Eye Surgery

When we got to San Diego I had been think about the kids' eyes. They were past due for an eye exam. We found and amazing eye doctor. She was very helpful and kind. We always knew Eva had a turned in eye. We had no idea that CJ did as well. We always thought he was just making fun of Eva. Anyways, the doctor referred us to a specialist. Turns out the specialist was one of the best in the country. So began eye appointment after eye appointment. I think in one month we had 14 eye appointments. Finally the decision was made to have eye muscle surgery (strabismus surgery) for Eva and CJ. I was very nervous just because I had no idea what to expect. I was worried about the recovery. In all my research I couldn't find any first hand experience with this surgery in children. That is when I decided to document CJ and Eva on the journey, in hopes that I can help inform the next parent. We spent the week before the surgery talking to the kids about what to expect (as far as we knew). Finally the big day came. We were all a little anxious, but for the most part the pre ops stuff was a breeze. Then the waiting game began. Eva went first then CJ. They were the first two surgeries of the day. Eva Came out of surgery then CJ went in. Eva had a hard time after she woke up from the anesthesia. She was screaming and yelling for her mom even though I was right next to her. She was scared because she couldn't open her eyes. We put Doterra essential oils (serenity) on her feet. It was starting to work as her screams turned to a loud cry but the nurses didn't like her noise so they gave her something in her IV to calm her down. The next thing we know her body went limp, her lips turned blue, and the monitors went crazy. Nurses came  running in, they placed her on her back and pulled her head back to open her airway. They started yelling at her to wake up and breathe. She was in and out of it for a while. We asked why that happened, they said they don't know because it was a smaller amount than what they gave her before her surgery. Then we realized it was the oils plus the medication that relaxed her body so much that she forgot to breath and lost consciousness. After a couple of hours with Eva in recovery, CJ came out of surgery. Thankfully his recovery time was so easy. He woke up looked around and feel back asleep. 

We got home and took it easy for a few days. I kept video record of their recovery. See below. We were very lucky that for 2 weeks Julia our oldest niece was able to come and stay with us. She was such a huge help with the other kids and with the CJ and Eva when I needed a break. We continued to use essential oils during their recovery and they healed so much fasted than the doctor said they would.

Below is the first video we took. If you want to watch their recovery go on to the next video and so on.