Mourning for Micah: From Heather

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

From Heather

I just got off the phone with the paramedic that responded to our house on that Sunday morning. (The hospital gave me her phone number if I wanted to contact her in the future). She expressed her sympathy to me on the phone and told me that she was aware of Micah's passing through continued contact with the hospital. She also shared we me how difficult this whole tradegy has been on her and her partner that responded. She said that as paramedics, they are trained not to "bring work home" and since they are involved in so many accidents and deaths that they become "numb" in a way to each situtation. However she expressed how Micah's situation really made an impact on herself and her paramedic partner. She also admitted that she has been dealing with feelings of guilt in wondering if she could have done something different to have saved Micah. I had an opportunity to ask questions about why there weren't able to get him breathing and a heartbeat for over an hour and a half. She explained to me that the blockage in his Right Mainstem Bronchi (the right lung area) from the pea was completely occluding his right lung but as many doctors have explained to us that the left lung, in theory, should have compensated for the right. She told me that even if I had done the heimlich maneuver, it wouldn't have worked because it was so far down into the lung area. I feel so blessed that so many people are caring for us and were somehow touched by my sons death. It doesn't make my grieving easier or less but to know that people that I don't even know were impacted from this amazes me daily. She also shared with me that what happened to Micah is completely unheard of in the medical field and they have never seen anything like this happen.
As it was written by Cory in his last entry, in a way there is some comfort in knowing that there are no real answers to what happened and why it happened, and it is clear to us that is was God calling Micah home. It was His plan before he was even given to us, that Micah would only live 9 precious months on this earth with us. I feel so blessed to have had those 9 months with Micah but selfishly I wish he was still here with us.

3 comments:

UnknownAugust 4, 2009 at 12:42 PM
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us as we continue to grieve with you. I am blessed by your complete reliance and trust in the sovereignty of God.
Nancy Parker
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Joel ThorpAugust 5, 2009 at 10:47 AM
Cory & Heather, I am crying with you as I read about your love for Micah and about your great loss. Thank you for sharing from the overflow of your hearts. My wife, Kelly, and I join you in faith and prayer:

Jesus, have mercy on the Wessman family. Thank you for Micah, for his extraordinary life, for how you have blessed Heather and Cory through him, and for your great love for him. Please send your Holy Spirit to comfort Heather & Cory and their families as they grieve. Help them to trust Micah into your care, and help the rest of us to know how to best care for them. In all things, Jesus, may your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
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Mari MelinAugust 5, 2009 at 2:45 PM
You are SO STRONG heather and cory. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us, it helps me feel more connected to you in this OH SO difficult time of tears. SO many people have beeen touched by Micah's life- God is holding Micah so tightly to him Heather while you cannot. Take comfort in that when you miss him and HOLD EACH OTHER so tight. WE LOVE YOU!
Mari Melin
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The Story of Micah's Last Days on Earth

During the week of July 20th, 2009, I (Cory) hired a roofing company to re-shingle our home in South Minneapolis. On Thursday afternoon, July 23rd, Heather went to her sister's house in Edina to avoid the noise and allow Micah to nap per his normal routine. In the early evening, Micah had his usual dinner. He sat in a plastic high chair that was secured on top of a regular table chair. After enjoying his finger foods of chicken and peas, Heather went to the sink to get a cloth to clean up Micah's face and hands.

During that time, Micah was accidentally unbuckled from his chair. As Heather walked back to Micah to wash him up, she watched as Micah leaned forward to touch his toes and tumbled forward, falling head first onto the ceramic tile.

Heather was within feet of Micah and immediately picked up Micah from the floor. Micah cried loudly for about 30 minutes. After about 30 minutes of crying and wanting to be held by his mother, he calmed down. Micah developed a bump above his left eye. Micah also developed a strange cough immediately after the fall.

Heather made several calls to the pedicatrician and to the Children's Hospital emergency room to determine if Micah should be seen and evaluated by a doctor. After conflicting suggestions, Heather decided to take Micah down to the ER to be evaluated. Micah was seen by a resident and a doctor and was checked over for any signs of head injury or other injuries. The doctors determined that Micah exhibited no signs of a concussion or other head injury, and so no head scan was taken. Heather and I informed the doctors of the cough, but the doctors felt that the cough was unrelated to the fall. Heather, Micah and I then went home.

On Friday, July 24th, Micah seemed happy and acted normal. Micah engaged in his normal Friday activities, including going to music class. In the evening, Micah developed a temperature following his normal bedtime. He woke up fussy and was not acting life himself. Heather called the pediatrician and the ER triage nurse. The nurse indicated that the fever was unrelated to the fall, and that if his temperature rose to 105 to bring him back to the ER. After several hours of trying to consol Micah, we decided to bring him back to the ER for further evaluation.

At the ER, the nurse practictioner who was assigned to Micah determined that Micah had developed pneumonia. The chest x-ray showed pneumonia but no signs of further complications. Micah was given an IV antibiotic. He was discharged and given instructions to meet with the pediatrician for an antibiotic shot the following day. The issue of the cough was brought up again; it was determiend that he could has aspirated some food (i.e. swallowed food down his lung) because of the fall. The doctor was not overly concerned about the cough.

On Saturday, July 25th, Micah was seen by his primary pedicatrician. He was given a shot of antibiotic and was further evaluated. It was determined that no further treatment was necessary, but that Micah should be seen by the pediatrician the following Tuesday for an x-ray. The x-ray would determine if the pneumonia had improved. If it had not, the pediatrician should that it would be necessary for a doctor to sedate Micah and use a scope to remove the foreign body from Micah's lung.

On Sunday, July 26th, we were hoping to attend the 11:00 am service at Bethlehem Baptist Church in downtown Minneapolis. Before church, I headed to Target around 9:30 to pick up a prescription for Micah. Micah woke up from his nap while Heather was drying her hair in the bathroom. Micah let out a terrible little cry, and Heather immediately ran into his run. Micah then started chocking, and immediately turned blue.

Heather called 911 and started CPR on Micah. I arrived home and tried to relay CPR instructions from the 911 operator to Heather, who was attempting to resuscitate Micah. Within 1 minute of my arrival, the fire department arrived. The fire department personnel attempted, to no avail, to resuscitate Micah. Within 2 or 3 minutes, the paramedics arrived. They, too, were unsuccessful in attempting to resuscitate Micah.

After about 25 more minutes, Micah was transported by ambulance to Children's Hospital in Minneapolis. Heather rode in the front seat of the ambulance. I rode with a police officer in his squad car behind the ambulance.

Once at the hospital, a team of doctors and nurses continued their attempts to resuscitate Micah. We were met almost immediately at the hospital by a social worker and a chaplain. During the next 20 minutes or so, we continued to receive updates that the doctors and nurses were not able to resuscitate Micah. At that time, we were told by one of the head doctors to go into Micah's room and say goodbye to Micah.

As we were walking into the room, the doctors stopped us and indicated that they had been able to finally get a pulse going again. They were also able to incubate him and, with the assistance of machines, get him breathing again. The head doctor apparently made hard chest compression to restart Micah's heart. The doctors immediately cautioned us, however, that because of the length of time that Micah went without oxygen to his brain (about 1.5 hours), he would have permanent brain damage. Micah was then moved to a room in the instensive care unit in South Minneapolis.

Later that afternoon, I was in his room when an Ear-Nose-Throat specialist placed a scope down Micah's lung. There, he found a pea that had collapsed his right lung. The E-N-T specialist was able to remove the pea. At this point, the doctors believe that Micah suffocated on a combination of this pea and the flem material generated by his lung as a result of the pneumonia.

That evening, I asked the nurse in charge of Micah's care whether we should be praying for his recovery or praying for his "going home." She responded, without hesitation, that we should pray for his "going home." Heather and I did not sleep at all that Sunday night. We (along with many others) lifted up many prayers to the Lord asking the Lord to spare our Micah's life.

On Monday, July 27th, Heather and I, along with our families, Pastor Kenny Stokes and our pediatrician met with the head doctor in the intensive care unit to discuss Micah's situation. He indicated that Micah had little to no brain activity, and that he had no chance of recovery. They provided us with the option to remove Micah from life support at any time. At that time, it appeared that he may have had enough brain function to breath on his own if he were removed from the ventilator.

The Lord provided Pastor Kenny with the verse, "Away from the body, present with the Lord." We determined that because Micah would never have any brain activity, it was time for us to say goodbye to our only son, Micah Robert Wessman, so that he could go home to be with Jesus.

All of our extended families gathered in Micah's room. Due to all of the lines and cords coming from his little body, several nurses had to assist in transferring Micah from his bed to my lap. Heather sat in a chair next to me. We sang a number of hymns together, including "Children of the Heavenly Father" and "Jesus Love Me." Heather then kissed Micah goodbye, telling Micah, through tears, to "run to Jesus, sweetie, run to Jesus."

For the next hour, we waited for a local organ donation company to arrive and review Micah's status for organ donation purposes. (We later learned that a child benefitted from receiving Micah's heart valves.) During that time, the doctors determined that Micah's brain functions further deteriorated, and Micah was not able to breath on his own. Apparently, Micah had listed to his mother one last time, and he ran to Jesus.

After meeting with the organ donation company, I went into Micah's room. Also present were my parents, my brother Scott, Pastor Kenny and Tim Gilbert. The doctor and the nursing staff removed all of Micah's tubes. Within a few minutes of having his tubes removed, Micah died in my arms. After a few minutes of holding the body of my son in my arms, my brother read from Romans 11:33-36.

We love our son very much, and always will love him. He will always be our son. It is our strong conviction that after he died, he was received directly into the arms of our loving Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Mourning for Micah

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

From Heather

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The Story of Micah's Last Days on Earth

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