Our Journey thru JDM and Life!: Happy New Year

Timeline from first symptom to diagnosis

Our son Connor was diagnosed with JDM in January of 2010 and here is a bit of a timeline to show you how this diagnosis was reached...

Towards the end of November 2009, Connor mentioned some pain in his right foot. We found a Plantar Wart and began treating it. We went on vacation in Germany were he mentioned a pain in his knee's, to feeling in his own words, pain 'inside his legs'. By the time we got home on December 9, he needed to be carried almost everywhere. By the end of December he was unable to feed himself, dress himself, sit up or down, lay down and of course walk. Here is a list of tests he went through between December 10 to December 28, 2009

X-ray of his Hips

MRI of his spine

X-ray of his chest

CAT Scan of his brain

CAT Scan of his chest

MRI of his chest

MRI of his hips

Numerous Blood Work

Spinal Tap

and we finished with a Muscle Biopsy

There were many speculations of what might be causing Connor so much pain and one of them was Gullian Barre Syndrom (GBS) due to his first symptoms showing up within a few days of his H1N1 Flu Shot.

The final Diagnosis came on January 11, 2010

-Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM)-

Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year - Frohes Neues Jahr!

Wishing for a year of Adventure, Peace, Happiness, Health and Hope to all of you.

I posted earlier this month that I am glad to see 2010 leave but as challenging as it was, I also know it could have been worse so I am holding my breath in a way to see what 2011 has in store for us.

Sure I am hopeful but I won't ignore what I learned this past year, and that is the knowledge that life can change in a heartbeat and you can get happy or bad news without you having any control over it. So my step into 2011 will be one of caution and taking one day at a time. This is something I can manage and also something that brings me peace......

All the best to You, and PLEASE know you all have been a vital part in our life and I love and cherish our family and friends so much. This is what I tell the boys when they ask me if we are poor or rich ... we are extremely rich because we have the best family and friends in the world. We might be all a bit crazy but that's what makes this ride so much fun and keeps it from getting boring.

Love You!

R A C A