It amazes me to think that it has been a year now since our whirlwind began........ Michael's school troubles AND Emma's kidney problems were discovered about this time last year. It was a year of constant worry about both children; worrying if Emma needed surgery or would she need a transplant one day or whether or not she would have to take dialysis. In a few months we will go back for ANOTHER VCUG (scan of the kidneys and bladder). The pediatric nephrologist told us he would make the decision to have surgery after this next scan. The last scan showed no change.... It wasn't getting better, but it wasn't getting any worse either.
It has been a long year for both Michael and for us. Michael was born prematurely and had to be put on ventilators for a while. We are extremely blessed....... Michael was not "SUPPOSED" to go to regular school or be a fully functional child or adult. God had other plans for him, though. Michael has been in the various Special Needs programs since he was a baby.... First through Babies Can't Wait, and then at 3 the Richmond County BOE picked him up but severely reduced the services Michael was getting. At four, they decided that he was only 6 months under his actual age developmentally so they let him go. We put him into preschool and assumed everything was fine.... at the end of the year, the teachers told us they were having some slight problems with him behaviorally, but they thought it was because of the influence of a few of the other children in the class.
Then he went to Kindergarten. Almost from the start, we were told Michael was behind in the class developmentally. I asked for him to be reevaluated by the Special Needs Program...... they NEVER even acknowledged he had been seen in the past and treated him as if he had never been in the system. So I began a long and hard fight with the administrators........ they lost paperwork they claimed I never turned in (I had sent it in 3 times)........ only to discover they didn't have another paper from the teacher........ turned out the school guidance counselor had all of it in her office file the whole time and they wasted nearly three months. Frustrated, my husband and I decided to have Michael tested by a Neurologist. We wanted to test for ANY and EVERY learning disability possible. When he was born, the Doctor's told us that Michael had suffered brain damage from oxygen deprivation. But things had rerouted themselves by the time he was one. We knew that there was a possibility of some problems later on, but we left it to God and was thankful for the fact that we beat lottery odds to have a child born under such bad conditions and still make it through with as little problems as he does. He is a BLESSING and a MIRACLE....... search Google for Complete or Total Abruptions and see what you find and how bad off children usually are if they survive it...... then you will understand.
So we had him tested ourselves by a Neurologist and then began seeing a Child Psychologist. Both have agreed that Michael has ADHD and some other mild problems that can be minimized once the ADHD is treated. Because of his age, we decided a combination of medicine and therapy will help him the most. So he is on the smallest dose possible that is on a time release formula, so he gets a small steady dose all day. We also have the option NOT to give it to him if he doesn't need it for the day (like on the weekends). It is also a medicine that does not last long in the system and has the least # of possible short and long term side effects.
I want to make it clear.... We did not decide to medicate lightly. I could have taken him straight to the pediatrician and got him started on medicine. I wanted to make sure of what we were dealing with. I did NOT want to just "dope him up" so he would be easier to handle. I wanted him not to suffer when it came time for us to do schoolwork.
Michael's been on meds since Monday and we can see such a difference in him! We have noticed that he is still our dear, sweet Michael. He can talk to us more! He can think clearly and tell us what is on his mind without struggling to think of what to say! My baby can talk in clear paragraphs NOW! He also can STILL get excited and act up! But the events that would make us want to pull our hair out with him NOT LISTENING OR MINDING US has gotten a lot milder.... mind you, he still is disobedient sometimes, but now we don't worry so much if we punish him on whether or not he could stop himself.
We will take it day by day. So far, he hasn't had any side effects from the medicines and it has actually IMPROVED his appetite! I think he might even GAIN weight for a change! This is very exciting for us. I hope it continues. So my friends, thanks for reading. Enjoy your families, hug them often and cherish each other.... Life is a blessing; be thankful for it!
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