Commitment

We just had Owen’s 3 month check up from his infection removal surgery. I am so glad we actually got down there. First, for all your New Englanders, check out spirit air… our tickets were dirt cheap.

Our appointment was at 3:15… I think we saw Dr. P around 5. Not bad. I’ve said this before… just to in, relax, bring snacks, eat their snacks (see below photo), bring a book… don’t think of it as an appointment… think of it as a day long event. This way, if you’re out of their at 5, you are pleasantly surprised! I will say this is a heck of a lot easier to do without an extra kid and without my son in pain. It brings back so many memories of Owen screaming while we were waiting…

We had x-rays taken in the office for the first time, which was so nice. It’s great not having to go over to the hospital where honestly, there are sick people. At Dr. P’s office, it’s just physical conditions… chest x-rays for nasty coughs! We saw the crew and hung out for a while. Lucky for us, Dr. P had a big cancellation so he was on the floor when we got there. Otherwise, I think it might have been a very late night.

We found out some really great news – that Owen is unrestricted in his activities.  His break has healed. You should have seen his face. He is so excited to be able to do gym, and recess, and all the other things kids do! This is the first time since September of ’09 that he can do this stuff. Unfortunetly, it might be a little short lived. We found out that Owen’s very knock kneed. This is also causing him to walk more and more on the side of his ankle. To fix this, we’re going to need another surgery called 8 plate surgery. They basically put this 8 plate bracket on his ankle (internally) and tether it to his knee. As he grows, it moves his knee out and puts him more on top of his foot vs. on his ankle.

So this is where the commitment title comes in. Before you begin this procedure, please understand that there is no end date. You have to stay committed to this process for the entire lifetime of that person. At this point, I have no expectations. Try not to commit to your child that this is the “last” surgery… we’ve have a few “lasts.”

This procedure is much simpler then anything like lengthening. It is outpatient. But I have read a few other experiences and it sounds like there will be some pain and adjustment to deal with. So while Dr. P is saying it’s an easy fix, I know my kid, and I know it’s going to be another hurdle. It might be an “easy” surgery, but I just know he’s going to take some time to get used to that feeling in his knee/leg. I am planning on scheduling for early June so we can hopefully be moving easily by the time July rolls around. He will then have the 8 plate removed at some point down the line when the knee knock is corrected.  

Completely switching gears here, but I wanted to throw out another word of advice for families going through this. This is hard. This will be one of the hardest things you’ve ever done.  It is devestatingly hard to see your child in pain, and not be able to fix it. It’s even harder when it’s for a whole year. We as parents know we’re doing whats best but it’s so hard to do. Children involved with this pain most certainly deal with some Post Tramatic Stress – and honestly, I think parents do to. Be prepared for this.

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~ by capeKO71 on February 9, 2011.