Friday, July 20, 2007

I just wanted to clarify something in response to one of the comments posted. The neurologist doesn't believe that Gavin may have had damage to his brain due to the seizures. The seizures were probably a result of damage done to Gavin's body when he was so dehydrated and sick back in April. Sometimes seizures come about when your brain has had damage done to it. This is most likely the case with Gavin. This does not mean that the 'damage' will be permanent, but when they did a CAT scan they did see white areas on the brain, which shows something to be abnormal on the brain. This could be from the extreme dehydration he suffered from or it could be from being put on heart bypass several times during surgery. In either case, he could recover from this, or not.

I'm sorry to those who might get offended by the term brain damage! I definately don't mean to offend anyone! But, that is what it is.....damage to the brain. It does not offend me at all. Maybe that is because of my schooling as a nurse. It's just a medical term. As for our neurologist, we think he's doing a good job and we very much appreciate his honesty with us! I like ALL the facts! No surprises for me please! Just ask my mom! She threw me a couple of surprise parties in the past and I hated being surprised! I did appreciate the effort though, Mom! :) Anyway, I tell most of Gavin's doctors to tell it like it is! In fact I almost switched cardiologists because he was a "cup half full" kind of doctor and didn't share all of his thoughts about Gavin's situation because of it. That was his explaination to me. I like to be prepared as well as I can be and if that means the doctor says something to me that doesn't sound good, I don't care! I appreciate the honesty! I also know that what they say may not be the case in the future with Gavin. Gavin has surprised so many doctors with the progress he has made! I also know that doctors are human and make mistakes, plus our bodies are very complex! What an Awesome God we have!!! One more thing I know is that God is Gavin's true physician and He alone is taking care of Gavin and all of us! We are very blessed that God gives health professionals these gifts to be able to treat our awesome bodies! I am thankful to all that have been able to get Gavin to as far as he has come! Wow! Did I ramble, or what?! Anyway, just wanted to clarify a couple things!

Also, Gavin is still having issues with gagging. Some days aren't bad at all and other days are. We are so thankful for the good days!

Thanks for your comments, prayers and support! God has blessed us with you! Look for new pictures on the carepage site!

Love Alicia and Family

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Alicia and Joel, sorry we weren't able to see you at Nancy's birthday get-together. Hope you are feeling better and certainly hope your little guy improves with each passing day. Your updates continue to inspire and amaze me. I enjoyed seeing so many Michigan relatives and maybe we can make it to Grand Rapids before the winter. Take good care of yourselves and thank you for keeping us all informed. You are correct, our God is quite awesome!

God bless,
Lois & George

Amy said...

I love your outlook about things, and how at peace you are with taking it one day at a time, knowing God never gives us more than we can handle.

As for surprises, you are definitely right...you would much prefer to be in the know about EVERYTHING than be "surprised" by something...Gavin certainly has put this theory to the test, hasn't he? Ha!

Anonymous said...

May God continue to be with Gavin and your family. Sounds like he is doing good. We pray for continued progress. We know he will come a long way just like he already has, especially with a great family like yours. Great and Mighty is our God!! Love The Hilton's

Anonymous said...

Thanks for putting in the new picture of Gavin. What a doll. His shirt says it all. It is so good to see him looking so well. We continue to pray for him as do people from our church. He is a popular little guy. I understand totally, I don't like surprises either. I want to know everything so I can make educated decisions when I need to. God Bless you all. Dalene Wilkinson

Anonymous said...

Hello, My name is JanEll Owens
I would just like to say Gavin is a doll face. I have a 4 year old little boy that is Down Syndrome
his name is Ezra fletcher Colton Owens. He is our life. He had open Heart surgery when he was 6 months old.He is doing very good now,But I know all about your days running together. We have been down that road before.It was hard at the time but I would have traded it for anything. My son is my life. I have 5 other children and they just love their brother just like anyone else. I would love to keep in touch with yall.It is so hard to find people that really understand things you try to tell them. My husband don't even understand things I try to tell him about our son .

Anonymous said...

Hello again this is JanEll Owens
I want to clear up a statement I wrote earlier. I said I would have traded it for anything and I ment I wouldn't have traded it for anything, I didn't even catch my mistake until I already sent my comment.My 2 year old little girl is climbing on my back so it is not hard to mess thins up.

Anonymous said...

Don't worry about what terms other people want you to use. This is your story and Gavins to tell and you should tell it in your way. I grew up with a brother that was brain damaged, among other things, and no one every felt that meant giving up on him. In this day and age everyone is so worried about offending someone else that they can't be themselves anymore. You are using the correct terms for what is happening to Gavin...and I say YOU GO GIRL!

Inspired said...

LOVE the new pictures of Gavin and the boys! They are all so grown up. You are truly blessed with an amazing family. Miss you tons!
Love,
Julie

Anonymous said...

I love the new picture of Gavin - he sure is a cutey - love that red hair - so happy to hear that things are going better - hope things continue to improve - love to see you soon.

Love ya lots, Uncle Frank and Aunt Marilyn

Anonymous said...

HI Alicia
HOpe things are going well. We continue to think and pray for you ALL daily! Steve forgot at one meal and Morgan had to "remind" him. :) I appreciate your time and effort into keeping us all posted on Gavin's progress and prayer requests. Hope you can come out to the farm soon. Patt

Anonymous said...

Hey Alicia-
I looked at the pictures on carepages...looks like Gavin's been putting on the pound-age! He's gaining well, I take it?

I don't know if it will make you feel better, but Isaac is not crawling or walking yet either! Does that help?

We're still praying for you every night before Isaac goes to bed. Hope things look up soon.

I just got our NICU invite for Aug 27 picnic....will you be there? It'd be nice to have Isaac and Gavin re-unite!
Fondly-
Pam