Thursday, August 13, 2015

The Long and Winding Road

Every time I took my son in to the doctors, I would pretend that it was just a regular checkup, but  I knew that eventually, his blood work would probably come back with an elevated liver panel. In April he had his physical and we got that news. Needless to say, these last few months have been pretty tough for me. It is so different when it is your child. Today was his first appointment at the Children's Hospital. He was a little nervous, until I assured him that his "nuts" would not be touched. He was also a little concerned when he heard that he will need to have an ultrasound, because it sounded like it would make his ears bleed. "That's a little dramatic," the doctor said... That's my kid. Everything she went over, I pretty much already knew. He is not having symptoms. No jaundice, no edema, no chronic nausea, but I was so relieved to hear that his liver and spleen are not inflamed. When the doctor asked him if he gets nauseous, he said, not really, but sometimes he feels like he has to hiccup, and instead it turns into a burp that he feels from his chest to his ears. "It doesn't hurt, but it feels really weird. What's that from?" Lord, Jesus... "Probably gas," she said. Haha... story of my life. He handles everything like a champ. Which is good, because when it comes to him, I am a nervous wreck. I don't want him to go through anything I had to, and it doesn't look like he is going to have to. He has another appointment where they are going to discuss treatment options. There is no way I will put him through the Interferon treatment, but there are clinical trials going on that we may be able to get him on. I do want him to treat now, before he gets older and there is a possibility of damage.
I also have a few procedures coming up... an EGD, colonoscopy, and gastric emptying test next week. That's going to be fun. Especially since I am not having anesthesia, because I don't want to pay an extra $300. My liver is great, unfortunately, my tummy is still having some issues. Most mornings I have been pretty sick again, but I can't really complain because I am still 100 times better than I was when I had Hepatitis C. This has been one really long journey, but if we can just get River cured, and maybe my gastroparesis under control, I will be one happy camper, maybe even anxiety/depression free. Maybe...