GROSS OUT ALERT! Post-op photos

This is Max loaded into his portable isolette (they call it the GlobeTrotter) it's equipped with a ventilator and monitor on board. He's headed down to surgery with his full medical team and Mommy is crying!



This was our first look at Max when he returned from the OR. He was bruised, and a little puffy, but mainly just still. The anesthesia paralyzed him so he could not move for at least an hour after he came back up to his room. The board on his left arm is holding his wrist in place for an IV. he has another IV line in his left leg and during the surgery, they placed a Broviak long term IV port in his right leg. That's mommy's hand holding his head, which usually comforts him. He took the blue "blankie tag" on his head to surgery with him and had it on his head when he came back. It was a gift from big sister Ella and I sleep with it once a week after it's washed, so it smells like Mommy.

This is Max's incision across his belly and on the left you can see the stoma. That is basically a section of his intestines, snipped in two and now both ends are on the outside of his body. This allows the poop that he makes to drain outside his body, a bag will be stuck on, kind of like diaper to collect the poop. It's called an ostomy bag. This will allow Max to grow stronger and the intestinal tissue to heal as much as possible. The surgeon, in a few months will perform another surgery to sew these two ends back together for one healthy bowel.


This was Max on Saturday, one day after surgery. He is so swollen and bloated. His eyes and mouth are swollen shut. You can see his incision and his stoma is covered with Vaseline gauze, which keeps it moist so it doesn't stick and heal shut. You can also see the smaller incision just above his diaper. He has a matching incision on the other side of his body. These are where the drain was in place for the past 6 weeks, allowing poop which leaked into his abdominal cavity to drain out, until he was strong enough for the bowel surgery.

These photos are scary to look at, but this is our new normal these days. We took the photos to keep for Max to see someday. He'll have these scars from his Broviak IV line, Penrose abdominal drain, exploratory incision and stoma, as well as the heart surgery scar which is on his back. We hope Max will be able to look at them someday and realize how far he's' come and how gorgeous those scars are to us. They're reminders of all the surgeries to keep him alive!