The Doctor Is In

Well, after two days of appointments, things are looking up. Here's the recap.

Wednesday - Occupational Therapist (OT) and Speech Therapist (ST)

The appointment was actually a lot of fun. The therapists were great and the girls were so good. We answered a bunch of questions on their sensory reactions and they scored very well - completely in the normal range. They were looking for any indications of sensory integration issues, ie: cried at loud sounds; doesn't like touch; can't deal with change; etc. Having a few of these issues myself, I've been on the lookout and the girls haven't shown any signs of any of this.

Having heard the girls had started some solids, the therapists (TPS) then tried some green beans and bananas using a variety of textures spoons and implements. The girls loved it. The were happy to put the new utensils right in their mouths. They each seemed to prefer the bananas and it took a bit for Natalie to warm up to the green beans. The TPS were quite pleased with their oral exploration.

They also observed the girls drinking a bottle, which happily they were interested in drinking. Again, they were pleased. Natalie shows some weak latching at times and the milk dribbles out a bit. Otherwise, they did well.

The only real concern they had was the tendency the girls have to throw their arms back when sitting or standing. It could be a reflux reaction or just a bad developmental habit, or a combination of the two. They recommended seeing a physical therapist to check it out. We've been aware of the problem for a while and have worked hard on keeping their arms forward as much as possible. I do want to check with PT for any additional exercises we can do.

The conclusion:
After some math and averaging out a 12-day period, they agreed the girls were very, very close to where they needed to be. They showed very good oral skills and seemed happy, healthy, and developmentally appropriate. They recommended a few things we could try: changing when we give their Previcad in the morning (no problem, that's easy); offering solids mixed with formula powder twice a day; increasing the calorie per ounce of the formula from 24 to 27 (started this today); letting them touch and "play" with the food; and using various utensils for feedings.

Our big push is to improve their 10am feed. Right now, they eat almost nothing. If we could add that feed in, it would put their totals so, so, so close. 10am is one of the times we will definately offer cereal (after their bottle).

Overall - they believed we should put off the g-tube at least one more month to see if they could take some extra calories through solid food. Often babies who have a hard time with liquids take well to solids, so this is our hope.

As usual, and with usual irony, the TPS didn't seem to think they would benefit from coming weekly to their clinic. It's very odd to me that for babies who are supposedly doing so poorly, no one seems to think they need weekly therapy intervention??? I just don't get it.