Friday evening (during the festivities of Mercy's family birthday party...pictures forthcoming!) L brought to our attention tiny red dots(called petechiae) all over his extremities. He also showed me an area on his elbow that looked like a large 'raspberry' spot where a bandaid had been. I was a bit concerned and was able to get into see the doctor with him Saturday morning. Our wonderful pediatrician who is usually very laid back and a non- alarmist made it clear that we were to go to CHOP ER some time today. He told me he was very concerned that L had some sort of a platelet disorder. Needless to say, hearing this from a man who never orders tests unless they are absolutely necessary raised some major concerns for M and me. I quietly packed a bag anticipating a possible admission due to our pediatrician's obvious worries. We got the other kiddos situated at friends' homes while L obliviously played on the computer ( a treat!). By the time he realized his siblings had left, I was home again and we were ready to leave for the hospital. Our little guy was not at all happy about this news and in fact was quite angry. He even locked me out of the car! Once we reached the hospital parking garage, he clung to the front seat so that Daddy did not have an easy time extricating him from his carseat! The trauma surrounding his surgery is still quite fresh( 10 days is not enough time to forget!) and he was not a happy camper(an understatement).
Once inside, I was amazed at how quickly we were seen. When we checked in at the front desk, our information was already in the computer because our pediatrician had called ahead. I overheard the nurse using the word 'urgent' when she referred to L. They gave us a beeper that vibrated and then flashed the number of the exam room we were to go to next. They took L's vitals and information there and then we went back to the waiting area to wait for our beeper to vibrate again signaling our move to the treatment area. By this time Mimi and Pop-Pop had arrived and were a welcome diversion and source of support as we were all quite worried about what we might soon learn. Shortly after this we were called back to our room where L was examined by multiple doctors and nurses. They asked lots of questions and needed to take blood to run some tests to rule out some of the biggest concerns: leukemia and meningitis.
A numbing ointment was put on L's arm and then covered with a dressing...they did not actually take the blood for another hour or so and the anticipation of the procedure seemed to be the worst part for L. During the wait, we finally sent for Mimi and Pop-Pop who were still in the waiting room and asked them if they could grab L some food from the McD's that is in the hospital. Our little guy was actually hungry and requesting food so, we were only happy to oblige. Only problem is, the nurse and attending doctor needed to get the approval of the head doctor before the okay was given for him to eat (just in case other tests needed to be run). Finally after quite some time passed, all were in agreement that L could eat...he was a bit miffed by this point and decided he didn't want food now but we saw him sneaking some fries when he thought we weren't looking. I was actually quite comforted by his ornery spirit...just like normal :)
The bloodwork was somewhat traumatic for L as 2 nurses had him restrained on the bed. I was in his face talking to him, attempting to get his attention away from the arm they were working on, and Daddy was facing the nurses as they did the procedure.They actually kept the catheter taped in his arm just in case it would later be needed and they removed it only moments before discharge a few hours later. I don't think it was too painful -just very scary for our little man. We needed to keep assuring him that he was not going to be away from us at any time . He was remembering when they took him away from us for the surgery and needed much reassurance that this time was different. (I don't blame him!!) The results from the labwork came back very quickly. We were all so relieved and overjoyed to learn that all of L's bloodwork came back completely normal!! So, now they had thankfully ruled out the major life threatening illnesses and they all seemed to think he has a condition called HSP (Henoch-Schonlein Purpura-for all you medical people). Initially I had wrongly assumed this was a life long chronic disease and in light of the other possibilities, I was just fine with that. Another doctor came in and explained it still further...this actually is a condition that will eventually( over the course of a few weeks) run its course and completely resolve with most likely no intervention whatsoever. Wow, talk about the gamut of emotions!! I think we were all bracing ourselves for the worst and now we had been given the best possible scenario!!! Basically there is no known cause for this although it is believed to be triggered by bacterial or viral infections. It causes inflammation in the blood vessels (causing the pink dots all over his extremities) and can have a few complications such as inflammation of the kidneys and intestines. We are praying he will not have any of these --I think he has had enough excitement for a while- we all have! So far, his kidneys seem to be fine but we will need to follow up with our pediatrician this week for urine tests and blood pressure checks.
We were released by 9pm and all the little kiddos were in bed by 10 pm :) Mama K had the 3 littles for the latter part of the day (Mrs. Di had them earlier) and she even fixed up Mercy's hair which was in the process of being undone. What a gift this was to me as I was imagining the rush Sunday morning to get her hair done before church. Thank you, K!!! Mrs Di provided a hearty soup meal for Sunday... how blessed we are to be surrounded by such loving friends and family who seem to know our needs before we do!
Sunday in church all of the songs as usual were so rich in doctrine, pointing our hearts to the cross and God's great gift of salvation. My heart was in a very reflective posture as I was overwhelmed by the mercy of God on behalf of our son.... and yet I was challenged in my thinking.Yes, God was overwhelmingly gracious to us in this specific situation but the truth is, regardless of my circumstances, His grace remains overwhelming. His goodness, wisdom, love, faithfulness , kindness, and grace are unchangeable because these qualities embody who He is. He is unchanging-the same yesterday, today and forever. Even if we were sitting in a hospital room with our precious little boy dealing with the news of a grim diagnosis, these truths would still remain. God is good all the time, all the time He is good. I am not belittling the stark difficulties of dealing with illness in children and my heart aches afresh for parents currently in these circumstances... Often I don't understand His workings but I can trust Him no matter what~ because of who He is. I am so incredibly grateful that we were not given this test to walk through-I can only imagine the temptations my heart would face in the midst of such a trial. I am so aware of my own weakness and the tendency of my heart to drift ... I can only trust that he would hem me in and make these truths resound abundantly in my very core.
This song brings my heart such comfort...
Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me
Rock of Ages, cleft for me
Let me hide myself in Thee
Let the water and the blood
From Thy wounded side which flowed
Be of sin the double cure
Save from wrath and make me pure
Nothing in my hands I bring
Simply to the cross I cling
Naked, come to Thee for dress
Helpless, look to Thee for grace
To thy fountain, Lord, I fly
Wash me Savior or I die
It is so true...I am helpless and have nothing to offer. All I can do is cling to Him...
Yesterday afternoon I took the 2 little boys with me on a 'Walmart run' Once again, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the 'normalcy ' of it all. My heart was full as I listened to to these 2 bantering behind me in their carseats...I even enjoyed their "Energizer Bunny" activity level as I attempted to shop...it's amazing what an experience like this can do to perspective!! Lord, thank you that my little boys are well enough to ask to be taken in and out of the shopping cart every other aisle... thank you that they are well enough to be feisty with each other....thank you that they are healthy enough to come out to a crowded store...as you can see, my heart is full of gratitude for His sparing us this trial!!
With a grateful heart,
MamaB
Of course, I had my camera stashed in the bag...pictures of this emotion filled day will remind us yet again of His unfailing faithfulness.
Nope I'm not gonna eat, and I'm not gonna let you see me smile!!
Daddy was determined to 'get his money's worth' out of these luxury accommodations.L graciously shared his space...and it only took about an hour for us to finally figure out how to raise up the head of the bed! We kept teasing L reminding him to pull his 'skirt' down. He thought the walk down the hall to the potty was a bit breezy!
Silly Boy wearing Pop Pop's specs.Thankfully, I threw this book into my bag as I was getting things together before we left. I had purchased this before L's surgery 'just in case' he needed some extra fun during his recovery. Since he was doing fine, I planned to give it to him for Christmas...so glad I remembered this was in the bottom of my closet. It helped pass the time and was a great diversion.
Thumbs up from Mimi- we're homeward bound!!!...Here is our little trouper enjoying a chocolate shake in the hospital right after discharge. Pop-pop was great entertainment for our little man ....thanks for being there, Mimi and Pop-Pop :)
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