Let It Be

I know I haven't updated everyone on Ezra's condition, but its been a rough few days. On Thursday, we met with a team of doctors who gave us a run down of Ezra's current needs. Because of structural problems with his airway, the doctors are in agreement that a tracheotomy is necessary. They are unable to extubate the little man at this time without all his vitals dropping. Ezra is also being heavily medicated, leaving him in a semi-comatose state. He gets extremely agitated when they try to ween the sedatives and pain meds, which also causes his vitals to drop. The doctors wanted to meet with us to discuss the options. We were informed that even if a tracheotomy is done, Ezra may never have the ability to breathe on his own again, leaving him to rely on a ventilator for support for the rest of his life. The ENTD believes that the structural problems began at birth and progressively got worse over the course of the last year. He also reiterated that Ezra may never be strong enough to breathe on his own. Then, they delicately brought up the subject of DNR--do not recessitate. What this means is that when we give the go-ahead, they would take Ezra off the ventilator and, if he codes, they would not try to revive him. We were assured that Ezra would not feel any pain, as they would continue to keep him heavily sedated. It is believed, among the doctors, that Ezra is too far gone and cannot come back from this issue without permanent medical intervention. It has also come to a critical point where he needs to be extubated, because its been 11 days and intubation can cause lung tissue damage after a long period of time. The tracheotomy would only be a temporary solution to a permanent problem. It was left for us to decide what is best for Ezra.
And so, after several long days and sleepless nights of prayer and careful consideration, we have made the painful decision to take Ezra off the ventilator. This does not come lightly. Our hearts and our minds are grieving for this little boy who has struggled for so long and been through so much to be here. We do not want him to suffer anymore. So we've decided to take it out of the hands of medicine and put him into the hands of God. We believe in a loving God who works all things for the greater good. He is all-knowing, He is faithful, and He is merciful. If there is anything that gives us comfort at this time its knowing that our son will be united once again with the Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus, who died for him first!
We will begin the process of extubation early this afternoon.
Thank you all so very much for being there for us with your love, support, and prayer throughout these tumultuous times. You are a great blessing to us all!