On the benefits of a trach...

When Timmy first got his trach, his mommy and daddy and I all thought it was a little scary. But now we love it. Here are a few reasons why... The most obvious reason that we think a trach is the most fabulous invention since purple antlers is that it helps Timmy breathe. Now that he has a trach, he can spend his energy smiling and laughing and playing and developing and growing instead of spending it all on breathing. It has been a long time since Timmy has turned blue and has needed to be resuscitated. We are all very grateful for that!

But there are some other less obvious reasons why we think the trach is fantastic...

It is a lot of fun to play the piano with a trach. And we would never have known that if Timmy did not have one!


Timmy loves it that the trach provides a convenient thing for him to grab onto. It is like a built-in toy! (Timmy also likes his g-tube for the same reason.) Timmy's mommy and daddy are trying to break him of the habit of playing with his trach and g-tube, though. They are so mean.

We can cover Timmy's entire face with a washcloth or blanket to block out the light (since there are always lights on around here) so that he can sleep. As long as his trach is not blocked, we do not have to worry about him being able to breathe!


We came in during one of Timmy's naps and found him sleeping with a plastic ring around his trach. When he went to sleep Timmy's mommy gave him the ring to hold in his hand, but while he slept he stuck it on his trach. If we ever get bored, we could put Timmy on the floor and play ring toss! (Disclaimer for those of you that do not know us...no, we are not actually planning to put our child on the floor and throw pieces of plastic at him...)

Timmy cannot make noise when he cries. Usually we do not like this aspect of the trach because we miss his voice. But it has the potential to come in handy. If we ever fly on a plane and Timmy gets upset, we will not have to worry about annoying the other passengers. And when we take Timmy to church someday, we will not have to worry about him interrupting one of his grandpa's sermons (unless an alarm goes off, of course!).

Timmy's mist collar provides a really convenient thing for him to suck on. Especially convenient for him now that we think he is teething!

Timmy looks so handsome with his trach. In fact, we have started to think babies that do not have trachs look a little funny!

When Timmy is out of bed, we put a little thing on the end called an HME that humidifies the air that goes into Timmy's lungs. Another name for it is "artificial nose". That gives us material for all sorts of funny lines that never seem to get old:

--Uh-oh, I just dropped your nose on the floor, I better get a new one!
--Hey, stop pulling your nose off!
--Where's Timmy's nose? I thought I left it sitting in the cup over there but I can't find it.
--Why does Timmy have two noses sitting here? Which one is newer?
--Hey, how did your nose end up in your diaper?

And now, everybody sing along (to the tune of "Head and Shoulders, Knees, and Toes":

Trach, PICC, g-tube, j-tube hole, j-tube hole

Trach, PICC, g-tube, j-tube hole, j-tube hole

ID, pulse-ox, lead, lead, lead.

Trach, PICC, g-tube, j-tube hole, j-tube hole!