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Showing posts from January, 2023

Appointments and More Appointments

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One of the unfortunate things about cerebral palsy (CP) are the many co-occurring health issues that go along with it. Because of this, those with CP have more doctors, specialists, and other kinds of providers they see on a regular basis. While the CP itself mainly affects the muscles, other areas of the body are affected as well, which results in more medical challenges.  For instance, besides CP, some of other Faith’s health issues include: ·          Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and other digestive issues ·          Scoliosis ·          Bowel and bladder incontinence ·          General anxiety Because of these co-occurring conditions, we have more appointments than the average person. At times, it can all be a bit overwhelming. Faith enjoying a nice fall day On September 23 rd , we ended up in the E...

Faith's First Extended Hospital Stay

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It's hard to believe that Faith is 19 years old and has never had a major illness or extended hospital stay since she was in the NICU. The only other time she had to stay in the hospital was when she had her g-tube placed when she was two years old. That is, until now. And to think it all started with her having a simple outpatient procedure that had nothing to do with the reason she was hospitalized.  Day 1: Thursday - the Procedure  Faith and I got up extremely early as she had to be at the clinic for her outpatient procedure. The procedure was a lumbar puncture in order to do a test dose of medication called baclofen, which would help reduce high muscle tone and spasticity. If the results were good, and it helped her muscles relax, we would have the option (in the future) of inserting a baclofen pump so that she could receive the medication continuously via a catheter in her spine.  I stressed the importance of giving her anti-nausea medication before the procedure be...