JUDAH

These last 2 1/2 - 3 weeks have gone by in somewhat of a blur. I am going to now share what has been going on with Judah's health. This is going to be a hard post for me. I REALLY want to think that this has all been some sort of a dream that never really happened at all; but there have been some major victories too so I guess I wouldn't want to throw it ALL out.
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Our family had a virus last month. All of us seemed to get well, but Judah was still complaining of headaches a week later. He has a HIGH pain tolerance (once walked on a broken foot for 24 hours before crying that he couldn't walk any more) and I thought it odd that EVERY DAY he complained of a headache.

At first I was thinking that it was just allergies to pollen (although he'd never seemed remotely bothered before) and then after it had rained and it was still an every day thing I thought perhaps he had a sinus infection. So, I took him to the DR about 2 1/2 weeks ago. We started antibiotics.
About this time he also started drinking and urinating EVERY 5-10 MINUTES. He was even waking up during the night to drink and urinate. It was starting to get really weird. The antibiotics didn't seem to relieve the headache after the first few days. Then other symptoms started: strange eye movements, fatigue alternating with normal play, anxiety, asking us to pray for him about 20+ (no exaggeration) times a day, mood change from hyper to quiet, wanted to rest more, had trouble concentrating, seemed to have trouble processing what we were saying to him...etc.

I went away on my girl weekend hoping that day 4 of the antibiotics would make his body turn a corner. I really figured it was just some weird sort of virus messing with his body. I was really worried over that weekend. I did have fun but it was REALLY difficult for me. Michael and I were talking on the phone about taking him to the ER for a CAT scan and other tests; however, we have no insurance...We decided that unless he started vomiting or fainting that we would wait.

Monday rolled around with no change. The drinking thing was the MOST freaky thing. Michael had to do some errands anyway so he said he was going to take him back to the DR. I told him that I DEFINITELY wanted him to be tested for diabetes. (It runs in both sides of my family.) She did that test but it was negative. The DR switched his antibiotics again (this was the 3rd switch- first one did not serve him well and the second was too weak). She also talked to Michael about scheduling an MRI. We were going to try to get insurance before the MRI which ended up being scheduled for 9 days out. She said that she thought it was probably just sinus but there was a VERY SLIM possibility that there was a tumor. We all figured that the tumor was such a slim possibility that we weren't really worried.

On the way home Michael ran him by our Chiropractor (whom we LOVE). He adjusted him. He was out. Judah stopped complaining of head pain the next day and looked more normal. I thought "YES! That was all it was!" However, the drinking, fatigue, and personality change remained. :(

We went on the Pigeon Forge vacation and things stayed about the same. HE just wasn't himself even though he did manage to have a pretty good time. He was still drinking about every 5-10 minutes. When he vomited, for no apparent reason, in the middle of the night one night I actually started to get really worried.

Sunday we went to church and happened to talk with the DR (She just happens to go to our church and was sitting directly behind us!)
We chatted for about 15 minutes. She said that she wanted to do some more lab tests possibly Monday and then Tues we would do the MRI. She said that she would research, think it over (I'm assuming PRAY about it because she is a genuine believer) and call us the next day. We decided to go ahead with whatever tests even though insurance hadn't kicked in yet. Our paperwork was in the holding process.

Monday we were in Walmart when she called. I must pause to say that Thomas was having a VERY VERY ROUGH obedience day so I was already exhausted. Michael happened to be there too. She spoke with Michael first and then spoke with me. Here's what she basically said," I think I know what the DX (diagnosis) is. I have been researching it and here are the symptoms. (Which completely matched Judah to a T) Tomorrow morning I want you to wake Judah up and feed him a protein meal at 4:00AM. Give him as much water as he wants at that time. Then, leave for the hospital and be there at 5:00AM. We are going to have you check into the hospital (without being admitted) and go straight to Pediatrics. They will give you a room but you will NOT be admitted. It's cheaper that way. They will put in an IV line, they will draw blood, we will be depriving him of both food and liquids for 6 hours. Each hour we will get his Blood Pressure, weight, heart rate, and oxygen level. If it's what I think it is- he will continue to urinate normal amounts without having anything going into his body. His urine will NOT concentrate and he will start to become dehydrated. She then delivered the words NO parent ever wants to hear. "I have to tell you that one of the most common causes of this DX is a tumor in the pituitary gland." (For those of you who are unaware...the pituitary gland is located at the base of the brain.)
I got dizzy, I started to shake, I thought I might vomit, and I WISHED that I had had more than a cup of coffee that morning.
I said OK to her, got off the phone, and IMMEDIATELY called the sitter to see if she could sleep over the night before. She said YES! I also lined up childcare for the next night and day with someone else because the DR had told us that if there was a tumor that we would be checking into a hospital in Atlanta THAT NIGHT. Soooo much to do. All the while, we were just talking to Judah matter of factly about what was going to happen the next day. He was worried about the MRI. Even though it was an open machine and I had showed him pics online, he was worried that he wouldn't be able to lie still enough. We kept explaining that they were going to give him medicine to help with that. That seemed to make him MORE nervous.

We went about Monday is a weird state. We bought new bikes for the boys and helmets (at Thomas' request). We went home after we had gotten those and the groceries. Between calling people to pray and talking with Judah and Thomas about what might happen (If we have to go to another hospital for more tests, Thomas you will go here, etc.) I packed bags for us all...just so we could be ready...if THE WORST happened. Judah was asking questions and was nervous. I kept explaining that everything was going to HELP the DR find out what was wrong so that he could feel better. We were also praying for God to heal him and for peace. I knew Judah was going to be OK when he came up to me that afternoon and said this, "Mom if I ask them if I can be awake for the test (he meant the MRI) and they say yes I will be happy; but if they say no, then that will be OK too."
I breathed a sigh of relief after that statement.
I was more worried about the water deprivation test because if he had to wait at home he would get HYSTERICAL. It was more than just a fit. It was a REAL desperation. I was NOT looking forward to that part.
Tues. came way too early for me. I was tired from lack of sleep. Thomas was upset the night before that Judah was allowed to sleep with us but he had to sleep in his own bed. I had also had a really hard time getting Gideon to sleep the night before. So I basically had gotten about 4 hours of sleep. We got ready, fed Judah his Peanut Butter sandwich and went to the hospital. When we got there Michael went to check him in. I went with Judah and they immediately put in the IV line. I was SOOOOO PROUD of how he handled that. The vein kept going back into his hand. They had to stick him at least twice and dig on the second one. Once he moaned, and once he said, "Mama." That was it and he WATCHED the whole thing. I didn't even watch. Amazing. They got his height, weight, urine, BP, oxygen, and led us to him room. Michael was back by then. Judah and I played checkers for about an hour while Michael slept in a chair in the corner. Michael cannot go without sleep. Literally. His body refuses to function. :) Judah wanted to watch TV about 7:00am but there was nothing acceptable on so we went into the play area. He had a great time there. He stayed there for almost 2 hours. They did the tests every hour. About 9:00am the DR was talking to the nurses when I heard her say, "That's not at all what I expected to see." She didn't realize that we were right behind her in the play area and I called out, "I HOPE you're not talking about Judah." She laughed and came over and told me that she was. Everything up to that point was normal. Weird. He wasn't even acting as strange as he had been acting. He was complaining about the no water thing but was nowhere near hysterical about it. We just kept telling him, "You're doing great! You can do it! You're almost there!!" She had told us that after the MRI (which was scheduled for 10:00am) we could feed him and give him water. HOWEVER, since the tests were still coming out normal she wanted to go longer but we could feed him after the MRI. I asked here if the CBC (cell blood count) showed anything. She asked the nurse and the nurse told her that the blood had clotted before they could test it. DR laughed and wondered allowed WHEN they were going to tell her that. I laughed with her and said, "I'll bet they weren't going to tell you." About that time the lab person came up to re stick Judah. I turned to DR and said, "they were just going to re stick him without telling you." We shared a grin (I working in the health care field as a receptionist before having my kids. I know things that go on behind the scenes. I found it amusing as did the DR.) DR told Michael to go tell the lab to wait. She said that she might want more blood later and they could draw it then. Michael told the lab tech...she wasn't really happy about it. :):):) DR and I talked a little more. She asked why Judah seemed to be acting normal for the first time in weeks (she was watching him play). I told her that I was asking myself the SAME question. I laughed and said, "Maybe God healed him on the way over." She replied, "It's entirely possible." (I LOOOOVE THAT DR!! So awesome to have a believer for a DR who not only acknowledges that God heals through DRS but that He also heals miraculously.) Soon after that, she left to go see her other patients.
Around 10:00am I was wondering where the sedatives were for Judah. I asked the nurse who had just gotten off the phone and said that the MRI guy didn't have Judah on his schedule. I informed her that he did Sunday because I had called the hospital to confirm the time. :)
They eventually found him- paperwork issue- and they administered the sedatives orally. The real problems began here.

Judah was wheeled down to the MRI in a wagon which he LOVED. When we got there he was COMPLETELY awake. It didn't seem to be affecting him AT ALL. They tried to get him positioned for the MRI. He was cooperative but VERY VERY thirsty and with no toys to distract him just could not lay still enough. He tried. We sang to him, told him stories, held his hands, rubbed his legs...no deal. They stopped after about 5 minutes. The tech told us that if we could get him sedated enough later that he could put off another patient and work him in. Apparently 6 year olds are hardly EVER good candidates for an MRI where you have to lay COMPLETELY still for 1 hour.

We took him back upstairs where they gave him more sedatives. I went out to call the babysitter and let her know what was up. She said that the kids (ours and her little girl) were playing VERY well together and that there were no probs. I was greatly relieved and she also said that she could stay as long as we needed her too. :) Yeah!

I got some coffee. It was now about 11:00am.

Back up in the room things were getting interesting. Judah was loopy from the double dose of sedative. He WOULD NOT fall asleep. It wired him up. He would laugh hysterically and they start crying. He would say silly things. He had to be physically restrained by me and Michael because he kept trying to jump out of bed to go and take the test but he couldn't walk or even stand. We had to hold him up to pee. We had to hold him while they got his weight. (That was funny. I couldn't BELIEVE they INSISTED on getting his weight when he could not sit or stand without assistance. Like it was really going to be accurate that way.-heehee) We tried to rock him to sleep, read him to sleep, sing him to sleep, pray him to sleep, etc. No GO. We tried letting him watch TV. He was watching the Teletubbies and said, Mom they counted 4 but I see 6. I laughed out loud. It was just too funny. He was aware enough to know what was going on but NOT aware enough to make much sense. :):):)

An hour later the meds wore off. -Hehe We told them they could put him under. We didn't want to have to come back another day. By this time he had gone about 9 hours without food or drink and had been up since about 3:30 in the morning. I WANTED TO GO TO SLEEP. Michael did too. In fact, earlier, when they were putting Judah under the MRI Michael commented, "I wish someone would give me drugs and let me lay down!" heehee :):):)

The lab tech came up about this time to do the re stick for the flubbed CBC. We told her to wait till the DR okayed it and/or ordered the other tests she wanted. The lady looked confused and told me, "I've waited as long as I can." I said, "No, the DR said to wait because she may order more. You can call her if you have any questions but this is what I believe she said to us." Michael agreed. The lab tech looked like she was going to argue and I said kindly but firmly, "We are refusing. You may not do it. Please call the DR to confirm. If we're wrong then come back and get it." She left. The nurse in training looked over at me and smiled. I told Michael, "We have a legal right to refuse ANY test we want. They cannot force us even if it doesn't make us very popular." The nurse in training agreed. ;) side note: We would not have refused had the DR not told us to. :)


During this time the DR was on the phone with Anesthesia and thought we had it all worked out and then the bombshell came from the MRI dept. We can't work him in. Too may people this afternoon.

WHAT!!

The Dr asked Michael and I what we wanted to do. She said she could call MRI and play the DR card or we could just come back tomorrow. By this time Judah was DESPERATELY asking often for food and water. We decided to let them feed him and just come back in the morning. We were all exhausted and even if they were to work him in he would have to go about another 4 hours with nothing to eat or drink and I didn't think he could handle that.

We told him,"Good news! You can eat now!" He was happy and excited until I told him we had to come back in the morning.

He REFUSED to eat. He had been a little over 9 hours with NOTHING for which he was awake the entire time. He said, "NO! We've been here for HOURS! I want to do it NOW!" I was amazed. The pizza was sitting 4 inches from his face. The water was on the edge of his tray and he wanted to gut it out! I was REALLY proud of his perseverance. I told him that he would have to wait another 4 hours till they could work him in and he said, "No, I want to do it NOW." I told him it wasn't possible and he said that he didn't like any of the choices. I told him that I didn't either. :):)

I went back to the nurses station where we got the DR on the phone. I explained to her what Judah wanted (keep in mind that Judah is 6). I also asked her if we could just change it to a CAT scan. You only have to hold still for 5 minutes with that test. I knew he could make himself do that without drugs. She said she would check. She called back and said that they could do the CAT RIGHT NOW!!! YEAH! We took Judah down and it was done right then. He still moved a tiny bit because he kept looking for us. I had to constantly remind him the entire time to look at the ceiling and watch the machine. He really did the best he could. We went back to the room where he was given his food. He ate normally and the strange thing was...he hardly drank anything...hmmmm...

I will pause here to say that the CAT scan was not NEARLY as hard on me as the MRI was. There was just something about seeing him in the MRI with the face mask on, with the laser pinpointing where to shoot the pic, that FREAKED me out inside. In all my time as a mother- NEVER have I felt SO HELPLESS. NEVER. I just had to lean on God and pray and pray and pray.

I went downstairs while he was eating to make a few phone calls to the prayer warriors. Thomas meanwhile was starting to have a bit of a hard time at home.

I got back up to the room and Michael said, "The CAT scan was clean." I almost didn't believe him. I had so psyched myself up to hear the worst (so I wouldn't freak out) that I couldn't believe this nightmare was almost over. I was also VERY VERY relieved. We hugged. Judah ate and then they came to remove the IV line.

We went to the bank, and picked up dinner. Then we went home. The DR had said that she would review the lab work and call us the next day.

The good news was- NO TUMOR, normal lab work
The Bad news was- Now what????

Thomas had thrown a fit before we came home. He gets very emotional and then doesn't always do the right thing with his emotions. We corrected him for his behaviour and then talked about praying and giving Jesus our feelings and not listening to what our feelings are telling us to do if it's inappropriate behavior. Gid was VERY happy to see us. We were WIPED out. We went to bed early.

Yesterday, Judah woke up, consumed normal amounts or water, urinated normal number or times, had normal energy, etc, etc, etc.

We're going with- Jesus healed his body from whatever it was.
If it was a psycosymatic thing then obviously during the deprivation he realized that he COULD go without it. He could do it. He was strong. Jesus could give him peace. :)

Today- normal. He has asked me to pray for him a few times and he was REALLY nervous when he hit his head. He doesn't want things to start all over again. He associates head pain with all that happened the last few weeks. Please pray for continued healing, NO fear, and perfect peace. Pray against fear and for peace for me also. Every time I heard the computer or another machine yesterday I had a flashback to the MRI room and my stomach would clench. I almost threw up last night. This is semi-normal for me. I am GREAT in a crisis. It's afterwards that I have to work through everything. :):)

Pray also for Thomas and Gid. All the emotions and chaos have messed them up a bit. Gid is marathon nursing. Thomas is really struggling with emotions (although that's much better today). We are continuing to have patience and taking everything to the cross and our wonderful compassionate Saviour. (and dealing with the disobedience but that goes without saying)

Thanks for reading this story.

I'm glad that the nightmare is over.

Yesterday I had to hear the DR say one more time that we didn't miss anything. I was worried. Today I'm much calmer. I'm more confident in Jehovah Rafah. He is God our Healer. He is a wonderful, Saving God. We honor Him and would have worshipped Him regardless of the outcome. Still, we are HAPPY that we are celebrating today!!

Blessings!- Angela :)