Feeding Pump

We've ordered it, we've received it, we've set it up in the corner of our room next to Cannon's bed, we've hooked it up and then we've been staring at it ever since. We were told it would help with Cannon's vomitting, we were told it would help him sleep better at night- both good things, right? So why have we been avoiding it? I can narrow it down to two reasons:

1. Exhaustion: Some might call it lazy, but at this stage of our lives I prefer exhaustion. Kent and I keep saying that we want to do the pump at night because having Cannon hooked up to a machine during the day would make things a lot more complicated as we try to keep up with schedules, appointments and errands. By the end of the busy day, when it is actually time to set up the feeding bag and pump we are just lazy. . . exhausted.

2. Implication: Niether one of us have had to say it, but I know the second reason we have avoided using the feeding pump that will "alleviate a lot of our problems" is that it is just one more piece of medical equipment that says Cannon is slowly losing his skills. The skill to digest his food properly. We know these measures are there for his benefit, for our benefit, but it sometimes is a bigger pill to swallow than we are ready for.

That being said, we started using the feeding pump and the jury is still out on how much alleviating it really does. The first night we realized how darn bright the screen is- it was quite the (unwanted) night light. Secondly it beeped every 5-10 minutes saying there was a clog in the line. I just kept hitting the "continue" button and prayed it would not beep again- it continued to beep. Then I realized the med port on Cannon's tube had been popped open and the drip was running right out! I'm not sure how long that was happening so I can't really be sure how many ounces he got during that time. After several more beeps, several more times pushing the continue button, I saw that the plug was locked, not allowing flow through the tube. There really was a clog! I fixed the lock and pushed continue and it didn't beep again until the bag was empty- one hour later. Last night we made sure all the ports were locked, the tube was NOT locked and that the bag was completely full! We had a much better experience on the second go round, beep free! I'm hoping it wasn't a fluke but that the feeding pump really can make our nights better.