Sweet Spot

To my knowledge, Ayden has only received one PRN today for his anger streak. He has responded well to his current doses of Methadone and Ativan. He was awake for three hours this afternoon, so I got to talk to him during that time. He got angry at appropriate times (diaper change, suctioning, etc.), but it was nothing that he didn't overcome in a short amount of time on his own. He has had two CPAP trials, and he was taking good, deep breaths at the same percent oxygen he had while on the ventilator (21%). He has diuresed well; his goal was -100 to -200. He is over the -100 mark. His chest tubes are also helping to remove a lot of fluid. All of that is to say that Ayden has had a good day, and I am encouraged by the response he has had to the medication; he has enough on board to keep him "happy" but not so much that he can't breath without the vent. The doctors and nurses refer to this state as Ayden's "sweet spot."