Hudsyn’s check-up with Mary (the ENT PA) was quick and pretty easy today. There is still evidence of drainage in her left ear so we will try a different antibiotic and continue using the drops in hopes of drying/clearing it up completely . She did NOT appreciate having the drainage sucked out of her ear – and she let us all know about it. Other than that, though, she was a pretty sweet girl.
If this antibiotic doesn’t do the trick there is one more treatment to try – some sort of powder that will both heal and soak up excess fluid – before we need to look at possibly replacing the tube. We will go back in 2 weeks for her to check the progress and discuss further what we should do next.
Hudsyn will be re-evaluated for the SoonerStart program next Thursday. Although I don’t think it is super alarming that she isn’t speaking yet, I want to stay ahead of the game and be proactive with her speech/hearing. SoonerStart is Oklahoma’s early intervention program and is designed to meet the needs of families with infants or toddlers with developmental delays. I am anxious to see whether or not she is determined to be “developmentally delayed” according to their criteria or not. If so, she will be eligible for aid in speech language pathology services. Hudsyn has no problem communicating what she wants/needs – it’s just typically through grunts, fits, and hand movements rather than verbal language. Knowing where she is at developmentally will either show us where she needs help or will show us that she is just taking her time learning to talk and and we should be patient. I am eager to learn which category she falls into and what our next steps will be in this sweet girl’s journey.