Teased by Higher Oxygen Sats

When we were first diagnosed with Jackson's heart condition, one of our first questions was if we should move to a lower elevation.  The doctor said that some kids have a positive effect from lower elevation, and some kids don't.  And if we wanted to know about Jackson, we should take him to the beach for a week and see what happened.  So, of course, we were anxious to see what a drop of 4,000 feet would do for his sats.  The first day, I didn't see much change.  But, then they started to climb, and they topped out in the upper 80s.  Yes, he was still on 1/2 liter of oxygen.  But, we went from 78 up to 87.  His color was amazing.  He was actually pink, and not dusky and blue.  Even his fingers and toes were pink.  His "speed bump" was practically gone.  And then the plague set in, and his sats dropped back into the upper 70s and low 80s.  It's hard to tell if they would have stayed up once he got over the cold.  Or, if his body just had a short term reaction to the lower elevation and would have settled back into the 70s and 80s.

I've emailed Adel to talk about what this means, and if we need to consider moving.  We have always said that if we moved, we'd move to Portland, Oregon.  But their cardiology program ranked #42 on the list.  Denver is #12.  I am not trading 42 for 12.

So, now we are looking at Cincinnati (#5), or Houston (#3).  I can't stand the idea of how hot I'd be in Texas.  Simply can not stand it.  But, Austin only a two hour drive from Houston.  And my bff lives in Austin.  And Chris' bff lives in Austin.  So, that definitely makes Texas a little lot more appealing.  We'd be leaving our jobs and home and friends behind, so moving someplace where we'd already have great friends would make that pill a little easier to swallow.  But, still how do we know if Jackson's sats would come up and stay up, post a move there.  Uprooting and relocating our entire family for an unknown is a pretty scary thought.

So, I am waiting for a clinic visit with Adel in a few weeks so I can pick his brain.  He's very honest with us, and I trust that if he thought it would help Jackson, he'd be the first one to sign off transferring our care.  Jackson is 2 or more years from the Fontan.  And I am not sure I'd be willing to move before then.  Finding a surgeon we trust is hard, and having to replace Jackson's entire medical team seems quite daunting right now.  I've reached out to a few Texas heart momma's and a few Cincinnati heart momma's, and they all seem happy with their care.  The Texas heart momma's are a pretty big group.  That Texas Medical Center complex is jaw dropping.  Over 1,000 acres.  Holy shit!

I really don't want to move, and leave Denver behind.  And I certainly don't want to do it for nothing.  But, seeing how healthy Jackson looked, with amazing color in his face and fingers could be motivation enough to make me pack up and go.  We might also see about another family vacation this summer to Austin to check things out, and see how his sats do.  And to see if I can make it 2 weeks in Texas in the dead of summer without killing anyone.  That might be the bigger challenge!  Ha Ha!  And of course, typical me, I am totally 100% cart before the horse here, as Adel may say that it isn't worth it.