Update on Appointments

Two weeks ago I had several doctor's appointments.  I had a couple specialist appointments, an appointment with my GP and a couple appointments for my daughter.  It was an exhausting week, and I praise the Lord that He somehow pulled me through.

Although I am seeing one doctor who is convinced I have Lyme Disease, I also wanted to see some other doctors to make sure nothing else is wrong with me.  The appointments I had so far were pretty disappointing.  I seem to have difficulty communicating the seriousness and reality of my symptoms to doctors.  The doctors that I saw listened to me for a few minutes and without any further investigation dismissed me.  The one doctor told me that he believes I do suffer what I say I suffer, but cannot diagnose me or treat me.  The other doctor that I saw was more interested in telling me about his family than listening to my symptoms.  I was hoping for more attention from specialists.  It has been a stressful time for me.  It is hurtful to be ignored when trying to cry out for help to those who are supposed to help you.

The experience with these doctors has made me all the more thankful for the two holistic MD's that I have.  Both of them give me at least an hour of undivided attention when I go in for a consultation.  They are extraordinarily thorough in investigating what the problems may be (i.e. physicals, extensive bloodwork, etc).  They listen with a great deal of concern and compassion.  They have both demonstrated a real desire to help me get better and are distressed when they see me get worse.  God has been very good in leading me to these doctors.

My daughter also had a couple appointments.  There is some concern that she may have a hearing loss.  It is possible that some nerves are damaged, which would prevent her hearing certain frequencies of sound.  This means, she may be unable to hear the beginning of words, or the ends of words.  We are still investigating this, and have several future appointments to diagnose the problem more accurately.  Please pray that God would intervene and give Karalise good hearing.  Please pray that if there is a hearing problem, God would give Sony and I wisdom to know how to teach her.

I have been severely exhausted the last couple weeks.  I have not been able to get as much help at home with Karalise, so that has made things a bit more difficult.  Please be praying that God will give me just enough energy to appropriately care for my daughter, and train her in the way of the Lord.

Update

October has been an incredibly tough month, in more ways than one.  My health started a downward trend at the beginning of October, and has been steadily getting worse and worse.  Much grief has also weighed down my heart, as my dear friend and sister in Christ, Karissa Grandine, was taken to her heavenly home on October 17.  Much of the last couple weeks have been spent trying to grapple with this reality.  Although I rejoice that my friend now sits at the feet of her Saviour, Jesus Christ, and is forever safe from all earthly harm in His most glorious love, I am filled with grief at losing my friend who was so young.  Even more, I am greatly pained by the loss her husband and family members face now.  However, despite these things, God has been tremendously gracious, and has given me much peace and hope.  I mourn, but I do not despair, which is a miracle, as despair would be my typical response.  I praise God for His lovingkindness!

As for my body, it continues to get weaker and weaker.  I have been needing increasing help during the days just to get through normal daily activities.  I am profoundly weak, so that it is difficult to explain it.  I experience not just lack of energy, but a very burdensome and painful weight of fatigue.  The fatigue and lack of energy is aggressively attacking my body.  I have also been experiencing twitching of muscles, which at times overtakes my whole body.  I never knew until now what a terrifying thing it is to lose control of one's own body.  My heart cries for those who suffer from Epilepsy, Parkinson's, Lou Gehrig Disease and other such diseases that attack the neurological system.  I am only presently getting a taste of this, and it freaks me out every time.  It starts with my head, then shoulders, then arms, then legs, etc.  When I have an episode I find it hard to communicate, and am overwhelmed with a flood of tears streaming down my face.  As you can see, I am not very brave or courageous.  Thankfully, I do know that I belong to God, and no matter what happens, my soul will be with Him for eternity.

I am currently seeing many different kinds of doctors.  Next week I have 6 doctor's appointments!!!  I'm exhausted from appointments!  Anyway, please pray that God will give the doctors much wisdom to get to the root of the problem.  Please also pray that the treatments for Lyme Disease will be successful (I still receive them every three weeks).  Please pray that God will provide enough people to give me rides to my doctor's appointments.  Finally, pray for our family that God will sustain us physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially.

Thank you for your love and prayers.