Super Why! at the Cardiologist

Hi friends!!!

About 3 weeks ago, I happened to notice that Weston's heartbeat was a little odd. It seemed as though he was having extra beats. Instead of the usual "thump-thump", his heart song was "thump...thump, thump". This was something new that I had never noticed (Yes, it's weird but I've made a passive habit of feeling his heart beat on occasion. It's something I've done since he was born. Weird? Maybe...but it did come in handy or else I would have never noticed the irregularity)

Of course I was worried but I thought maybe it was my imagination. After a few days, I had Mike and then a friend, feel his heart as well, and it was confirmed-something was definitely off. I made an appointment that day and we went in to see our favorite nurse, Pat. At the doctor's, they did an EKG (which Pat promised wouldn't hurt, and then accidentally clamped his nipple...OUCH! She's still our favorite though!) Look how brave my little man is...

(BTW...it was Hanukah day at Weston's preschool...hence the blue and yellow attire)

The EKG confirmed that something was definitely going on. Dr. Uggowitzer explained that it looked as though Weston's heart was throwing extra beats often, and this was known as "PAC" or Premature Atrial Contractions. Because there were no other symptoms (i.e. fainting, shortness of breath, wheezing), our doctor said there wasn't really anything they could do at the time, and that we should come back in March for a follow up to see if there was any change.

After some thought, I decided I didn't want to wait. Maybe I'm crazy but it is my three year old we're talking about and I didn't want to take any chances. So I called our doctor back and asked for a referral anyway, and then made an appointment with University of Maryland Pediatric Cardiologists.

Today was Weston's appointment. I wanted him to feel comfortable so I let him take a toy with him to the doctor's. He chose Super Why! (of course).

I know I should have been panicked and worried and out of my mind, but truth is I was at peace. I knew that whatever was to happen was under God's control and we would be able to handle it.

The nurse came in and took Weston's blood pressure:


The we got another EKG (no nipple clamping this time!)

The nurse even let him take off his own "stickers":

Then Dr. Baker-Smith came in:


We sat and talked to her about the results and she basically said the same thing that our PCP said, except that she was kind of concerned because of his age and the frequency of the extra beats. She had us wait to get an echocardiogram of his heart to make sure that there was no enlargement of the atrium or anything. Weston had a lot of fun waiting...

During the echo, the Tech asked Weston what he preferred to be called, (meaning either "Wes" or "Weston"), and he replied with "Super Why" so she called him Super Why the entire time. I don't think that she realized how much she made Weston's day. He talked up a storm during the entire process and was so patient. He thought the "goop" and the wand were pretty cool.

Praise God! The echo was fine! Everything measured normal-so no problem there. After those tests, the doctor came back in and said that, as of now, we shouldn't worry. She explained that this could be something that just goes away over time, and that we will keep an eye on it. She wanted to monitor the frequency of the extra beats so she sent Weston home with a 24 hour monitor on. The one we got sent home with stopped working so I had to take it off of him early. We are awaiting another one in the mail and once he has it on for a full 24 hours, we will send it back for the results. Once I hear something, I will update you all!

I feel better about the whole situation but I hate that I don't have a reason for the irregularity. I'm trusting God to know that this will work itself out. We go back to the cardiologist in 6 months and so I will definitely blog about our appointment once it happens, and any appointments/developments that may follow. In the meantime, please just keep this situation in your prayers! I know God has amazing plans for Weston and this is not something that is going to hinder that! :)

As for now, Weston's busy kicking butt at Super Why's ABC Game!