COVID19
Last March when were hospitalized with Maliyah for the first time this year, COVID19 was just starting to ramp up. Every day that we were in the hospital the policies and restrictions changed. It was definitely very stressful in addition to all that we were going through with Maliyah. Mom and Dad (Adam’s parent’s) flew over from Kauai (they came for vacation and two days after they arrived we flew to Oahu to have Maliyah admitted to the Kapiolani Children’s Hospital) to Oahu to see Maliyah in the hospital. The day they flew in, they changed the restrictions to only allowing 2 visitors total per child for the duration of their stay. This included parents as visitors, which meant Mom and Dad wouldn’t be able to visit her. The best we could do was to hold Maliyah up to the window so that she could wave at them as they stood on the sidewalk below her room.
Across the country we have seen changes in our daily lives that we never could have imagined 8 months ago. Churches have been shut down, schools are online, , graduations and weddings were cancelled, businesses that have been operating for years have been shut down indefinitely due to no business, Grandparents are not able to hold their grandchildren, and couples who have never been apart for 50 years are not even able to hold each others hands as one takes their last breath.
Being hospitalized with a two year old during this time is definitely challenging. We just found out yesterday that they are restricting visitation even more due to a spike of COVID19 cases in the hospital and on Oahu. We are now allowed only one switch out in a 24 hour period. Meaning if Adam switched out with me to spend time with Maliyah, I wouldn’t be able to switch back for a full 24 hours. This scenario does not work for us because Maliyah is still nursing, and therefore I am not able to be away from her for that length of time. This means that Adam will not be able to see Maliyah until we are discharged sometime next week. She has already asked for him several times today. She keeps saying “Go get Dada?” “Go find Dada?” and when we were able to finally FaceTime Adam she said “I miss you”.
Yesterday, they pulled out her PICC line. This was a big deal, due to the fact that she has a large blood clot around her PICC line. There was a chance that a piece of it would break off and she would get a pulmonary embolism or have a stroke. Due to the risks, Adam wanted to be there, but was only able to be there via FaceTime as Maliyah got her PICC line pulled. It was a rough day. Thankfully, Maliyah did well through the procedure and she so far does not have any sign that she threw a clot.
The restrictions have also limited how much time Adam and I have with each other. Even before the most recent policy, we were only seeing other in passing as we switched out to go see Maliyah. Now, we won’t see each other at all. Adam has been been my rock and support through all of this and being separated during this emotionally stressful time has been really hard. I can’t even imagine what Adam is going through as now he’s not going to be able to see Maliyah for over a week. Next week Maliyah is scheduled for surgery and Adam won’t be able to kiss her before she rolls back to surgery or to hold her when she wakes up.
I try to see the good in everything and to roll with the punches, but this one has been pretty hard to roll with. The doctors and nurses have been trying their hardest to come up with solutions to give me a break and to provide for our special dietary needs. One doctor even said that she would pick up groceries for me - which I thought was so very generous. As I am writing this right now, Maliyah is in the playroom happily playing with the aunties there. I am also grateful that Maliyah is taking things in stride. She is still her happy self even though she has endured quite a bit in the last 6 days. Her vital signs are stable and she has not had a fever since Thursday. All this I am thankful for.
This brings to mind a quotation that my amazing Life and Teachings teacher, Mrs. Clark, had us memorize back in academy. Its amazing how many times it has come to mind these last two years. “Worry is blind and cannot discern the future; but Jesus sees the end from the beginning. In every difficulty He has His way prepared to bring relief. Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us of which we know nothing” DA 330