swallow study results

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Today was Grayson's swallow study appointment. Fortunately, he slept till around 8am, which gave us just enough time to get him dressed, feed the dogs, and drive to the appointment. We knew we weren't pulling the wool over Grayson's eyes. He knew darn well his morning was missing something BIG - his milk and breakfast! Poor baby. We felt so guilty for leaving the house without giving him anything to eat or drink first. We knew we had no choice. Also, we felt a little better carrying along a bag of food and drink with us to the swallow study (for the techs to use during the test).
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The team consisted of a speech and language pathologist and 3 graduate students. Well, that's how it started anyway. Once it came time to do the actual test, there was also a doctor in the room.
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Anyway, this lady and her team were very nice and very thorough. They asked us a lot of questions about Grayson's eating, digesting, etc. They also told us nearly every detail possible about the test they would be giving Gray.
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Before heading to the back to prepare Grayson's food (sprinkle it with barium), she said, "Is there any chance you could be pregnant?" I said, "Yes. I am pregnant". She went on to say she thought I might be but doesn't say anything unless someone is about to pop to ensure she doesn't say anything stupid. :) Oh, yes ma'm, I'm DEFINITELY pregnant! :)
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Therefore, I was not allowed to go in the room with Grayson where they would do the actual test. I smiled and said, "Darn". The truth is I would've loved to have been in there with my baby but couldn't. Ray jokingly said, "I'm pregnant too!" He was the one who was next to our boy while these strange people gave him liquids and food and tried to get video of it.
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I sat on the other side of the glass listening to everything taking place.
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I saw a picture on the screen like the one below but in video form.
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I couldn't see Gray because there was a lot of x-ray and video equipment obstucting my view. But I heard everything - him screaming and crying while the pathologist and Ray told him over and over it was okay. It was hard to listen to. I felt so bad for Grayson - and Ray for that matter. I could see Ray pretty well. He looked so sad. His expression was proof that he whole-heartedly understood why Grayson was confused and mad. I could see how sad it made Ray to see Grayson so upset. I'm sure I looked the same way.
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To make a long story short, they got done what they needed to do. And really, I'm surprised they got it done so quickly. It wasn't easy (AT ALL), but they got Grayson to take a small amount of liquid and a few bites of solids.
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The report is: Grayson swallows beautifully. Everything in his throat/upper esophagus functions as it should. One thing they did capture on video is Grayson swallowing a bite of pudding, it starting to go down his esophagus, him gagging, and causing it to come all the way back up. He caused that to happen. It wasn't a reaction of any kind. We knew this, but she was sure to stress this does NOT mean he is being bad, difficult, deviant, or anything of the sort. For some unknown reason, he makes his food come back up. She was glad to see that on the x-ray (as we had described it) but was happy to see that is not happening as a result of a problem with swallowing.
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He definitely does have an aversion to food. That goes without saying really. As she said, that's why we scheduled today's test. The great news is that another possible medical problem has been ruled out. Now it doesn't mean nothing is medically wrong. There could be something wrong that hasn't yet been discovered. She said many kids his age have a food aversion but the fact that he also has diarrhea makes her wonder if he knows something about his body we don't. That makes complete sense to me. She and G's gastroenterologist will be talking soon. Together, they will decide what - if anything else - needs to be tested to rule out a medical problem. The doctor doesn't want to do a scope unless she feels there is a good reason. Ray and I agree with that. We want to do anything and everything else that will only aggravate, anger, upset, or slightly hurt Grayson for a matter of minutes. We don't want him to make any horrible memories of doctors, nurses, tests, hospitals, etc the way I did. They affect you for life...believe me.
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The next step is to go to Our Children's House at Baylor for a feeding evaluation. Our appointment is scheduled in mid-November. We are keeping our fingers crossed for a cancellation so we can get in sooner. Together, that team will observe every single thing about how Grayson eats. Based on their observations, they will recommend a plan of action. We were told it could be something as simple as a reward system for good eating. Regardless of how simple or complex though, we were told it will most likely bring about a positive change. We discussed in detail with the pathologist about Gray's past aversion to certain things since he was born. She mentioned that maybe he had a bad experience with a certain taste or a certain texture (of liquid infant's Tylenol, for example) when he was only a few months old...and the fear of experiencing it again has led him to be afraid of certain foods. That is just one of the MANY possibilities. Whatever the problem - phsychological, medical, or both - we want to get it discovered and corrected as soon as possible. We want him to get proper nutrition, not hate eating, not to fear how he'll feel after eating something, and see that food can be fun and tasty.

We've been told time and time again how wonderful the Children's House at Baylor is, how awesome their specialists are, etc. We are really REALLY looking forward to this appointment. Eventually, with the help of these specialists, I feel we will figure out how to help Grayson enjoy eating. We really hate him being so miserable from the time he takes food in until the time his body completely processes it. It isn't supposed to be that way.
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Grayson went through NO pain today, but he was tortured. We're glad another test is behind us...and that the results are good. One would think that after a day like today, an 18 month old might be fussy and unhappy. Not Grayson! He was in great spirits and definitely his usual self. It was great to see! His Mah-Mah, Ray's mom, flew in from Louisiana to visit us. Gray has not seen her in almost two months...and he's only seen her 3 or 4 times before that. You would think he might act shy around her, but he didn't at all. They enjoyed talking and playing all afternoon and through the evening - until bedtime. We're glad she's here - me, Ray, and Grayson.
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