Brianna loves having Emma in her room. The two of them go to sleep knowing there's someone else nearby and at night we can say to Brianna "it's ok, I'll be right back, let me get Emma" and she'll wait. She LOVES her sister! In light of the oxygen compressor and the monitors with alarms alone, we considered separating the girls so Brianna wouldn't be woke up during the night by beeps and her sister crying that we put the oxygen back on her AGAIN. So far Brianna's slept through it so maybe it's no worry? Also, the compressor is LOUD and HOT. It creates quite a bit of heat, and in an 11'x11' room with three people sleeping in it (well, #3 would be ME and I hope not to sleep in there too often...) it creates quite a bit of heat.
My first solution for that would be to plug it in in the bathroom, set it in the hallway, and use the extension tubing they gave us to get it all the way to her bed. Then it's in the hallway. And it's big. And it's in the way. And it's noisy to the boys' room too. The second thought would be to separate the girls and put Emma's crib in the guest room. She won't wake Brianna with alarms, it's still a small room but at least it would be just her and maybe me, and yet... that's the HOTTEST room of the house (sorry to any future guests, but it does have a fan!!) and when she naps in there without the compressor it's already warm enough that we run the fan for her.
So... what do we do?? I hate to separate the girls. Especially in the next few weeks where they CAN be together-- there's this line in the sand that says "let's keep everything as normal as possible until August 13th." Then things will be crazy for a little while without any need for us to have changed things around. There's also the thing that says "if we're going to make any changes, let's do them NOW so there's 6 weeks to adjust." I think I will call the home health company on Monday and when I request those spare tanks for emergency use, I'll ask whether we can use regular tanks all the time. That at least cuts out on the noise of the compressor and the heat it creates. Then we can deal with the alarms if it's a problem. If we ever figure out how to keep the O2 ON HER then maybe that won't even be a big deal after all?
If you move Emma's crib to the guest room, can you put the O2 tank in the guest bathroom, then it would out of the way and the heat would be just in the bathroom. I have an extra tower fan if you need to use it in the guest room.
ReplyDelete(You would have a nicer bed to sleep in also.)Let me know if you need the fan. Hope Emma keeps eating. Try to get some rest.
Love,
Mom C
I like the big tank better than the compressor. Although if they play in there, there's always the worry of pushing it over. (It weighs a ton and sits on a base...it's just that I worry about everything) You're right. THat thing can heat up a room fast and with FLorida heat and small room, it's a real issue.
ReplyDeleteI'd keep 'em in the same room with a big tank and forget the compressor. Get extra small tanks so you can sit her in the guest room on nights that it's too noisy in the little room. (Or put Briana in the guest room) They'll probably keep her on O2 after surgery for a while too so you'll have extra time for Oxygen.
It's tough and it's tiring. Hope you can find a good solution for your needs. Lots to consider.
Jan
How long is the tubing from the compressor? When my father was on oxygen his tubing was so long he could go anywhere in his apartment with the tubing. We left the compressor in the living room and he walked around with the tubing. Ask and try a longer tubing.
ReplyDeleteRobyn
We wanted the tanks but insurance wouldn't cover it. The tanks are usually the first choice because they are much more pure oxygen. So if they brought out the compressor it is likely because that's all your insurance will cover. I can't see a doctor writing the script for the compressor, since the tanks are better oxygen.
ReplyDeleteOh and also... my daughter refuses to wear oxygen. We tried CPAP for her sleep apnea but it didn't work so we were just going to do oxygen... just to keep her SAT's up when she obstructs.
ReplyDeleteWhat we ended up doing is using the CPAP which my strange child loves... but putting oxygen through it. So she gets her oxygen through her CPAP mask. We just have the CPAP set low since it doesn't help the obstruction anyway.
We used a compressor with my mother and it does generate a lot of heat and uses a lot of electricity. She switched to tanks using the smallest ones for when she needed to go out and a midsize tank in the house. Each midsize tank would last her about two days, however, I suspect that Emma would use one midsize a day since she breathes much faster than an older adult. Also, check to make sure the oxygen is not drying her little nose out too much, that is really uncomfortable.
ReplyDeleteM, I wouldn't put it in the bathroom we were directed to not put it in a small place due to circulation issues. You can definitely use a tank anytime. We had our compressor in the basement because they do emit a lot of heat, we used our 50 foot tubing with no problems, just got used to stepping over it and the noise became unnoticeable, however, we had it going 24/7. I hope things work out, I know it's a pain, I'm so sorry!
ReplyDeletesince it does make the room so much hotter, it is probably drying out her mucous membranes. DONT FORGET TO USE A COOL MIST HUMIDIFIER. IT WILL WORK WONDERS.
ReplyDeleteRITA