Indeed, life is a rollercoaster!
Being a mother is never easy.
You still have to be a mum when you’re depressed, stressed, crying, or struggling and can’t let anyone (especially your children) see you when you’re down.
When life puts you in a difficult situation, especially when it involves your child, it could break you apart.
Embracing and overcoming the situation can be hard emotionally, but with the support of your partner and family – you’ll manage it!
Somewhere in March…
Our beloved young man, Cedric turned 11 years old on March 16.
Just a week before his birthday, he complained that he was having some pain while peeing. So we took him to the GP clinic nearby and they found blood in his urine during the test.
However, the doctor said it could just be Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) and prescribed medicines according to his diagnosis and asked us to return should the pain resume. During the entire medication period, he was all good.
Then on 23rd March, he had an awful sleepless night, but remained calm without informing us.
Both my husband and I didn’t know about it till early morning at 6am. I woke him up for school but he was super tired and only then told me about his painful urinating and sleepless night.
So we took him to a paediatrician in one of the private hospitals in KL and got admitted for UTI. Before admission, due to strict COVID-19 SOPs Cedric and I went through the swab test – results came out negative (thankfully).
The next day, during the ultrasound test, the doctor found three centimetres (3cm) stone in his bladder. It’s called urinary stones (Calculi).
“What”?
“Stone in kids”?
It’s very rare for kids to have stones in their bladder and in my son’s case, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and seeing. It was a moment of shock and a big question of what’s ‘NEXT’?
Initial Consultation and Difficulty to Decide
If you’re a protective mother – the one that would continually be shouting “Don’t!” and “Stop!” to your child – well you’re not alone (I’m in that category as well).
You absolutely want to protect your child as much as you can from anything harmful.
Betul-tak?
At the same time, you also want your child to grow up worry free or independently by not constantly keeping your child inside your protective bubble.
So, as a protective mum, when the doctor gave a few options for his stone removal – all I could think about was how painful the procedure would be.
We were advised to do an open surgery considering the large size of the stone. But without hesitation, both my husband and I said ‘NO’ to it because of these 5 main reasons;
- We were scared of the idea of surgery – he’s still a young child
- It could be too risky for him
- We wanted to know what other alternatives were available
- It takes longer to recover
- It can be traumatic for him
Therefore, we opted for the puncture procedure or scientific term called ‘cystolitholapaxy procedures’ where a small incision (approximately 1cm) in the skin of the lower abdomen and a hollow tube (sheath) is placed through which the cystoscope is inserted and stones removed.
The surgery is performed under general anesthesia. It’s the preferred method when treating children with bladder stones since the urethra (the vessel that connects the urinary bladder to the penis) is narrower in children and is more difficult to insert a cystoscope.
Our top priority for him was less pain and less recovery period so that he can bounce back quickly and be active again.
A painful moment…
The procedure day was indeed an excruciating moment for both my husband and I.
I had to be with Cedric as he wanted me to be on his side. After all, he’s just a child and naturally he was feeling scared. So I was comforting him but trust me it wasn’t easy for me.
I just couldn’t let him see my fears, worries, and tears. I composed myself to be calm and gave him some words of encouragement throughout the waiting period at the Operation Theatre (OT).
I went inside the OT room and was there until he was given anaesthetic.
Once he was asleep, I left the room in tears as I couldn’t see my son going through the procedure.
It was all too much for me. I just couldn’t bear the emotional breakdown for the next couple of hours.
Both my husband and I waited outside the OT while holding each other’s hands and praying earnestly to God for his safe procedure. It was so tormenting as a mother or parent when your baby goes through a painful experience – it hits hard on us, parents.
It was a long two-hour procedure – after which I received a call from the doctor to inform that he’s in the recovery room and I could meet him. When I saw him, he was up but still drowsy from the anaesthesia effect.
Deep down, I was super happy to see him!
The doctor then showed me the stones. OMG!!!! I can’t believe he was carrying these stones in his body all this while. But thankfully, he was cured of his UTI and stone issue as well.
A big thank you to the doctors and nurses who took good care of him throughout his time in the hospital
Why and how did the bladder stones form?
It is still a big question mark to all of us. Even the doctors could not find the root cause for it but the doctor said that urinary stone (Calculi) in the urinary tract may be composed of several different materials. Stones form due to crystallization of solutes in the urine, which exist at a concentration high enough to exceed the saturation point.
This means that stones form because there are too many of the ingredients of the stone and not enough water in the urine. This can occur either because there is an abnormally high amount of stone-forming material in the urine, or the urine is too concentrated because of dehydration (thirst).
I asked myself where I went wrong.
Was it my fault?
Didn’t I look after my kids well?
So many questions popped in my mind but in the end, I realised whatever happened, has happened. Moving forward, the most important thing is how to prevent this issue from happening again especially now that I know that these stones can sit and grow in the urinary tract for months without causing any pain or discomfort.
So, frequent check ups with the paediatrician and continuously monitoring your child’s healthy diet is essential.
We should always remind our child to drink more water so that his/her urine should be almost clear. If your child’s urine is dark, the more at risk they are.
So mummies, on this special month dedicated to mums– I hope my story inspires all parents out there.
All of us are trying our best to be the BEST MUM or BEST PARENTS we could. Sometimes, things will just happen – no matter what we go through or what the situation is, all MUMS are the BEST and we are delivering beyond our capabilities and are still imperfectly PERFECT MUMS.
A big thank you and love to my mother for always standing by my side in all good and bad times. She’s my pillar of support. Thank you, MUM!
Here’s a big salute to all mums that are doing their best for their children in whatever situation they are in.
Stay safe and have a wonderful Mother’s Day with your loved ones!
