Freaky Friday the 13th

Yesterday started out great - in celebration of my graduation from Tulane on Thursday, Reilly and I met my parents for breakfast.  My mom noticed that Reilly was still very pale, but it had a yellow tint.  I got to Ms. Susan's and we were celebrating a win on an appeal (in a court case) and she noticed Reilly's skin looked a little yellow.  Considering that Thursday was a very long day and she was "so 'cited" about my graduation, it stands to reason that she was very tired.  I decided to call the doctor and let them know what was going on.  Dr. Noel wanted to have her blood drawn to check her levels, so after we picked Cole up from school, Reilly and I headed to Children's.  She was not jaundiced (her eyes would be yellow), which is very good.  Most of the tests results were within normal ranges (her h+h was lower than Tuesday's, but still within normal limits), however her ammonia levels were well over normal.  This is probably due in large part to the fact that the liver is not processing all of the toxins out of her blood because the blood is not reaching or going through her liver to be processed because of the blockage not allowing normal blood flow.  Her sugar levels were low, but within normal.  All of her liver enzymes and other tests were within normal range - which is indicative that her liver is functioning properly, it just isn't receiving everything to process.  Reilly will take another medicine that will help her body process the ammonia and balance her sugar levels.   The doctor indicated that she does not have a blood sugar issue, her body just doesn't have a lot of reserves like it should; so if she depletes her reserves, it takes her little body much longer to build them back up.

So, yesterday was definitely a mixed bag.  There were a lot of things to be excited and happy about - graduation, winning the appeal, not having to be admitted to the hospital.  Adding more medication and more things to watch and consider is not that exciting. 

Now we go from here.  Her ammonia levels will now be monitored more closely.  We will have more information on Wednesday when we go back to Children's for her procedure.  

Please continue to keep Reilly and our family in your thoughts and prayers.  As I write this, I am exhausted, even after a decent night's sleep.  She remains in fabulous spirits and good humor, trying to beat her Daddy and brother at Sorry - which is amusing because she keeps putting her Barbie and her feet on the board, messing them up!