Thursday, April 26, 2007

A Note of Thanks and Continual Updates...




Thank you to those praying for Ally.
It is a great blessing to know
she is lifted up in fervent prayer.
Thank you so much.

"The effectual fervent prayer
of a righteous man availeth much."
~ James 5:16



UPDATE: Thursday, April 26...
It seems like such a while since I've updated
on the situation with Ally.
We have been treating Ally naturally
with some different B vitamins, vitamin C,
and adding particular foods to her diet
that help supress the thyroid.
She seemed to be doing pretty well...
until about a few days ago.
She started having 'flare ups'/'spells'
of great difficulty in breathing, dizziness,
and other increased symptoms.

Last night, we had to leave the church service
because her heart was racing (more than usual)
and it was causing her to hyperventilate
and go into a bit of a panic-type attack
(which can be contributed to the thyroid, too).
Her breathing was extremely difficult/painful
so I took her to the ER...
Four hours later,
she felt a tad bit better
and they couldn't really do anything
except recommend we take her prescribed medicine,
which I, very prayerfully,
had gotten filled earlier yesterday afternoon.
So with much prayer,
we have decided to begin her
on the prescribed medication.

I am confident that this is the Lord's will, for now,
and we will continue to seek natural remedies.
She sees the homeopathic 'doctor' next Friday
and she will also be getting
an uptake scan of her thyroid to check, again,
for Graves' Disease sometime next week.

I was encouraged by the ER doctor...
He mentioned that many young girls her age
tend to 'grow out' of this hyperthyroidism
and the homeopathic doctor,
that I spoke to on the phone,
said something very similar.

We are continuing to pray for healing
and that the Lord will guide me
and give me peace in the decision making.
Thank you, again, for all of your prayers.
They mean so much!



UPDATE: Sunday, April 1...
Tomorrow Ally and I are going back
to the specialist (3 hours away)
for her to get an EEG
and to see the endocrinologist
for the possibility of hyperthyroidism.
The younger ones will be remaining at home
with gramma and a friend of mine.
Thank you for your prayers tomorrow.
They are greatly appreciated.


Update: Thursday, February 8th...
All of Ally's lab work came back normal.
Tomorrow, the doctor will be making calls
to get her into see the neurologist.
We have a 'regular' doctor appointment next Friday.
Rejoicing that the labs came back okay.
Continuing to pray we will get 'to the bottom'
of this and that the Lord will guide.

Update: Monday, February 12th...
Friday afternoon, Ally had an MRI
and an x-ray done.
We are still awaiting those results.
We were told she will be getting another MRI
this week to test for something more specific.

Update: Thursday, February 15th...
Ally's MRI results from last Friday
came back normal.
We are awaiting an appointment
for her next MRI,
which test specifically for MS
(and, perhaps, more... I'm unsure, yet).
The referral for a pedriatric neurologist
has been approved and we are awaiting
an appointment for that, as well.

Update: Tuesday, February 20th...
Ally is still doing about the same,
though she has had an increase
in tingling in her feet/legs.
She will be having another MRI on Friday
that will be testing for MS and next week
we will be seeing the pediatric neurologist.

Update: Wednesday, February 28th...
Today we visited the pediatric neurologist.
I must admit that I was a bit unsure about him
and am consulting our regular doctor in regards to this.
Anyhow, he says that he doesn't really think
that her problems are necessarily neurological,
which is good. He did, however,
pull me aside and ask if she has been
under a lot of stress and wonders if
she has some anxiety issues.
Which, at face value, with her Dad leaving and all,
could appear to resemble some possible
smidgen of truth,
but she has suffered many of these symptoms
for quite a few years now.
They have just 'flared up' this past month.
They did do some additional blood work today
to test her B12 and folic acid
and we will be going back in two weeks
to do some nerve testing.
He also mentioned the possibility of
physical therapy and such.
I hope to hear from our regular doctor
within the next couple of days
to find out what he would like to do.
Thank you, again, so much for your continued prayers.

UPDATE: Sunday, March 25...
Tomorrow Ally has an appointment
with a neuromuscular disease doctor
at one of the state's university hospitals.
This will be a three hour drive (one way)
for the children and I.
Please pray for safe travel,
in addition for the appointment.
Thank you all so much.
I will update, again, as soon as I am able.


UPDATE: Tuesday, March 27...
The doctor (from our appointment yesterday)
called us this morning.
He said that one of Ally's hormone levels was elevated
and he believes she may have hyperthyroid.
He does not think this is necessarily the whole problem
but does feel it could be contributing
to some of her symptoms.
We are waiting for further blood test results.

He has also submitted her name to be admitted
to the hospital for a couple of days
so they can run further tests and such.
We should know more within the next few days.
In addition... Ally seemed to feel a bit better today
and was able to move around quite a bit more.
We were rejoicing in answer to prayer.
Thank you, again, so much for your
continued prayers, advice, and encouraging words.
They have been a tremendous blessing to all of us.


UPDATE: Wednesday, March 29...
WOW... That was fast...
On the way home from church this evening,
the hospital called my cell phone
and said that they had been waiting
for Ally to arrive all day!
I explained to her my surprise
and that we had been wondering
if they were going to be calling today
to let us know when Ally would be coming.
We had a nice little chuckle
over the miscommunication...
apparently someone somehow forgot to call us.
She spoke to another lady there
and said that they would be calling us tomorrow
to let us know when a bed was available.
So, if I understood her correctly,
we should be admitting Ally to the hospital
tomorrow for a couple of days of
observation, testing, etc...
We appreciate your prayers
for these next few days especially.
I'm not sure, at this time,
how we will approach this
(as the hospital is 3 hours away).
I'm not sure what we'll be doing
with the younger children, etc...
I'm praying the Lord will show me
what He'd have me to do in this area.

There was something that we found funny
that I wanted to share...
We have seen the Lord answering prayer a lot lately...
very specifically, too.
Well after I got off the phone with the nurse,
I said to Ally that I was suprised
they had called and gotten a bed for her so soon.
She smiled real big and said, "Not me."
I asked her, "How's that?"
She replied by telling me that she had prayed
the Lord would allow all of this
to happen very soon/quickly...
and He answered!
I looked at her, smiling too,
and said "That's great, honey...
but you could've given me a heads-up!"
We shared a giggle and rejoiced
that the Lord answered so quickly.
Thank you for your continued prayers
.

UPDATE:
Thursday, March 29...
The doctor's office called this morning...
Instead of admitting Ally to the hospital,
they are taking a different route, for now.
We will be traveling there for an appointment on Monday
to get an EEG and to see the endocrinologist.

This works out better
with the situation with my lil' ones...
Also it's raining today
and I'm not fond of driving in the rain. ;o)
This also works out because we will not miss
Crucifixion Sunday at our church this Sunday. *Ü*
We are, again, praising the Lord
for His answers to much prayer.
Thank you, again, to all of you that are praying.
I can't express what a tremendous blessing it is
to know we're being lifting up in fervent prayer.








"The effectual fervent prayer
of a righteous man availeth much."
~ James 5:16








20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Praying for you and your little ones as you travel today. I'll be looking for an update!

Shereen said...

Thanks for keeping us updated. I will keep Ally in my prayers, and also for traveling mercies for today's trip. I also pray for the Doctor of all doctors to do a complete healing of whatever it is that she is feeling.

Kristi said...

Thanks for summing it up for us. I know it's difficult waiting to find out test results. God already knows the results!! Still praying!

~Kristi

Janie said...

I just linked to your blog from another blog and wanted to say hi. I don't know what difficulty Ally is having but I will keep her in my prayers! I will be checking back; your blog looks very nice!

Karen said...

Ok...praying still. Please keep us updated.
Hugs,
Karen

Anonymous said...

Just caught up!! Bless your heart. I also have hyperthyroid. My energy levels were awful,, I could wake up from sleeping 9 hours and be exhausted!! ALL DAY! I am on medication for that, and it makes such a difference! I'm sure it will help Ally. I hope they find out what else is wrong.

I know what its like to be constantly taking test. As my mom says, lovingly, I am a physical mess. lol. I will pray for her and for you as you continue on this medical journey. I pray they find a solution and she is on her way to better health. ~madeleine

Anonymous said...

Hi Christina!! Well if its thyroid problems, thats something I can give you lots on. When Ally goes for more tests, please ask them if they can do a Thyroid Uptake and Scan. THis is the only conclusive test for Graves Disease. Which is what I have, it is the most common cause of Hyperthyroidism. It is an autoimmune disease. THis is important to find out, because many people with Graves Disease can also have a conditon called Graves Opthomopathy, or Thyroid Eye Disease. This is important to know because one of the treatments for Hyperthyroidism is called RAI or Radioactive Iodine Treatment. PLEASE DONT GET THIS!!!! Anything with the word radioactive in it, cant be good for your body. And if Ally does have the Thyroid Eye Disease, it can make her eyes a lot WORSE!!
I'm going to give you a couple of websites to check out, the first one is hosted, I think, by a woman who has Graves DIsease and has a lot of very good information. Her name is Elaine Moore and she has also written a book about graves disease. the web page is
http://www.suite101.com/articles.cfm/graves_disease/21-40
I cannot stress how important is to know about this disease as I have been dealing with it and some not so very nice Endocrinolgists for almost a year now. Beleive it or not, that little butterfly shaped gland on your neck controls EVERYTHING!!!! When I first got diagnosed, I was all over the place. I was tired, I was getting nauseated constantly, I WAS SO HOT!!! I was shaking,my heart was pounding out of my chest and I was tired and some other things. Once they diagnosed me I was still leary of any treatment because the endocrinologist sort of got it wrong. When I went in for my very first appointment she told me my whole life was going to change and then told me that I needed to make a decision about treatment right then and there. She was pushing me to have that RAI but my hubby and I were adament that we would not do that and we would not make a decision that day. ONly after strongly telling her NO! did she send me for this uptake and scan. WHen it came back that I had Graves Disease, that woman switched gears. Sent me to an opthomologoist who diagnosed me with Grave opthomopothy. She right away said NO RAI!!! Take these Anti Thyroid Medications!!! Needless to say I wasnt very comfotable with this. SO at first I only went on a beta blocker called Inderal to help keep my heart from pounding out of my chest. Well aftet I started on them, things got worse, I dont know if it was from the beta blockers or because my thyroid was getting worse and I wasnt getting any treatment. I suspect the latter although the beta blockers do mess with your head making you forget things and giving you weird dreams. Then on July 12 I think I finally started taking the Anti Thyroid Medication. I FELT SO MUCH BETTER!!!!! Then the woman Endo. left the practice and I got another one, this time a man. I was happy and excited because I was hoping I would get a better Endo. who would be more helpful. I was wrong. THis man not only sent me into HYPO thyroidism by overmedicating me, but also lied about it. Well, then My Hubby and I decided to give a call to the Endo. department of Hershey Medical Center. We got in to see a really good Endo. there and he is actually saying that surgery is the best option for me. because I have the eye disease and because my thyroid wont stabelize, its never on one dose for too long, it keeps going back and forth between HYPER and HYPO. And I have a goiter on my neck. all in all I am so thankful that we have doctors who can treat this and medication that can help. But its very important to get as much information and as much knowlege about these things because doctors CAN be WRONG!!! I dont want to scare you, just want to pass on the things that I have learned in dealing with this for almost a year. You can do a Google Search for Hyperthyroidism. That should give you some good information. Try to stick to name brand sites, like webmd.com, medhelp.org, and another one at pubmed.org the medhelp one has post boards where people can ask questions and get responses. It might help to read some other peoples questions and answers. Or ask your own. If you or Ally have any questions, or just wanna talk, heres my email, asb@outbox.net.
Tell Ally I hope she feels better and that I'm sort of in the same boat, lots of tests and different doctors. I go for an MRI of my brain and orbits on Friday. I am being checked for Myastehnia Gravis. I hope I have been helpful and that this gives you more information to read up on and helps you feel a little more prepared for all these tests and doctors visits. I will keep praying and again if you just want to talk or have any more questions I can answer, just send me an email. Have a gREAT day!!!!!
Mrs. Bowman

Cherish the Home said...

Christina,

Oh my...I'm so sorry, it must be so stressful to not know what is wrong. I just prayed for Ally and will continue to do so. (o:

Oh and your blog looks beautiful!!

Blessings and Hugs,
~Mrs.B

HsKubes said...

Thank you all for your prayers, advice, and encouragement. They are such a blessing to us!

Madeleine and Mrs. Bowman ~ Thank you, also, for sharing your personal experience and advice. I appreciate it very much and will continue to research.

Thank you all, again, for your prayers and kind words.

~ Christina

Paula said...

Christina,
I wish that I lived closer so that I could help with the little ones. I'll be praying that all of the logistics get worked out and that the Lord reveals what's going on with precious Ally.
Blessings,
Mrs. C

Shereen said...

I'm with Mrs. C. I was thinking, oh, if only I lives closer to help out. I pray that the Lord give you the wisdom and strength to get everything done that needs to get done. My family will continue to lift Ally and your family up in prayer.

HsKubes said...

Thank you, ladies, for your offer. I sure wouldn't mind calling on you. *Ü* But your prayers are especially dear to us. Thank you so much.

~ Christina

Janie said...

I know what you mean about driving in the rain, it can be very un-nerving depending on how fast it is coming down. I will continue to pray for you all and hope that you find some answers!

Anonymous said...

Christina, I am so sorry to read of your daughter's difficulties. I know how hard it is on the mama when one of the children is not well. We will be in prayer for Ally. We take our little guy, Isaac, to Miami Children's Hospital on Tuesday to find out why his seizures have gotten out of control. They say we will be there an entire week. The "not knowing" can be dibilitating to me when I don't constantly take it to the Father. Praise Him for His tender mercy and never-ending strength. Feel free to visit my site and read about our little man. www.xanga.com/akconklin - Alesha

Shereen said...

Christina, I'm sorry to hear that Ally wasn't feeling well. Kayla had just asked me if I had an update yesterday. We will continue to pray. The same way you feel the Lord leading you to give her the prescribed medication, I'm sure He will continue to lead you during the rest of this situation. That is encouraging news to hear that some children outgrow it. I pray that that will be the case for Ally. Thank you for keeping us updated.

Anonymous said...

Christina, I am so sorry that Ally had to go through all of that, did they give you a prescription for Inderal LA? While I'm glad that they are re checking her for Graves Disease, the Uptake and Scan is an obsolete test. You only need a blood test to test her TSI level. Its very simple, they should also check her TPO levels. I think I may have told you to get the Uptake and scan, but have recently found out that it is not neccesary to diagnose Graves. I had one done and from what I understand it is more to check for nodules, which are easily seen in a thyroid ultrasound. I cant stress enough how important it is to READ everything you can, but educated so they cant force you to have unneccesary tests and treatment. I will post again the web sites I reccomend, I especially reccommend the Suite101 site, they are very big on not getting treatments that are harmful and sometimes unneccesary. Here they are.
http://www.suite101.com/articles.cfm/graves_disease/21-40

http://www.mediboard.com/ Click on the link for Graves Disease and Thyroid Discussion.
I hope all of this helps and that Ally is feeling much better!!!
Have a great night!!
Mrs. Bowman

Kristi said...

Christina, we're still praying for your sweet Ally. Bless her heart, I know that must have been scary for her at church last night. Give her hug from Happymama and tell her she's being thought of and prayed for.

~Kristi

HsKubes said...

Thank you, ladies, so much for your continued prayers and encouraging words. They are SUCH a blessing to us!

Mrs. Bowman ~ The prescription they gave us is methimazole (anti-thyroid med). I'm not sure if the scan they ordered is only to check for Graves' or not. I hope to contact them Monday to find out more info.
Thank you, again, for all of your insight and advice. It has been greatly appreciated.

~ Christina

Anonymous said...

Christina, I am also taking Methimazole, I take 25mg a day. But when I was first diagnosed and my heart was pounding out of my chest, they gave me a prescription for Inderal LA, but I have to tell you, it messes with your mind. Makes you forget stuff, and it gives you weird dreams. So I thought I would ask what she was on. I hope that helps :)!!!
Mrs. Bowman

HsKubes said...

Mrs. Bowman ~ Ally has had the heart pounding out of her chest experience for quite some time. It seems to be a little less since she started the meds last week, though her tingling in her feet, legs, and hands have been pretty strong.
Thank you, again, for all of your advice and insight. They are greatly appreciated. You have been a real blessing. Thank you.

~ Christina

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