BMT: Aplastic (Day +4)

This is the dreaded Day +4.  This marks the starting of Clark’s lowest counts. This is the beginning of when we expect to see his negative reactions to the chemotherapy, as well as when he is the most susceptible to infection.  It is also the ideal opportunity for the new bone marrow cells to start growing.

Patrick and I had the opportunity to go outside and grab some lunch this afternoon. Clark has just fallen asleep, and we had an hour and a half until he needed his next set of oral meds. We made sure the crib railings were secure. The nurses turned on the camera and sound for the room, and we were on our way!

It was such a beautiful day outside, with the sun shining and a cool breeze blowing. The neighborhood around UCSF is very San Francisco-esk with the tall 3 story homes and the steep hills. We made it to a nearby taqueria and had just enough time to order our burritos when my phone rang.

It was the hospital… Apparently (in the 15 min we had been gone) the nurse had to turn Clark over because he was squishing an IV line (this happens often). Clark started coughing, which turned into full blown vomiting! It sounded like the nurses were having a hard time calming him down, and needed us to come back ASAP!

Luckily, the nurses managed to calm Clark down before we returned. We were very relieved to see this, since Patrick and I were a 15 minute walk away when we received the call! Unfortunately Clark’s nap ended up being only 15 minutes long due to the unkind wake up, and he wasn’t able to fall back to sleep. The night ended with no additional signs of upset stomach, but he was a little grumpy from being sleepy. (Heinrich?)

It’s difficult to tell the reason why Clark started to vomit. It could have been a cough that triggered his rather sensitive gag reflex, followed by the fact that neither of his parents were there to calm him. Or this could have been nausea and vomiting due to his chemo. Clark has a daily drip of anti-nausea medicine. This is needed to keep his stomach calm. But it is very possible that the medicine is not strong enough some days.

So, hopefully an isolated incident, and not the “wrath of Day +4”.  We spent the end of the day playing by the window and enjoying cookies.  If Clark is going to start rejecting food (due to chemo), Patrick and I decided we should start including foods he never says “no” to.  That way we can see if the problem is the type of food, or his stomach.  Cookies and ice cream accompany every dinner because of this.  Plus… YOLO, hombres!