Up & Down

My mom had her doctor's appointment yesterday at Northwestern.  She was low on blood again this week so she had to stay to get a transfusion.  They're not exactly sure why her blood is still fluctuating but this week it held off longer than ever...she hadn't had a transfusion in 3 weeks.  We're still hoping the red cell treatment will work (they said it can take about 6 weeks to take full effect) but they are also talking with mom about alternatives if her levels keep going down.  The next thing they'd try is a pill drug which has some side effects (not sure what they all are yet) but my mom's doctor wants to talk with the head doctor first.  Her other levels (platelets and everything else) seem to be doing fine.  Mom was a bit bummed about her blood level, but the doctor reassured her that there could be WAY worse things to be dealing with at this point and that mom is doing great.

Please continue to pray for her to get healthier and healthier.  We continue to put all of our trust in our God who loves us.

Update

Mom doesn't have an appointment this week but still had her normal blood draw on Monday.  She checked on the results and they were great!  Her red cells are hanging right where they were last week and her platelet count was up again.  Lots to be thankful for :)

We'll continue to praise God for the healing we've witnessed and also for offering each one of us salvation that we can choose to accept.  I pray that you would know your Creator on a deeper level today.

Great Appointment Today

My mom had her weekly appointment today with her doctor at Northwestern.  Last week we were wondering about her platelet level but this week it went back up 10 points!  We were so happy to hear that :)  Her doctor said that the drop could have been caused by the red blood cell treatment she was getting.  Mom's red cell count is hanging in there, too.  It went down a tiny bit from last week but that's still expected at this point and is at a fine level where she doesn't need a transfusion.

Another good thing is that her appointments are now going to be every 2 weeks instead of weekly.  She'll still have her blood taken each week at Ottawa Hospital but she won't need to drive to Chicago as often.

Many blessings to report once again!  No matter what, God is truly in control and we will trust in Him through every step of this journey.  Mary (and all of us) thanks you all so much for your prayers and love.

I heard this song today and thought I'd share...

Platelet Prayers Needed

Mom had her weekly Northwestern appointment today and finished getting her red blood cell treatment. They are pleased with her red cell count since it raised slightly from Monday to today. Hopefully it will continue going in the right direction from now on!

They look at a few different things in my Mom's blood each week, one being her red cell count (I talked about above) and one being her platelet count. Now they're saying that her platelet count has gone down a bit over the past 3 weeks. My Mom's main doctor was out today so we'll have to wait and see what she thinks, but they may order another bone marrow test to be done next week to make sure everything is okay. The doctor's assistant, who met with Mom today, asked another head doctor about this and he said not to order the bone marrow test for now, and this made my Mom feel better. We never like to hear that levels are going in the wrong direction, but there's not much we can figure out when they give us bits of information like this. We just have to trust that they know what to do and that God is in complete control.  Other than that, she has a little bit of a chest cold so they prescribed an antibiotic today to knock it out.

We'll keep you all updated on this. But the good news is Mom is feeling great. She has more and more energy all the time and is doing everything she wants to do.  We had a family celebration party for her this past Saturday. It was a great time and a double celebration for the resurrection of our Savior. We're so thankful for everything God has blessed us with, but most of all for His Son. We hope you had a great Easter weekend celebrating as well!

Please pray for my Mom's platelet count to start going back up and that her good health continues.

Spring

Hi all!  My Mom is still doing great.  She had her 3rd red blood cell treatment yesterday and went back to get a transfusion today.  Everything is checking out fine and we're hoping her red cells catch up soon!

She's been as busy as ever lately.  Yesterday after her appointment she went with Amy and her 3 girls to the zoo in Chicago.  They had a beautiful day to do it!  This weekend her sister and sister in laws are having a celebration party for her along with lots of Easter festivities and Adam, Bre, and the kids in town.  It's going to be a great weekend!