Update on Rachel


We are still waiting for one last test to come back for Rachel from the immune deficiency clinic. There is only one test pending; however, it is the one that we need to compare with the other tests. So we continue to wait.


We have found a natural product that is supposed to help with the immune system. (We have tried a lot of them!) This one has seemed to help! She did come down with a virus last week; and that has made this week a bit of a yucky week; but we do seem to have more energy than 3 weeks ago. We continue to try to do our best to build up her immune system and to get into her body optimal nutrition. She is taking a liquid supplement that contains all the vitamins, minerals and enzymes the body needs. (She says it does not taste too bad - looks like it does, though.) LOL. She also is taking pretty good doses of vitamin B - as her thyroid has shown some weakness in some of the natural screening we had done. We have her on omega 3-6 to help with the overall inflammation in the body.


On the pain management scale, she still has quite a bit of pain. They believe that this is related to the guillian-barre syndrome from this summer. The GBS affects the nerves and this still seems to be an issue. She takes quite a bit of prescription pain meds - both for nerve pain and muscle pain. We have been able to pull her back a bit from some of this and not have her in so much pain that she is not able to move. We want to see her off all the meds asap; but we also need her to have mobility in order to get her better. Another fine line we are walking. UG.


She has been doing her physical therapy exercises and also able to go for walks to get the fresh air. She is usually tired and sore after a walk around the block; but we keep doing it. We have had to discontinue her regular PT session at the clinic because she continued getting sick every time that she went in.


The sore is back on her lip. She is scheduled for a biopsy on her lip on Monday morning. They want to determine exactly what we are dealing with there. The great thing is that they have ruled out bacterial infection ( like MRSA). That is great to know. Her throat is very sore most of the time, and the cultures keep coming back as strep. We have an appointment with an ENT in a couple of weeks to discuss a tonsillectomy. Not our first choice, but at the same time there does seem to be some issues coming up due to her throat and swollen tonsils. We have a great ENT that has done a good job with all of Zak's ear,nose, and throat issues.


Well, that is about it on an update for Rachel. Thanks for all your prayers. On a personal note, it has been so much easier balancing all of this without having the hours of driving in the van each day. I am enjoying very much having them home!


Thanks for stopping by - I am so glad you did.

Blessings,

~Martie

5 comments:

Truly Blessed! said...

I am so sorry to hear all of this! I will be adding your daughter to my prayer journal. Such a beautiful girl she is!


HUGS!

heidi said...

SO GLAD YOU ARE GETTING SOME ANSWERS, HOPE THAT OTHER TEST COMES BACK SOON.
HOPE SHE ISN'T IN TOO MUCH PAIN.
LOVE AND HUGS TO YOU BOTH. HEIDI

Anonymous said...

Hi Martie,
Great to see you last night. I check the blog often and pray for Rachel. I too enjoy having my children home with me!! Say "Hi" to Rachel!!
Tracy

Martha said...

Blessed @ Home,
Thanks for your prayers. God is good - all the time.

Heidi,
Miss you. As always, so good to hear from you.

Tracy,
Thanks for your prayers. It was good to see you last night too! Hope you have a great weekend.

Shirley said...

Martie, God has blessed you with the ability to analyze and act on all this information. I understand this balancing act! Have you looked into Iodine as another treatment for the thyroid issues? A friend of mine has done a lot of research on it and has seen a tremendous improvement in her own health. Check it out at breastcancerchoices.org. Dr.'s say I DON'T have thyroid issues but my symptoms say otherwise and the iodine really helps!! I feel a lot better when I take it faithfully!! I know you are now a research queen for Rachel but I hope this helps in some way.

Praying for you guys!
Shirley