Jennifer -

Kids are resilient!  I have to tell you that there is not much pain, that I experienced anyway.  There are no nerve-endings in the brain.  After my second surgery - I only asked for Tylenol if I felt pulling from the stiches or something like that.  After my first surgery, they had me on morphine, which I didn't tolerate very well.  That and the recovery from the anesthesia is the only thing I struggled with.  I will keep Paige in my prayers as she goes through her surgery!  Sending wishes for a speedy recovery!

-Shari

Jennifer,

Of course it is different for everyone, but Daphne really handled the surgeries well.  Yes, she looked a bit odd for awhile with the incisions (we called her baby-frankenstien --- lovingly, and with humor, of course!)   but things really went very smoothly.  The first was a breeze, and I couldn't believe how easily it went -- less time than I expected in the OR, woke up right afterward, didn't cry much (Daphne was 18 months old at the time).   In fact, even though it was a very serious surgery, it was her least problematic surgery.  She'd had surgery to put in a g-tube before, as well as heart surgery, and she seemed to have a lot more pain during both of those surgeries.

The second bypass - a week later -  was a little more difficult, but still not bad.  She was longer in surgery, didn't wake up right away, and had to get pain medicine for a couple of days.   Still, by the fourth day, she was ready to be discharged.   

By the time we got her home about a week after discharge, she was a different baby.  Better than before the surgeries.  Happier, less migrains, less light sensitivity.   Daphne was really bad off before her surgeries, and she has been so much better ever since.  Having the surgeries was the easiest decision I ever made, and I never once regretted or questioned it during the surgery or recovery process.

Jenny