He Takes My Heart With Him

More Painful Tests

Ugh, tomorrow is Jack's pediatric urology appointment at the children's hospital. I am already feeling sorry for him; I know how much these tests are going to hurt.

He will need a catheter so they can fill up his bladder and then test the strenth with which his muscles push out the urine. He has a really tight muscle in his penis (oh, boy, he's going to hate me for typing that when he's older!), so getting catherized is extremely painful for him. At the local hospital, they tried three times and still couldn't get the catheter in. He screams and cries and tries to get away. It breaks my heart. We're both in tears by the end of a catheter session. I don't know if they'll check his bladder reflux tomorrow. I hope not. That's the test where they fill up his bladder and then x-ray him, as he pees. For that, he has to be stretched out, arms up, and secured to a "spit", as I call it, so they can turn him from side to side like a tootsie roll as they x-ray. They even secure his head in place with a band. Talk about terror for a one-year old.

I'm praying for good results. As I've said before, having potty-training problems would be so very minor compared to what he could be dealing with, so we are definitely blessed and grateful. But, as his mother, I agonize over him being teased for wearing pull-ups past the preschool years. I still pray for him for every minor wish, alongside the big ones. Please pray for Jack's pain and fear during the tests and that he finds distraction and comfort soon after. And please pray for positive results. Thank you all.