight, are consistent, and he is resting quietly for the most part. He has fits, I assume related to the bronchopulmonary dysplasia that doctors talked with us about a few weeks ago (but I don't recall if I dealt with here). Essentially, being on a high frequency ventilator for so long does damage to a baby's lungs, and that damage can be an irritant that causes the baby to become uncomfortable and at times inconsolable, even if nothing appears to be wrong. I would imagine that being puffy with fluid and having your breathing compromised by still more fluid around your lung would make anyone uncomfortable anyway. So, at times he seems to hold his breath, start wiggling and gets red. His stats drop accordingly, then come back up once he settles down and starts breathing again. If he does this too many times in a row or starts before his stats go back up, he can set off the alarms that sound when his oxygen gets low. Though he has had several such fits today, he has only alarmed low a couple of times.

That said, the fluid is reaccumulating around his lung, and they expect to need to tap it later this afternoon. They may reassess if Will continues doing well as he is now, however. The longer he can go between taps, the better. At the same time, they want to do it before he gets too compromised so that he can maintain a more even keel rather than face constant ups and downs. All in all, it's just another part of the waiting game to see what he will do next.