I'm back...

Dear family and friends,

My apologies for not updating this blog recently. As most of you know, in the past month I got married... twice! Well, just one marriage, but two weddings. So things have been very busy. The first wedding was at Auburn Faith Hospital so that Mom could be with us. It turned out to be a very popular event: several news crews showed up! You can watch news clips here and here.

Prior to the weddings, we all had a nice Christmas as a family right in Mom's hospital room. For Christmas Eve I made a CD of some favorite carols and planned a service of Lessons and Carols for our family; we took turns reading the Scripture lessons and we sang carols along with the CD. Christmas Day we opened some presents at the hospital and then helped Grandma and Grandpa fix Christmas dinner, which we took to the hospital. Mom enjoyed having "real" food.

Mom is working hard at her physical, speech, and occupational therapy, but she has been experiencing a great deal of pain in her joints - particularly in her hips. The pain seems to be hindering her from making the progress we all hoped she would make.

Several days ago the doctors began to suspect that her joint pain was more serious than the normal discomfort or stiffness they had assumed was from lack of motion. An orthopaedic surgeon examined some X-rays and determined that Mom has heterotopic ossification in her hips. It's an extremely rare condition - which is probably why no one caught it any sooner - that is occasionally brought on by a stroke. It basically means that the muslces and tendons in Mom's hips are calcifying and growing bones. Sounds like something out of Harry Potter, doesn't it? Needless to say, it's an extremely painful process, and unfortunately the doctors are prescribing the same 'WaitAndSee' treatment that Mom's been getting a lot of. Unless the doctors can come up with a good treatment, they'll wait until Mom's body stops growing these bones and then remove them surgically. The doctors don't want to use any medication for fear of side effects that could complicate her stroke recovery or compromise her bones. In the meantime, the doctors have increased her pain med levels so that she will hopefully be able to make progress in therapy without being so hindered by pain. The meds help a little, but Mom is still in pain. She needs to keep trying to move and being moved by Dad and by nurses in spite of the pain, or her joints will become stiffer.

Please pray that Mom's doctors will find good and accurate information in their research on this condition. Pray that a treatment will be found that will work for Mom. Pray for Mom's pain management. Pray that Mom will be able to stay in the hospital until she has the treatment and therapy she needs. Even though we think that Mom is making progress, it doesn't seem to be enough for our insurance company; they plan to stop paying for Mom's stay in rehab very soon. Dad is being trained in wheelchair transfers and other ways that he and Mom will make life work when she leaves the hospital. He's also been talking to doctors about long-term therapy at home, but we really hope Mom can stay in the hospital a while longer.

And finally, my parents really need prayer emotionally as well as physically. Dad stays at the hospital with Mom for most of the day every day, but of course he can't be there all the time. Mom has been having panic attacks at night. I think sometimes she forgets where she is, but even when she remembers exactly what is going on, I'm sure the reality of her situation is incredibly overwhelming, frightening, and discouraging.

The good news is that Mom has begun using her left arm as well as her right! With support under her elbow, she can move her hand from her waist to her face. Dad says he's hopeful that this is just the beginning of her left side beginning to "wake up" as her right side has been doing.

Thank you for your comments, thoughts, prayers, cards, and visits. Mom loves knowing that her family and friends are thinking of her and praying for her so constantly. Thank you.