Cautiously Optimistic

In early December we found out that our son is suffering from Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH), where his diaphragm didn't full close. He is left with a hole in his diaphragm, allowing the organs in his abdomenal cavity to move into his chest cavity, restricting the growth of his lungs and affecting the positioning of his heart.

So far a portion of his intestines, most of his stomach, and now a portion of his liver is sitting in his chest cavity.

He'll need surgery with in days of birth to move the organs back into his abdomen and repair the diaphragm. He is expected to stay in the nicu a minimum of five weeks but could be up to 3 months or more, depending on his progress during pregnancy and how he responds and heals post surgery.

We hope to stay as much time as possible in the NICU with him during his time their.

And thats why I am posting this link today. Its hard for me to ask others for help, especially financial. It would mean the world to us if you could donate money so we can be there for our son.

Donations would go toward loss salary while staying with our son in the NICU, transportation to and from the hospital, food while staying there. Also the money would go toward things needed when we bring him home from the hospital, like the possibility for oxygen needs, feeding tubes and formula, medication, and other monitoring equipment he may need. Additionally, depending on how his hernia progresses before birth, we may need to relocate out of state and we want to be able to have that option to give him the best care.

@robert-the-foul @r0bilargreenleaf

If you can not donate, please share. I’ve provided two different fundraising sites:

They repaired the hernia again , luckily it was small but they added a biological dissolvable mesh to help cover the area. They had to get rid of part of his intestines from the issue that they saw. His blood pressure has been too low, so they don’t think his intestines would properly heal if they attached the pieces of intestines together just yet, so now they are being held outside the body in the meantime.

They told us 6-8 weeks for healing possible then they’ll attached the intestines together.

It’s a set back for sure.

They had mentioned that before they caught this they were considering starting feedings soon and weaning off more things .

Wouldn't it be cool if there was a way to be absolutely 100% sure (or nearly - almost nothing is 100%) that these things are legit?

'Medicinal' does NOT mean 'good for you and safe to eat all the time'. A plant being 'medicinal' does NOT mean that eating it, without any idea of WHY and HOW it's considered medicinal, is a good idea. It is UNWISE to consume a plant that has a long history of use in a way that DOES NOT have a long history of use.

In addition to learning that a plant is edible, you need to learn how it is eaten, what part is eaten, when it's harvested, and how to harvest it sustainably and in a way that supports its continued existence (unless it's invasive). If people only eat the ripe berries as food, then don't eat unripe berries. Don't. Eat. Unripe. Berries. UNLESS! There's! precedent! For that plant!

Eating something as a food is a different dose of it than taking it as a medicine. And even then there may be limits.

The legumes known as cicerchia (Lathyrus sativus) are a great green fertilizer plant and drought resistant in ways that make them some of the last crops to die. They can be really nutritious in limited quantities and were vital to the survival of people in places like Puglia, Italy where the weather and political rule have a history of instability. The umpteenth ruling class conquering your lands as a strategic military point and steal all your food plunging you into an artificial famine are notably less likely to eat your beans with paralyzing neurotoxins.

See, that “limited quantities” of cicerchia is doing the heavy lifting because the legumes are toxic and they will kill your in horrible, horrible ways if they’re your main source of protein for too long. Sometimes it’s a gamble between the cicerchia toxins and the starvation so you just take your chances. In good times they’re apparently quite tasty and can be part of a traditional diet. Because the cultural knowledge of that limit is passed down.

Lima beans are also toxic if not boiled for 30 minutes (U.S. cultivars may be as low as 10 minutes, but it’s safer to not fuck around with it.) A fact you might not be aware of if you’ve only had them canned or frozen where they’re pre-cooked and you can safely do things line microwave then a few minutes. Because someone else in society was doing something you didn’t notice to prevent a food safety issue you weren’t even aware of. Lima beans are really healthy when prepared correctly and are full of cyanide when raw. Something home gardeners sometimes find out the hard way, especially with all the raw foods health influencers.

Know how to prepare things before you put them in your mouth. Unluckier ancestors than you have already figured this out. Meticulous scientists or other knowledge guardians have figured it out even more precisely. Foraging is older than agriculture and doesn’t have the benefit of deliberately breeding out poisons.

This Tumblr post is the first time someone has explained to me *why* I couldn’t feed them before those instances.

every single time i have had to say, "i understand that if he had food or water, he could aspirate it into his lungs under anesthesia. i am not lying to you." THEN someone would make a little note and i would stop being repeatedly asked.

not a single time was that risk explained to me. the only reason it came up was because i already knew. i still don't understand why it isn't standard pre-op counseling or pre-op check information, when me as a parent acknowledging the actual risk also put THE MEDICAL STAFF at ease because i conveyed that i had informed understanding as reason to not lie about giving my kid food.