Port Wine Stain

Port Wine Stain.
Who knew that term would define my child?
I say this because when people see Owen, 90% immediately ask what happened to his face. I don't mind the questions because nobody will ever know if I don't tell them, but I still can't help but notice that it is immediately what people wonder about him.
So what is a port wine stain anyway? A port wine stain, according to Wikipedia, "is a vascular anomaly consisting of superficial and deep dilated capillaries in the skin which produce a reddish to purplish discoloration of the skin. They are so called for their color, resembling that of port wine. It is part of the family of disorders known as vascular malformations, specifically an arteriovenous malformation". I don't care if you don't like Wikipedia, that's what a port wine stain is. Anyway, this is Owen's port wine stain the day he was born. (November 3, 2012)

 And the day he came home (2 days old)... This is easier to see because his hat is off.

I can't answer every question people have about port wine stains and I actually can't answer every question I myself have about port wine stains. I am still learning too!

When I was in high school, I read a book titled "North of Beautiful" by Justina Chen Headley. I remembered reading it because it was about a girl with a port wine stain. When Owen was a few months old, I borrowed this book from my FAVORITE Spanish teacher ever, Mrs. Tarbutton, so that I could read it again now that it actually would make sense to me.

While reading this book, I found a few things that stuck out to me. One particular part was when a scientist asked the speaker how she felt after her laser surgery. This is what it says. "Well, yeah, I feel different," she said in a high, halting voice, "but everybody made such a big deal about my face afterward, it was, like, God, was I really that ugly before?" (32)
This really made me think because Owen had his own laser surgery and everybody does make a big deal of it. But I'd hate to think that later in life, he might feel like she did (since he will have the surgeries for the rest of his life probably).

Another thing that most people don't know about port wine stains is that Owen is supposed to stay away from the sun. He is supposed to have on sunscreen and a hat anytime his sweet face is near the sun. The reason for this is because the sun darkens port wine stains and because of the sensitive skin the port wine stain is on, the sun can actually cause Owen to overheat faster than you or I would.

The reason that he will have laser surgeries probably most of his life is because even if we do this series and clear it up for now, there's a small chance that the sun will NEVER hit his face. Even though we will have multiple surgeries to clear it this time, it's most likely gonna come back and we will have to repeat this a number of times.

The doctors tell you when they go in for the laser surgery, there is no pain and it feels like a rubberband popping their face- just annoying (This is what Owen's doctor told us anyway). So we believe them, right? (For those that don't know, the laser surgery is a pulsed dye laser that lightens the port wine stain without doing an invasive procedure) So here comes the next part of the book that stood out to me, as she was preparing for her laser surgery.
"And then the laser- powerful enough to facet a diamond- began, zapping me over and over within the boundary line of my birthmark from temple to cheek, the inside edge of my nose to my jaw. And then the circuit began again. Experts describe the procedure as feeling like a rubber band snapping against skin, which makes it sound deceptively pain- free. But it's more like getting splattered with a drop of hot oil, sudden and sizzling. Try a hundred - or two hundred and fifty- laser blasts in a single session, and one word comes to mind: deep- fried." (50)
This really made me wonder what it feels like to babies who have this done. Is it really pain free or does it hurt like she says? I don't know, and I probably never will. Owen will usually have anesthesia with his. The last time, he fell asleep without it and was happy as can be when we finally got to see him.

This was immediately before his first laser surgery- he was not a happy camper because he wasn't allowed to eat and if you know Owen, he doesn't play about his food! But he was still happy anyway:)

 This is Owen immediately after his first laser surgery, swollen and sore, but still cracking a smile. (and after drinking an entire bottle in about five seconds- they starved the poor baby!)

 And last but not least, here is our latest family photo where you can see the progress that was made from the laser surgery. His surgery was March 5 and this picture was taken May 4.

So to end this blog post, I will say that I think his port wine stain is adorable and if it weren't for the medical issues it is causing and the hurt feelings that it will eventually cause, I wouldn't worry about getting it taken off. I think I'll miss it when it's gone! It's a neat little mood reader too because when he's mad, it turns dark purpley red.
 

Thanks for reading! I hope you learned something:)