A Day In the Life

When we face the inevitable dark days of life, we must choose how we will respond. Will we allow ourselves to sink even more deeply into our own sadness or will we do that difficult work of pulling ourselves out? We bring light to the dark days of life by turning first to God, and then to trusted family members and friends. Then, we must go to work solving the problems that confront us. When we do, the clouds will eventually part, and the sun will shine once more within us.

Last summer I decided to have Trent's speech evaluated. Dr. Ahn and I talked to great lengths then she gave me the ok to have it done at Children's Healthcare. He went and it was noted that he needed to work on certain sounds but nothing that a few speech exercise couldn't help. On his evaluation sheet it was noted that he had a slight delay in comprehension and a slight articulation delay. Nothing serious but noteworthy nonetheless.

At the beginning of the school year as I met Trent's teacher, Ms. Carrie-Ann Lyons, I felt a sense of calm. There was something about her. I felt that she was going to be exactly what Trent needed in a teacher. Over the course of the year we talked about what we could both do to help Trent succeed at school. He was having difficulties with his work but it wasn't for the lack of trying. That was one thing that we both agreed on. He always gave 100%. I had several meetings with the Student Support Team. They were amazed that I had taken the time to get the evaluation done at Scottish Rite because not many parents take the time to do so. It was decided that Ms. Lyons needed to apprehend several different teaching methods into her daily routine to help Trent. He was having a trouble remembering simple instructions. He is a visual learner. He has to see and do things to understand not just hear it.

Still something inside me kept at me to go further. He needed something more. After several months of contemplating what I needed to do and Internet searching, in February I made an appointment with his pediatrician. During his evaluation she felt that the portion on his brain wasn’t producing enough dopamine, which helps functions with the “concentration” part of the brain. In other words he has Attention-Deficit Disorder (ADD). Not to be confused with (ADHD) We elected to try Metadate CD to see if that would help him. And boy did it~~ Ms. Lyons, Brett and I couldn’t get over how much he had improved over days time. His tests scoring had gone up almost 20 points which is huge. And he was talkative, asked questions and his personality just started to shine. So he has been on this medication for almost 4 months.

On with my story…. Fast forward to last week.

Last Monday CNN released this article regarding children’s medication and of course Brett saw it.
www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/04/21/adhd.drugs.heart.ap/index.html

So at the arguing of my hypochondriac husband I called our pediatrician to ask about Trent getting an EKG. He felt that if that would make us feel better than let’s do it. So I had an appointment made for the EKG done through of my favorite place, Scottish Rite.

Tuesday I picked Trent up from school and took him. So far as a parent I have had a great sense of “feeling” that something isn’t quite right. For instance, with Alyssa. Her (OI) condition was diagnosed on hunches and “feelings”. I pressed on it because I knew that we hadn’t done anything wrong and at the urging of our lawyers we had to keep pressing on. If I had stopped at the first doctors diagnosis that nothing was wrong with Taz, our court appearance could have gotten ugly.

Anyway, Tuesday I was completely blind-sided. So get to the point…..

I hadn’t even gotten home yet when both the cardiologist and our pediatrician called the house.
His EKG showed that he has a heart condition known as Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome.

Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome is a heart rhythm problem (arrhythmia) caused by an extra abnormal electrical pathway in the heart. In a normal heart, electrical impulses travel from the upper chambers (atria) to the lower chambers (ventricles) in an organized, rhythmic pattern through the atrioventricular node — or AV node.

In people with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, there's an extra pathway between the upper and lower chambers of the heart, which allows the electrical signals to bypass the AV node. When electrical signals travel through this abnormal detour, the signals reach the ventricles too early — a condition called preexcitation. Electrical signals can also travel through the AV node and then go back up the extra pathway, which can create a short circuit and lead to fast heart rate (tachycardia).

So please pray for Trent and the treatment that he may have to endure. He is scheduled with a cardiologist from Scottish Rite this Monday @ 10:00 am. Brett and I are in the process of getting our selves, thoughts and questions together to ask him. Many people are questioning whether he can continue to play ball or not. I asked the cardiologist on Tuesday that question. He said we need not to worry about 8 year old baseball. Not a lot of running or activity that we should be concerned about. He can’t be an Olympic Runner or anything of that nature, but baseball should be fine. Of course we will get more information on Monday.

Also, please pray for Trent (and Brett and I) as he comes off the medicine. It is so hard to watch your child regress.

I haven’t been known to preach my thoughts or beliefs on anyone but I must tell you that God does work in mysterious ways. I do feel that God placed Trent in Ms. Lyons class for a purpose. I feel that any other teacher would have brushed Trent aside or overlooked what she saw. She knew that something wasn't right and she pressed the school administrators to help us. I also think that it was no coincidence that I thought he had ADD and was at peace with it. Many parents aren't and ignore the issue. It was no coincidence that Trent was placed on that medicine and it defiantly wasn’t a coincidence that Brett just do happened to come across CNN when that article was on the front page.

For those of you who have children taking any ADD or ADHD medicines, it might just be worth it to have an EKG done. It probably just saved Trent's Life.

The journey through life leads us through many peaks and valleys. When we reach the mountaintops, we find it easy to praise God, to trust Him, to give thanks. But, when we go through the valleys of despair, trusting God is more difficult. The next time you find your courage tested to the limit, lean upon God's promises. When you are worried, anxious, or afraid, call upon Him. Remember that God rules both mountaintops and valleys~ with limitless wisdom and love~ now and forever.

The Lord says, I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.” – Psalm 32:8