the latest (and greatest) in feeding tube extensions

to all you other special-needs parents out there, i feel like i've struck gold and need to share. we had struggled for a few months with mic-key extensions and syringes falling out of them and making big messes with whatever happened to be in the syringe (usually stomach contents) spilling everywhere and generally being a pain in the ass etc, etc... if you are a parent of a child with a mic-key button i think you know what i'm talking about. rowan was having some redness around his mic-key site and the nurse practitioner from peds surg ordered him an AMT mini button to see if that might fix the problem (the balloon is shaped differently and prevents some of the leaking that was causing his irritation). well, by the time we got the equipment from our DME the redness and leaking had resolved so we haven't changed out the button yet, but we found a great thing with the AMT mini extensions. the feeding and med port are made out of this gummy sticky purple plastic that is SO MUCH BETTER at holding the syringes/feeding tube ports/or whatever you happen to have plugged in there in. we literally have had ZERO disconnects since using the mini extensions. and they fit right into the mic-key button just like a mic-key extension. so my advice to any parent struggling with the accidental disconnect issue, even if your child has a mic-key button, ask your DME for AMT mini extensions rather than regular old mic-key extensions. they are SO MUCH BETTER!

here's a pic:

and they're purple! much cooler. oh, and i forgot to mention that the actual tube is made of more flexible plastic, so they don't get hard and stiff as fast as the mic-key extensions. frankly, i don't know why they even have the mic-key extensions anymore. these are so much better.

alright, well rowan is laying on the floor trying to eat his hands, so i guess i better go get him a bottle!

advice for compulsive hoarders

here's an idea for all the hoarders out there: let the last item you buy be a digital camera. then you can photograph all of your precious sentimental belongings before THROWING THEM THE HELL AWAY! then you can open up a shutterfly account to put the pictures. there is much more storage space on the internet than there is in your house. just a thought.

other options for trachties

for anybody reading this who has a trach and is looking for some nicer trach-ties (as well as other products), check out this website: www.neotechproducts.com. they can be a little pricey, but they do offer free samples (just do what i did and call the 800 number and ask for some free stuff.)
these are the coolest ones:

they're camo! can you believe it?!? and they also come in blue, pink, and red hawaiian. they are made of neoprene so you don't have to worry about getting them wet, and they can stay on for 3-5 days at a time. they are a little stretchy, but we didn't have any problems with them being TOO stretchy (and therefore allowing the trach to fall out) when rowan wore them. the only issue i have with them is that the velcro on the sides digs into his neck a little. when we use the regular ties that velcro on the sides AND the back, then the back of his neck gets really irritated. so i've just been switching back and forth.

the other ties i really like (although they don't look quite as cool) are these:

 

mostly because they are made out of REALLY soft material, and the fabric is so wide that it wraps around the velcro and protects his little chubby neck from all the pokes and jabs that the velcro on the other ties give him. they only recommend that these be used for a day and then thrown away, but i have gotten 3-4 uses out of them by washing them with soap and water and allowing them to dry. it's also nice that they are flesh-toned (for some of us anyway) and a little less conspicuous than most trachties.

i am also thinking about fashioning him some custom-made-from-mommy homemade trachties...wouldn't that be bad-ass? but i haven't gotten that far yet. we have very little nursing coverage this wonderful holiday weekend, so maybe i'll get some time in the middle of the night to come up with a design!