New Doctor's for New Problems

Not much has been going on lately except we are trying desperately to coordinate doctor visits. It seems like every time I turn around I am constantly rearranging appointments so I can be involved with my families health care. Bryon feels fine, but we are trying to keep his MRI appointment, doctor appointment, and port maintenance appointments straight. To add to the confusion, Anna has begun her adventure in orthodontics and is seeing an orthodontist in Pocatello. My poor mother took Anna for her first "fitting" visit and it just so happened to be on one of those lovely days when the snow was flying. I am very grateful to both of my parents that they are so willing to help out with these driving arrangements. Since I have an appointment every Monday in Logan and my days off limited, these little pieces of time need to be budgeted very carefully and their help has made it work.

We now add a new doctor to the pile. Anna has been complaining of stomach pain a lot for the last two weeks. It really got obvious on Thanksgiving that she was not comfortable at all. She would eat fine and play until her stomach decided it had had enough. She went for a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa Westerberg's house and was even able to play at Granny's for a day. Saturday night she attended an Aggie basketball game(she was thrilled that they won) with her dad, sister and grandparents. By the end of her evening she was wiped out and in pretty constant pain. As a mother your heart bleeds for your child when they hurt the way Anna was, but you also have to keep a cool head for your kids sake. I tried to decide how much was drama and how much was real suffering. When the pain got bad enough she was doubled over, I asked her many times if she felt that a visit to the hospital was necessary(I was told that if there was no fever or risk of dehydration and all that stuff, then it wasn't an emergency. Hence y hesitation in this case). She said she would like to see a doctor and we packed up and headed to Logan.

That poor little girl was put through so much crap while she was trying to endure the pain and difficulty of not being able to rest. There were IV's and needles, poking and prodding,urine and blood samples, X-rays and even an ultrasound. By the time we got there and had been put through the ringer, Anna had a fever of 103. Some Tylenol and a Maalox cocktail took care of the fever and dulled the pain for a few hours so she could sleep. She was kept till 7:00am for observation and the doctor admitted she had no clue what was happening, but that there was definitely something wrong. Appendix comes to mind, but there was nothing conclusive that said for sure she was in need of surgery.

So, today we have made some arrangements to go back to the hospital and discuss the weekends events with a pediatrician and decide if the next step is to be the CAT Scan and possible surgery, or if she has some fancy disorder that I can't spell. The radiologist who did her ultrasound noted that her lymph nodes in her abdomen were very inflamed which coincided with her blood work. Apparently there is a word for it, but heck if I can recall it , let alone spell it.

In total, we have 5 doctor visits to complete in the next 9 days. Audrey seems to be the only one without an ailment and is loving the idea of taking care of her family. She has helped out enough that I agreed to pay her for every chore she completed while we were dealing with all this junk. She took to that like a fish to water. She has already earned a dollar for cleaning her room and plans to help with laundry to earn a few more. All in all I think we are busy but doing well. Results of our adventures will be eagerly anticipated, but at least we have the snow to distract us till they come in.

The final count down...

The year is rolling to a stop in about 35+ days so I figured a post before then would be good.

Bryon's next MRI will be done in Logan instead of SLC. HURRAY!! He is feeling well and making progress in his speech and cognitive functions. He is having troubles with a few things that make it difficult for me since I am not at home, but I would rather be working and having him learn by himself than having to constantly hold his hand. I think he kind of enjoys the independence as well. After watching a Warren Miller Ski Documentary he decided it was time to pick up a hobby...rather, continue an already existing hobby...snow skiing. I am anxious to see the snow fly since it has been years since we let Bryon loose on the slopes, but I am sure it is a lot like riding a bike. We'll send out a warning when he heads to Beaver Mountain, just to give you all the heads up to get out of the way.

Recently, Bryon started making appointments at Logan Regional to have his vascular port flushed once a month. Seeing how this has been done for well over a year, I joked and said I should do it. Bryon agreed! In about 30 days I will be heading into the hospital with him and I will get a crash course in how to administer Heparin (anti-coagulant) and properly flush a port with saline solution...needles and all! I am so excited that there are not words to describe it...seriously!!

So, the next time we post it should be after the last MRI of 2010 that is scheduled for December 6th. After that we will probably have lots to report about the home nursing try outs, any bets on how much blood will be wasted during my training at Bryon's expense? That should be a long enough break to get you through the holidays and on to the new year. As a side note, for anyone who reads the families private blog, it will be discontinued by the end of the year. This will be easier and more efficient to update only one blog.