May...Elaine

This month has been very crazy..and scary. First of all, Elaine started to complain about her ankles. I thought it was growing pains since she has grown 3 inches in about 2 months. She is now 5.1. Only 6 inches shorter than me! When her pain continued and she began to limp I started to get concerned. One morning her pain was so unbearable she could not walk and both her ankles were swollen. I ran her to Urgent Care and they informed me that it was Implantar Fascists. (This is when your ligaments are stretched when you grow) They put her in special "shoes" and on crutches and told me to see a podiatrist. The next day we went to the podiatrist who took x-rays of her feet and did an exam. After the exam he said that it is not IF but Arthritis. We immediately had blood drawn and waiting for the lab results. The following week we received a phone call from the Dr. and he said that it was not Arthritis but Leukemia. Since most of my family has had cancer and my mom was going to have her Kidney removed that week from Kidney Cancer I was a wreck. The Dr. immediately had us see our Pediatrician the next day. Elaine had more blood work done and the results were different. So we had to wait another week to have more blood work drawn. In the meantime I got in touch with a friend of mine from High School who has a son with Brain Cancer. Their Dr. called me last Friday and I went over all the lab results via phone with him and he said not to worry and that one more blood test should let us know what is actually going on. We did the blood work and it was reviewed by the local Oncologist here in El Paso and he said that we are in the clear for Leukemia but not for Juvenile Arthritis. Since El Paso does not have a Rheumatoid Dr. here we will have to wait until July to see one. A specialist flies into here one day a month and he only sees 3 new patients a month. Which is why we have to wait until July. UGHH what a mess! Elaine continues to have her good days and her bad days with her ankles. Some days she can walk with a slight limp which is becoming her norm and other days she should be back on crutches but she hates them so she just cries when she gets home from school. It is heart breaking not knowing what is wrong with your child and seeing her in so much pain. This is a picture of her Only 6 months ago ...what a difference. From being a carefree child who could jump and run to one that can barely walk. Keep her in your prayers!