Watch me Grow

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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

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Enjoying Home

Hello,

Sorry I haven't posted in a little while. Me and my mommy and daddy are enjoying being home and spending time together as a family. My chest is still a little sore and it hurts when I cough, sneeze, get upset, or roll over to far. It usually takes 6 weeks to heal, but hopefully the soreness will go away soon.

As far as long term I should not have to have any further surgeries for about 2-3 years. In a year they might want me to go back for a heart cauterization to ensure my pressure levels are good and my heart is working well. Other than that I will be see my cardiologist weekly for check up's and echocardiograms.

Thank you for all your love, prayers, and support. It truly means a lot to my family and I.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Wednesday, May 6, 2009

New Journey: Awaiting Discharge

Hello,

I had a great night which means I will be discharged today. At the moment we are not sure when as these things can take awhile. We will stay in Spokane tonight and then finish our trip home tomorrow. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers, they mean so much to me and my mommy and daddy. Hopefully we will have a good trip home and I will continue to do well.

I will make sure to keep blogging and posting photos so everyone can watch me grow. My mommy and daddy are excited that I get a few years off before my next surgery.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Tuesday, May 5, 2009

New Journey: Good News


Hello,

Today we received some good news. As long as I tolerate my feeds well I will be discharged tomorrow, yay. My mommy and daddy are so proud of how well I have done and so very thankful that this trip was much easier than the last. So we are all praying that my feeding goes well and that tomorrow will be the day.

Thank you so much for all your prayers, they really have made a difference. My mommy and daddy are very thankful for them as well.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Monday, May 4, 2009

New Journey: On the Floor

Hello,

Today i made it down to the floor. My mommy and daddy are so very proud of me and so very thankful that I am doing so well. The Doctors are working on getting my feeding routine back on track and seeing if they can wean off my oxygen. They think that I will be able to go home within the next couple of days. I really hope so, I miss my sisters so very much.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Sunday, May 3, 2009

New Journey: Day to Relax and Play




Hello,

There is no more c-pap and no more chest tube. So today has been a good day. I have been sitting up and playing with my toys and spending time with my mommy and daddy. Hopefully things will keep looking better and I will get to go home soon. My mommy and daddy are so very thankful that the Lord has watched over me and given me the strength I need.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Saturday, May 2, 2009

New Journey: Snuggle Time




Hello,

My night got even better because I got to snuggle with my mommy and daddy. I know they love to hold me and I love being held. My mommy and daddy were so very happy and I enjoyed my brief time away from the bed. It is not easy as I still am connected to several wires and have a drain tube in my chest. Hopefully my x-ray will look good tomorrow and I can get off of c-pap and hopefully have my drain tube taken out.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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Friday, May 1, 2009

New Journey: Better Day


Hello,

So far today has been a pretty good day. My fever is gone and my left lung looks much better. The only problem is now a small portion of my right lung is collapsed. So today they will leave me on c-pap to see what my x-ray looks like in the morning.

My mommy and daddy got to see me awake and playing with my toys today. There were so happy. They get so excited to see me open my eyes, smile, and play.

Hopefully tomorrow both my lungs will look good and they can get me off of c-pap and onto the floor.

Please remember to say a prayer for me.

Love, Drew and Family
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