Finally... some GOOD news!

I went to my opthalmalogist appointment yesterday and even though the office experience wasn't good - the outcome was. (Thank you all for your prayers, and thank you Lord!) I'll spare you the details of the 2 1/2 hour visit where I spent a total of maybe 10 minutes with the doctor.

He told me that I DO NOT have papilledema - what I have is "Optic Nerve Drusen" Drusen are little white protein deposits on the optic nerve. This condition is often hereditary, so it's possible that my parents or my kids may even have it. There is no known cause or cure. Namely, this condition doesn't cause any real problems, though it is often mistaken for papilledema (which is a far more serious condition)When I go for my regular eye doctor visits and he does visual fields testing, they will be a little wacky because of the drusen. Apparently, over time the drusen can get larger, and eventually may cause some peripheral vision loss, but not central vision loss. So... thankfully, my vision should not be affected much by this condition. In very rare cases, optic nerve drusen can interfere with blood flow in the eye and cause bleeding, but I'm not too worried about that since the doc said not to be. The exciting thing about this diagnosis is that I do not have to have a spinal tap, I don't have any tumors, I don't have MS - I just have an eye condition that has no known cause, can't be prevented or cured, but shouldn't cause me too many problems.

From here we are going to monitor in 3 months and make sure there's no change and then just keep an eye on it. The doctor said if there is change that he would probably give me some eye drops to take. Since there is no cure for optic nerve drusen, he said he feels like he should do "something" if my condition worsens - and he would treat it like glaucoma to hopefully keep the condition from advancing - but there is no known treatment. I can live with that. Finally.... I know what's going on with me and I'm relieved. Now... let's get Luke's broken leg healed and we're in business! :) Thanks again for your prayers, I know God is honoring them. The outcome of my "issue" is proof! God is so amazing.

Update on Luke:
His appointment went well, the dressings were removed and the incisions look "good" (according to the surgeon) - I think seeing metal staples in human flesh is a bit oogy... but that's just me. The doc says that even though the bones really haven't begun to mend themselves back together yet, not to worry cuz it's only been 10 or so days, and this will likely take about 6 weeks. He said that the bones are staying straight with the rod and that's a good thing. Overall, the surgeon was very pleased and will see him back on the 19th to remove staples. No more saran wrap showers, woo hoo!! :) Luke is getting around well with the crutches and getting antsy already to get rid of them - but no weight bearing until about Christmas, and no driving until MAYBE after Thanksgiving sometime. He said we'll have to see how he's doing and then decide when he's ready to be in a car for 3 hours with his leg not elevated. Overall - things are ok and each day improving just the tiniest bit. We'll take whatever progress we can get! :)

I'm the Ringmaster (another long one)

Hey! So we're home and it's like a 3 ring circus here. :)

Ring 1:
Luke was discharged from Hays Medical Center on Monday evening at about 6 p.m. - I can't even tell you how ready we both were to get out of there! He is doing alright, they didn't cast his leg, but he has what's called a "cam boot" and he needs to be wearing this when he walks with his crutches, which he's doing pretty well with.The really fun thing is wrapping that whole contraption in saran wrap and then duct taping a trash bag over the whole thing for a shower. UGH! Talk about a chore. When he's not wearing the cam boot he is trying to keep ice on it to help with swelling. He's on Percaset for pain and alternating that with Ibuprofen trying to get the swelling down in his leg and foot. The swelling does seem to be going down, thankfully - but the staples in his knee are really starting to hurt. We go in on Monday the 12th to see what the surgeon has to say about his progress. We were told not to remove the dressing. I did remove the ace wrap last nite and everything looks pretty good so far. He is beginning to take care of some work-related things. Phone and computer stuff. You know what they say, "you can't keep a good man down". I follow him from room to room with pillows and a basket of "essentials" Cell phone, medicine, etc. He has been mostly taking it easy, but that's getting old for him quick and he's wanting to accomplish something. We did hear from Home depot today and they are claiming that since Luke's accident wasn't their fault, there is no liability on their part. I think I will do a little bit more investigating because I find it hard to believe that a company that size wouldn't make sure that their customers were protected. So please pray in that regard if you will. The bills will be rolling in soon and we do have 90/10 coverage through our medical, but 10% of several thousands of dollars is still going to be rough on our family. Thanks in advance!!

Ring 2:
Me and my papiledema. I finally made it to the neurologist for a visit and what I DO know is that my problem is not brain related. Thankfully!! Also the cyst on the brain is not active, so that's good news. The neurologist did say that he wasn't sure, but thought he may have seen "Drusen" which is an eye condition that is deposits on the optic nerve discs. Apparently this condition and papiledema are closely related, so we're not really sure exactly what I have - which is why I'm going to the opthalmologist on Monday. I guess it's treatable which is encouraging. We are now trying to rule out pseudo tumor cerebri. The neurologist said that based on my symptoms he's not sure that I have that. (it's a condition that "acts" like a tumor but can be treated with medication or by decreasing the spinal fluid to relieve the pressure. (sigh) None of this sounds fun. First things first, I'm headed for the opthalmology appt. on Monday the 12th. (same day as Luke's check up visit... may as well have all the fun on the same day!) :) I'll keep ya posted. If this next appointment is not conclusive, they're talking about a spinal tap to which I am adamately opposed, but I guess you do whatever you gotta do. I'm just ready for this drama to be over. I really feel fine except for being exhausted from everything else that's going on.

Ring 3:
The house/the kids/and my business. This is the busiest time of year for Jinny Crickets with Christmas Sales rising. I normally love this, but it's been quite a challenge to get things done with all the commotion around the house, doctor appointments and kids' activities. This gets interesting at times. Everyone wonders what happened to all the washcloths or why they don't have clean socks when I realize that, "wow, I guess I need to do laundry". There's just too much going on. Tina is in the Junior class play which is tonite (Saturday). I'll be glad when that's done, since it's been about 6 extra trips to Ellis a week dropping off and picking up for play practice. Brandon is also doing Tae Kwon Do 2 days a week, which is good for him, but it's still a lot of driving. That's the disadvantage of living 10 miles one way from everything, we spend a lot of time in the car, not to mention gas money. Don't even get me started... gas here is now $3.05/gallon. UGH!! Makes me angry. Ciara does help me transport the other kids though sometimes, and that's a huge help. Saturday is our catch up day for getting house work done and laundry caught up. I'm so glad to have the kids here to lend a hand with that. I had to scurry this morning to get it all done since I need to head into Hays around 12:30 to represent the Jinny Crickets product line at my new retailer in Hays. It'll be fun, but I hate being away from home for 3 hours with Luke home and needing help. Some evenings as I'm getting ready for bed I realize that I never made it to work that day because there were just too many other things going on. Oh well. Right now I'm just focusing on the things that are screaming the loudest for my attention and that I know are most important and that's my husband and family. So please, if you're already praying, here's the need - FAST healing for Luke and energy and strength for the two of us to endure this time of healing - just that things would settle down a little bit here, as it can get a little tense at times, but we're doin' ok. We're not alone and we've got lots of family support. Thanks again for your prayers, that's really what helps the most. Love you all!! Jami