Dr. Sleep

A little background: a month or two ago, I (Kristin) talked to our pediatrician about the fact that Anna snores through the night every night and can never really breathe easily during the day. At that visit, Anna was diagnosed with strep throat. Both the nurse and the doctor were horrified at the sight of her enlarged (and infected) tonsils and adenoids. So, the DR. made a referral to the Illinois Neurological Institute for a sleep study. We reported for an initial consultation last week. There, it was determined that Anna was, in fact, a good candidate for a sleep study.

Last night, Anna and I packed a duffel bag and headed off for OSF Hospital in downtown Peoria. We reported at 8:00 p.m. and were ushered into a hotel-like room. There, Anna changed into pj's and was then hooked up to "a million" nodes, which were attached to her body and then hooked up to monitors. She also had belts around her chest and waist, and tubes inserted into her nose. Suffice it to say, she was pretty uncomfortable, if stoic. She settled onto a big double bed, we read some books, and then she made a heroic effort to fall asleep in the dim light. I burrowed into a cot beside her bed. The study concluded at 5:30 a.m., at which point the nurse asked, "Was this night's sleep better, worse, or fairly typical?" Uh, well, considering that she was shorted three hours sleep, had wires surrounding her head and body, and was interrupted by persistent beeping (a malfunctioning CO2 monitor) and tube adjustments by the nurse, and was in a strange bed......I guess it was fairly normal?!? Good grief!!! She was such a good girl, though--very cooperative. The nurse complimented her, saying that she was much better than many of her adult patients! That made Anna smile, and she repeated the compliment to Aaron when we returned home this morning.

The culmination of the experience found us at Dunkin' Donuts (by 6 a.m.), picking out delicious rewards for her cooperation. She even got her own little cup of coffee to sustain her through the morning.......buzz, buzz! We sent her off to school, bless her little heart. She also wants to go to Bible class tonight, but we'll see if she can make it that long....