The Saga Continues

This year has brought the most medical illnesses, Dr. visits, prescriptions filled and lingering health questions that our family has ever experienced. All five of us are on some form of medication. I feel as if I fill a prescription at CVS every other day. In fact, just today, I learned that hubby had contacted his doctor to explain that his new medicine was causing him to be unable to sleep for more than an hour the past three evenings (I didn't even know he had begun taking it). The doctor has given him yet another prescription for me to fill.

ES's stomach ailments continue to perplex us. When he began to experience unusual side effects to the Reglan, I called his GI to explain what we observed (as the prescription notes instructed to do). This doctor suggested we take him to a psychiatrist. Yes, these problems are getting him down, but the issue isn't primarily psychological, it is physical. The doctor called in another prescription for Erythromyacin (which I filled, but hubby refused to start ES on until school lets out tomorrow, because the pills are gigantic and side effects may cause further nausea - wasn't that what we are trying to combat in the first place?!).

In the meantime, with his weight loss continuing and his intense determination to participate in his school's wrestling season, I decided to call the primary physician again and ask for a referral for a second opinion. The first GI was going to wait until the end of January to give another colonoscopy. Another friend has asked the question, "How can the GI rule out Crohn's if he indicates that there is inflammation within the intestines and at the entrance to the stomach? Crohn's, by definition, is inflammation occurring anywhere from the mouth, down through to the anus." I hadn't realized this and since I wasn't at the colonoscopy, I'm not really sure how they "ruled out" Crohn's disease.

Thankfully, our primary physician is also gravely concerned about the extensive weight loss and has referred us to the GI specialists at Riley Children's Hospital (our second specialist there, since we already take YS to see an outstanding pulmonologist at Riley). They have taken down his history and are securing file information from the other doctors who have seen ES and will be letting us know where that places him on their schedule.

In the meantime, we have been battling the flu. Yah-rah! We missed a family portrait session scheduled for last Saturday because YS was ill. I rescheduled for tomorrow evening. Since I rescheduled, MS had a brief episode Monday night, which rendered him unable to attend preschool on Tuesday. I came down with it on Tuesday. Hubby, with his loss of sleep had it last night into this morning. Unbelievably, just before bed, MS threw up again. I'm hoping it is just a last little flare-up (Please Lord, may I not be up all night fulfilling that undesirable parenting role!). Tomorrow morning, I will be calling Olan Mills to cancel (why bother rescheduling when the next few weeks look pretty full already - regardless of which illnesses choose to linger).

All I can say is, literally, our cup runneth over. Somebody grab a towel!