Kellisa
wasn’t drinking and her only fluid intake was through the limited food she was
eating. There was only so much pudding we could force into her mouth. She wasn’t thriving and required surgery to place a G-tube in the
summer. With a G-tube, we would be able to give Kellisa the fluid she needed and prescription formula
would guarantee she would receive all the nutrition required to start
growing. Of course, Kellisa suffered from complications that required a second surgery to
remove the original G-tube and replace it with another. The doctor had been
placing G-tubes for 26 years and Kellisa was the first patient to ever require
a second surgery. Kellisa was an expert at confusing doctors.
Both
of Kellisa’s hips had become dislocated. Her hip bones needed to be cut and put
back in place with screws and plates. Even with pain medications, Kellisa was
in almost constant pain as she spent most of the six week recovery period lying
on a mattress in the middle of our living room watching The Wiggles while
moaning in pain and discomfort. There was little we could do for her, except be
there to hold her hand, stroke her head, and change The Wiggles videos every 45 minutes.
