This was an interesting and enlightening week. Carter hasn't been himself. He's been extra grumpy and sleepy. And really, really whiny. This may not sound like much to complain about, but with his shunt, any change in behavior could point to a problem. I had been noticing symptoms since Monday so I called the neurosurgeon on Wednesday afternoon to touch base. After describing the symptoms, the doctor ordered an MRI to check on the fluid levels in his head to see if the shunt is operating properly. While waiting for the MRI, we called our pediatrician just to make sure it wasn't an ear infection or other common, less-worrisome issue. When we listed his symptoms he said, "How quickly can you get here?" That didn't really do much to ease our concern. But after a full check-up, there wasn't anything going on that he could see. He did reassure us that the shunt was probably not malfunctioning or completely blocked. If that were the case, Carter would be completely miserable and vomiting. But it could be a kink or minor block in the tubing. Or the setting on the shunt may need to be adjusted. So for that, we had to wait until we could get the MRI.

In the mean time, Carter seemed to be feeling better. Still whiny and not sleeping great at night, but not nearly as bad as earlier in the week. We were definitely relieved and encouraged by his improving mood.

By Friday, we had insurance approval and an appointment for an MRI next Wednesday (one week from the time we first called). It will be a quick scan of his ventricles. No sedation needed - thank goodness. Since Carter is pretty much back to his normal self, I'm not too stressed out about the fact that it's taking a whole week to get an appointment. And I know that if he gets worse (fever or vomiting), they'll see us immediately. Also, our neurosurgeon is on call this weekend and we have his private cell # if needed.

All this to say, this whole week will probably be a reoccurring scenario whenever Carter gets sick or out of sorts. I'm sure we'll learn quickly what are "shunt symptoms" vs regular sickness. But all the doctors assured us that we can't be too cautious and there's no such thing as crying wolf when it comes to kids with Hydrocephalus.