My Story
Hello, my name is Andrew Wade Jackson. My friends call me Drew. When my mommy was 17 weeks pregnant they found out that I have a severe heart defect called an unbalanced atrioventricular septal defect. This means I have holes in the septal wall of my heart and that only 1 of my 2 ventricles is working properly. This heart defect was caused by trisomy 21 often known as Downs Syndrome.
I was born in Kalispell on July 10th and 3 hours after birth took my first plane ride to Seattle. I was there for 10 days as they monitored my heart. Then I went home to Kalispell to be with my family.
On September 10th I was set to have a pulmonary band surgery which is normally a low risk surgery. However, they were not able to do this surgery and had to begin the "Norwood" series of surgeries. My first surgery was Sept. 11th. Early in the morning I went into surgery spending 4 hours on the heart and lung by-pass machine. When it was time to come off they could not get my heart and lungs started again. I went on a life support machine called ECMO which takes the blood from the body, gives it oxygen and sends it back. This machine would be my best friend for the next 12 days and ultimately saved my life. After many days on life support, many more in the CICU, and a while on the floor I was able to return home. At home I was on oxygen full time, had a feeding tube, and many medications. On April 28th, 2009 I had my second open heart surgery, the Glenn. This surgery was not near as eventful as the first and we were able to return home after only 15 days away. At home things have gone well. I am now without oxygen and without my feeding tube. Currently my Cardiologist is watching me closly as we wait for my next open heart surgery, the Fontan. This will take place between the ages of three and five. My mommy and daddy are nervous as this surgery is more major than the last. Given the complexity of my heart, my past history of issues, and my trisomy 21 make my surgerys more difficult. However, my mommy and daddy trust in the Lord and the Power of Prayer.
August of 2011 we decided to move to Seattle to be closer to Childrens and are adjusting to life in the big city. On Tuesday July 31st I will have my next major open heart surgery. Please remember to say a prayer for me.
Thank you for visiting my site.
Here are a few statistics about my life from July 10, 2008 to July 24,2012:
Days lived at Childrens: 55
Days in ICU: 33
Days on Life Support: 17
2 Open Heart Surgery(Complete with Heart and Lung By-Pass machine)
1 Heart Surgery
3 Heart Cauterization
1 Life Flight(Kalispell to Seattle)
1 Ambulance Ride(Kalispell Hospital to Airport)
3 Trips to Seattle
1 Cardiac Arrest(Complete with CPR and Epinephrine-This saved my life)
To many Echocardiograms to count
To many trips to Cardiologist to count
To many blood transfusions to count
Please say a prayer for me.
Love, Baby Drew and Family
Day 8 So far So Good
Today has been very exciting for me and mommy and daddy. Today they turned off the oxygen going through my Echmo, meaning they are making my lungs do all the work. It has been 3 hours and 20 minutes and I am doing good. Hopefully today I will get to come off Echmo. I will still be on the ventilator and Nitrogen Oxide. This will be a big step in the right direction. My mommy and daddy are so very happy. The power of prayer and the work of the Lord is keeping me strong and hopefully soon will be bringing me back to my family. I think my sisters are missing me. Thank you for all your support!
Please remember to say a prayer for me.
Love, Drew and Family
7 comments:
Baby Drew you are in our prayers. May the Lord put his hand upon you and heal your heart.
The Snows
Everson, WA
Praying for continued healing and praising God for what he has done so far.
You are in our prayers.
Derek J Thornton
Baby Andrew
We are so very pleased that you are
now breathing on your own. May God continue to keep you in His
Loving Care and send His Holy Healing Angels to surround you and
His Holy Spirit to Heal and Hold you and the Lord Jesus by whose
stripes you are healed. It has been a long journey for such a little brave sweet baby boy.
We are praying for your healing in
Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, and Ohio
God Bless you and your Mom and Dad
and little sisters.
Love Forever,
Grandma Great
Baby Drew,
We are praying for you and your family! I am so happy you have gain the strength to breath for yourself. I knew you could do it. You are going to do great things in your life.
Love,
Tim, Kelly, Tia, and Lauryn
P.S. You keep showing them who's boss!
Baby Drew,
I forgot to tell you in my last note that we bought you some new really cool Bronco shoes from the "real" Bronco Store at the stadium. We had a great time at the game and wished your Daddy and Mommy were there with us. Would you tell your mom and dad that we have two tickets for club seats to Broncos vs. Kansas City for December 2 we would like to give to them if they would like to go. There are two seats. They would just have to get plane tickets and a place to stay. Maybe someone else would like to help your mom and dad with that.
I would even be willing to help your mom and dad with you kids while they were gone. Well you pass this on to them and tell them to let me know.
Love,
Tim, Kelly, Tia, and Lauryn
Little angel, Drew -- I am praying for you and your family as you go thru this healing time. Keep up the great work and get lots of rest so you can come home soon!
Kelcy Hoerner
Kalispell, MT
Many prayers for you tonight, Drew! God is snuggling with you... can you feel him? Prayers to your mommy and daddy, too.
Karyn in Bellingham
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