Nerve Update

Troy had the nerve lesion yesterday morning. The doctors cauterized 3 nerves in his neck. They warned him that it would be a painful recovery for the first 5-7 days since they drilled through some bone and moved muscles around in the neck to get to the affected nerves. If the pain was not handled by the pain meds they prescribed, they told us to call them.

We called yesterday afternoon because Troy was having a headache, dizziness, continued numbness in his arms, and nausea. They sent us to the ER. The ER gave Troy lots of meds to reduce his pain, relax his muscles, and get rid of the nausea. They sent him home yesterday evening with some additional drugs to get him through this next week.

Last night continued to be rough but better than earlier in the day. He is on a 4 hour medication schedule so I set the alarm to wake us at the right times during the night. The doctor's goal is to get Troy to sleep through this next 4-6 days when the recovery is the worst.

More updates later.

Steven's Birthday

I apologize for the delay in posting Steven's birthday pictures! Some of the pictures are captured on the camcorder and we can't capture those at this time. Unfortunately, my camera batteries ran out quickly, so I have these few pictures to share.

First, let me say that this was Steven's best birthday ever! We got to his dorm about 9:30 am and opened presents with him. About 10:30, the bounce house was delivered and the boys were ecstatic! The staff must have prepped the boys ahead of time because the boys kept telling each other, "It's Steven's birthday, so he gets in first." The boys were coaxing Steven towards the bounce house. One of the boys couldn't stand the wait and he got in real quick. It was funny how fast the other boys reprimanded him to get out until Steven was in! When Steven did get in, he jumped a bit then got out when it was too crowded.

Steven had a good day on his party day! He loved being the center of attention and enjoyed his gifts. He was happy and playful and the most smiley we have seen him in years. It is such a joy to see him so happy! He has really bonded with the other kids in his dorm. He has friends of his own. The other boys give him high 5's and play wrestle with him. Steven even participates in giving and receiving head locks and chest bumps!

We pigged out on pizza, sodas, cake and ice cream. It was a great day!

Here are a few pictures of Steven opening his presents.




We had a great day! I'll post more pictures when they are available.

And a week goes by....

How is it possible that a whole week goes by and I can't find time to post and update! Here's what we know....

Monday- nothing exciting.

Tuesday - Troy went to Dr and they scheduled the nerve lesion for 10/1. This really depressed him because he did not want to be in pain another 2.5 weeks. It was a downer night for all of us.

Wednesday-Megan woke up with the stomach bug that has been going around school. The housekeeper came and the house looked beautiful when I arrived home to change clothes, then head to my book club.

Thursday-Megan was still sick and running fever so she stayed home again. I received a call from the doctor's office and they opened up a Saturday slot because they have so many patients. Rescheduled his appointment for next Saturday, 9/25 at 8:30 am. That evening, we went shopping for Steven's birthday party and presents, then packed the basics for Abilene.

Friday- Had a busy day at school, then headed home to change clothes and head to Abilene. The trip is normally 3 hours and we expected it to be longer due to rush hour traffic. WOW! After 90 minutes we had travelled a whopping 17 miles! We finally saw a traffic sign on the freeway which indicated all lanes were closed due to an accident. Fortunately, we had our GPS and we quickly pressed the detour button. Along the detour, we stopped for a quick burger at Fuddrucker's. We made it to Abilene in only 5.5 hours.......we were exhausted!

In Abilene, we are staying in the guest house for the first time. The homes are 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, fully furnished, homes. Back in the day, doctors used to live on site at the facility. Since they no longer do that, they turned them into guest houses for families to stay in. We weren't sure what to expect but wanted to check it out before we stay at Christmas time with Grandma Jane and hopefully, Fred and Leslie.

The home is older, but is very functional. The bedrooms each have 2 twin beds. The bathrooms have soap in the showers even! The kitchen is fully functional, but we are not allowed to cook. NOT JUST ME!!! Nobody can cook. We are allowed to use the fridge, microwave, toaster, and coffee maker.....which is pretty much cooking in my book!

In about an hour, we will head over to Steven's dorm to get the party set up! The bounce house and pizzas are being delivered by 11am. We should have a great time! I'll post pictures tonight!

So, how was your week?

B

Getting on his nerves

Yesterday was Troy's most recent procedure. The doctors did injections in C3-5 to block the nerves as a test run for next week's procedure. They described yesterday's procedure as diagnostic in nature, rather than therapeutic.

The injections yesterday were designed to determine if those nerves are the ones causing all the pain, numbness, headaches, and clumsiness that he is suffering through. There is good news and bad news. The good news is the block did help his pain level and reduced numbness for about 4 hours. The bad news is that the pain is back with a vengeance. He had to be off all pain meds for 24 hours prior to the procedure yesterday and can't seem to get back ahead of the pain since the procedure. I'm sure it doesn't help that they had to navigate through all the muscles and nerves in the neck region to get to the spinal column!

On Tuesday, we go back to the specialist who will review the "pain diary" Troy was assigned to complete after the procedure. At that time, they will presumably schedule the nerve lesion. We say presumably because they could still recommend the fusion instead. However, since he had some success with the block, we are assuming they will go forward with the lesion. That procedure involves permanently deadening the nerves in those vertebrae so Troy won't experience pain, numbness, etc anymore! That will be welcome relief!

Happy Birthday to our little man!

Today is Steven's 13th birthday! It is hard to believe he is that old! Seems like just yesterday we were at the hospital and the doctor was saying, "That is NOT a 7.5 lb baby that I predicted!"

Next weekend, we have a big birthday celebration planned at his dorm. We have rented a bounce house, ordered pizzas, coolers of soda and water, and of course, CAKE!

It is incredibly hard not being with him on his actual birthday, but we knew the trip this weekend just isn't possible. Hopefully we will all be well and able to enjoy the festivities next weekend!

Happy Birthday Steven! We love you very much!

It's Raining...no duh.

It's raining in North Texas. The weather reports state we have received about 7-8 inches of rain today in our area.

The local creek has overflowed and flooded homes right by us. One of the homes flooded was one we considered moving into when we looked for a home here! The river is expected to crest 14 feet above flood stage.

My school had leaks all through the building. In the teacher's bathroom, the water was leaking through the lights. In the music room, the water was seeping up through the floors. No one else seemed interested in the rain, but I continue to marvel at the weather we experience here!

At 11am today, I looked outside and the rain was so heavy I couldn't see anything! When I left school at 4pm, the skies were blue with some clouds. At 5:30, a tornado came through. It's 9pm and it's raining again!

I know it's trivial to others, but I am really amused today!

The Homecoming festivities at our rival high school have been cancelled due to weather. Tornado watches are in effect until 1am. And, it's still frickin raining!!!

I wonder if I will hear tornado sirens if they go off when I'm asleep?

Daily posts....or good intentions

I will start posting more frequently even if it seems trivial to me. Thank you for your comments!

We have enjoyed our three day weekend like everyone else has. Saturday we had a few friends over to bbq. Sunday and Monday were spent recovering from that! As much as Troy wanted to be social, it was too much for him to be upright for those few hours.

The house is cleaned, laundry is done, backpacks are packed, and we are ready to start another week tomorrow.

Megan is enjoying high school and they are keeping her very busy! She is on a block schedule so she only takes 4 classes per semester. Each course covers the curriculum designed to go one year, so the classes each last 90 minutes per day. She is taking Spanish II, Pre AP Biology, Pre AP Lang Arts/Geography, and JV Swim. She practices two mornings a week with the team from 6am-7:30am, then swims 10 hours a week in the afternoons. They swim an average of 2 miles each day and she still manages to get her homework done each night! We are very proud of her efforts!

Steven is loving being back in the routine of school. He has the same teacher and the same aide that he had last year. In addition, his home support staff comes to school with him so he has 2 adults supervising him at all times. This is necessary for him to be successful at school. They are working on having Steven ride the bus to and from school. Initially he was resistant to getting on the bus, but they have overcome that obstacle. Now, he won't get off the bus when they arrive at school. Unfortunately, he is now 5' 10", weighs 180 and they can't just carry him off the bus! I'll let you know how they decide to handle that!

Troy will be having another procedure on Friday. This time, they will perform a nerve block. He will need to keep a pain diary for the following 4 days. He will see the doctor on 9/14 for follow up. If it is successful, they will schedule the nerve lesion at that time. If it is unsuccessful, they will schedule his surgery at that time. We hope he gets some relief asap!

I am still plugging along with teaching and my masters courses. I'm a bit overwhelmed right now with the beginning of the school year stuff coupled with a very difficult course related to my thesis! I guess I must not be getting enough rest because I came down sick with a summer cold this weekend. I'm glad I had the weekend to sleep alot and hope to feel 100% tomorrow.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Love to all!
B

Want Daily Updates?

I haven't posted in a while simply because we've been too busy and there has not been a lot of positive stuff to say. Today I was talking to my favorite sister and she told me she checks this blog daily and wishes I would update more. I explained that I felt the posts were too much of the same thing and thought people would rather hear some positives. She said she wants to hear bad stuff too so she can send positive thoughts.

So, my question is this: Do you want to receive daily updates even if they are somewhat repetitive?

That's my post for today:)

I'll provide a real update tomorrow or the next few days depending on your comments.