#ones left w him in the hospital but they didnt really know him and erased his real self and patrick's thinking that this must have been wha

[junietuesday]

bro i just finished the guncle by steven rowley and this book is simultaneously absolutely hilarious but also so heartwrenching and sweet im obsessed. like im so happy this ended up as my summer reading book bc i am writing whole essays for the short answer questions for summer homework bc i love this book so much i am so hyped to inflict my enthusiasm on everyone and discuss this book. its like yeah i walked into this book for silly gay uncle shenanigans w little kids (like the vibe almost gave me gravity falls of "staying w a relative for the summer") and it really delivered that And an emotional exploration of living with grief and the complex relationships w have w our siblings and family ????? im in love

[cleftmomph]

Timeline of #GABBIESJOURNEY Photo: PRofessional fees are erased just to give respect to our doctors, if ever you need info pls message me personally or visit their clinics. You can see the total so may be that will give you a rough estimate. Additional info: hosp bill in total was 60k plus additional 10k that was given to our surgeon separately -she issued a receipt ☺). Its been one month since Gabbie's operation. And I've been meaning to write about our cleft team specially about dr. Glenda de villa. Fees and experiences. (yes 1 month meaning this was written around november 2015, so some of the infos here Are Already written on my other blog entry😂)


After we found out that our Gabbie will be extra extra special, I was very restless. People are telling me to look for a plastic surgeon, for a dentist, for an ENT doctor... And sa totoo lang hindi ako kampante sa mga sagot nila kahit some of those suggestions came from doctors din. So lalo akong naguluhan. I started reading and asking around. I started looking for the best surgeon. But where do you start? Really. I was clueless. So I just searched for cleft surgeon. All that would appear are foundations, and at that time, I would be honest, it was not one of our options. So what I did was look for the President of a foundation and consult with him/her. And so... I found Dr. Glenda De Villa under NCFPI's website. She is an oral & maxillofacial surgeon, and having a medical background, it sounds kind of reassuring. somehow it made me feel that THIS, this type of surgeon is what I was looking for. Checked her hospital affiliations and what do you know, may clinic sya sa asian!!! I was overjoyed!!!!!! That was a sign for me. My hands we're shaking as I call her office, her secretary was very kind and accommodating, she scheduled us a meeting with her and Dr. Janet Pandan :) 

We arranged our first meeting with Dr. Glenda De Villa and Dra. Janet Pandan weeks before giving birth. They discussed with us what's needed to be done. They introduced to us the NAM (nasoalveolar molding, w/c after some meetings we learned from their secretary that it was Dra. Glenda who brought the method of using NAM here in the Philippines). This is like a denture without the teeth with a stent for the nose. Its primary job is to help the gap become smaller w/c makes the surgery easier and outcome much better. They said it will act as gabbie's artificial palate for easier feeding, hence the weight gain she will need for her first surgery. andthe NAM also has the stent w/c raises the nose. They also told us that it will be used for the first 3 months of life. We agreed to use NAM, and decided to have it as early ad possible para makapag feed si gabbie ng maayos agad. it costs 30k inclusive of all the adjustments and check ups. 

Good thing their Pedia-Pulmo, dr. Arneil Suratos, who is part of their cleft team in Asian Hospital is also our Pediatrician. So it was very easy to communicate regarding our careplan after giving birth.

Days before I give birth, we found out Dr. Janet will be out of the country for a convention. I was supposed to have C-sectio before she leaves but my OB Gyne, Dr. Carmen Perez told me the later I give birth, the better. So we decided to schedule it April 27. I think that's exactly my 38th week. 

April 27, 2015
Finally our little angel arrived. The next day, she had her NAM fitting with Dr. Glenda De Villa. 

Her first NAM adjustment came a week after, we started the taping. The week after, the bulb/stent
Was placed. After that was a weekly adjustment till her third month. She was scheduled aug 25 but was cancelled. Lost count how many times her surgery was cancelled. Eventually got tired of the excitement and anxiousness. Hahaha so it was a come what may.. Bahala na si Lord attitude. 

September 30, 2015
Gabbie had her CBC and Xray in PCMC. We got the result for cbc that day, requested a STAT. For the xray, we borrowed the film but didn't wait for the final reading/result. Hahahaha which was a bad idea pala. Nasanay kasi kami sa pedia-pulmo namin from PCMC (dr. Cabanilla) who reads the xray right away and doesn't really depend on the final reading. I think Dr. Cabrera, the Pulmo-Pedia of Dr. De villa's team in Our Lady of Peace just wants a proof that Gabbie is healthy and is safe to go through the surgery. Which we really understand. Tinawagan namin ang PCMC at nakisuyo if we could get the reading the next day, as early as possible at salamat Lord, pumayag sila.. Usually, 2 working days bago ma release. The next day we got the final reading and her lungs are clear and normal. 

Praise the Lord!

October 1, 2015
Left bulacan after lunch and we arrived at our lady of peace in Paranaque around 8 PM. Haha! We got lost because of waze!!

We got to take the suite dahil wala ng ibang room. Gabbie was scheduled to have her surgery at 7 am. NPO (nothing per orem) started at 12midnight. It was a smooth pre-op. Hindi sya umiyak or nanghingi ng milk nung madaling araw. 
After she was given the aneasthesia, super bilis, groggy na sya agad. The surgery took an hour or so. Then recovery an hour :) she also had her ear piercing while she was still groggy with the anest. 

She was irritated. She didnt drink much milk for the first 12 hours. I think she just want to sleep. She had slight fever but thats expected cause she's in pain. We tried using the post op bottle but shes not satisfied with it. We used syringe instead 😊

October 2, 2015
We were discharge with medications and wound care from fr. Glenda. 

We paid around 70k. Super laki ng discount ng philhealth. (Will attach a photo)
_________________


Follow up came after 1 week @ asian to remove the sutures. She cried a little.
Then Follow up after a month for the scar massa😁ge.
Follow up for the scar (if we will use dermatix or not) *will edit and add info as gabbie's journey continue:) #gabbiesjourney #jadegabrielle #gabbieanamjourney #cleftstrong #cleftstrongph #cleftmomandproud #diaryofacleftmom