In Sickness & Health

With a family of 8, we knew we would experience our share of sickness but I have to say I wasn't expecting everything we have experienced.  Let me say that things could always be worse.  I am very thankful for the health of my family.

The first year we were married we got broke in real quick.  Five of the six kids got the Swine-flu.  Oh my word, reality set in fast.  Sean was the first to get sick.  We got all the other kids out of the house and to grandparent’s house.  We had him downstairs in the den with everything he could possibly want.  He had movies, drinks, snacks, and a walkie talkie (to communicate with us).  We had mask and when it was time for medicine would come down and take care of him, scrub up, and go again.  After the third child got added to the infirmary we decided the germs were in our house and there was no use trying to keep it in one area.  Not long after, two more kids came down with it.  The medicine schedules were crazy.  I had charts and schedules to keep track.  We survived and I remember telling Rob, if we can make it through this we can get through anything.  Well those words came back to bite me. 

In the next few years, we experienced Kaitlyn breaking her arm, re-injured it inside the cast, and breaking her toe.  Cole broke his arm on Sean's skateboard.  Sean got Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Michael getting stitches in his knee.  Sean getting a metal splinter embedded in his eye, Rob hurting his back, Cooper & Kaitlyn having their tonsils removed, Cooper getting tubes, Sean hurting his ankle in soccer,  Rob getting stitches, Rob falling down the stairs and broke his ankle,  There were many rashes and other fun illnesses. I promise I really do watch after them. 




In May of 2011, Michael was diagnosed with Asperger's Disease.  Asperger's is a form of Autism.  Michael is very high functioning but this diagnosis made so much sense with Michael.  We had always known Michael was different and had his quirks.  It now all made sense to us.  I couldn't read enough.  I needed to know all about Asperger's and I needed to know how we could make things easier for him at home and at school.  Having a child with Asperger's can be difficult and challenging.  We quickly learned that it wasn't Michael that would change, it would be the way we handled things with Michael.  This took a lot of effort and patience.  I have to say Michael is so much better with his fears and routines.  We have changed a lot but also work to make sure he knows things are not always black and white.  Michael is an amazing kid.  He is loving, smart, responsible, and I can't imagine our family without him and his quirks.     

In January of 2012, Sean was diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome.  He had been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD many years before but the tics (involuntary body movements) were something new.  I really thought it was just a reaction or side effect to his medicine.  Sean's tics are something that we struggle to help control.  He is amazing with dealing with these.  I know, without a doubt, that I would not handle the tics as well as he does.

In February of 2012, Kaitlyn was hospitalized for severe stomach pain.  After many days and nights of constant crying in pain, and many trips to the ER and doctors offices we finally got in to OU Children's Hospital.  This has been a huge journey for our family.  Dealing with a child that has chronic pain and no real answers is very hard. Kait and I are in Oklahoma City as many as 5-6 times a month for doctor's appointments.  She was put on a trial study in June of 2012 that required us to be there every week for several months.  The trial was Oxycodone in a time release form.  There was not a drug that was time released for children on the market.  This pill along with many others seemed to help.  We were very lucky and got the trial extended and then the doctors filed a case report for her allowing her to continue to stay on the medication.  I would like to say that all is better but unfortunately it is not.  We continue to fight the pain.  Kait is very good about handling everything.  She doesn't even complain for weekly IV's and all the appointments.  She is a real trooper.  She has missed out on many of the regular things a 12 year old should be getting to do. She missed most of the last three months of school this year.  She is on very strong medicine that they continue to adjust to try to ease her pain.  All I can say is we are not stopping until we get answers. 

In May of 2012, I got diagnosed with Mono.  At first I thought I better allow time for a nap during the day.  Taking care of sick kids is hard on you.  I don't know if I picked up the bug at the hospital when we were there for appointments or if my immune system was just weak.  I had no idea mono would be so hard on me. I have a muscle disorder that has not bothered me much at all since I had children.  But for some reason the mono and my muscle disorder fought each other and it took forever for me to get well.  I was in bed for 78 days but the next year was very hard.  It has been a year and I am almost back to normal.  I still get tired easy and I can't climb our stairs without stopping to rest. 

This year four of the kids have had Fifth's disease and Cooper punctured his ear drum jumping off the diving board. It’s only June and I am praying for an uneventful rest of the year. 

None of this has been easy and it all seemed to hit us at once.  Most days I handle everything okay.  There are other days I just cry.  I can't fix them, I can't make life easier for them, I can't make kids be nice, and all of that is hard.  As a mom I want to make everything ok.