Rethinking Christmas

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.  

I sure love being with family.

December 8th Andrew and I are flying back to Arizona.  I will probably have surgery on my nose to correct the deviation and remove the spur (if you missed the last post it gives all the details about that).    When we get back you'll have to keep an eye out for all my lovely Christmas pictures with gauze stuffed up my swollen nose.  :)   Maybe I'll just pretend to be Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer all season.

 Speaking of Christmas...



Our church has been encouraging us to rethink how we view and respond to Christmas.
For quite a few years now we've been trying to break the mold of what the media promotes to create "the atmosphere of Christmas": which is consumerism.  
Here are a few things that I appreciate about what was said the past couple Sundays:

Instead of giving presents give our presence.  

Relationships. 

Spend less money, and give more of ourselves.

Instead of spending money on things that people don't really want, or will get bored with in a couple weeks, or send our credit cards to the brink, think carefully about putting together gifts that encourage spending time together.  Or make something that reflects your skills and talents you have like photography, writing, cooking, crafting, building, etc.  
Those things take time, but that adds value to your gift.


A new thought that was presented to me was:
Every dollar we spend represents what we support.  There is nothing wrong with all those great stores out there.
But what do I REALLY want to support?   

Every dollar I spend is my vote for what I support either intentionally or unintentionally.

There are many wonderful organizations that are truly helping people and meeting needs that I could support by buying gifts from them.
Start thinking outside of the box!

Check out this web site that gives many options:

Rethinking Christmas

There are many great gift ideas at that web site.   

Just think, you could buy a gift for someone you love and at the same time your gift results in truly giving to the needy and hungry.

Arizona - What the doctor nose (knows) about me:

Thank you everyone for praying for us and the comments you have left us here or on FaceBook, or the hugs at church.  We appreciate you all!

I am sitting at home drinking my coffee reflecting over the past few days.

It is so wonderful being all together as a family.   We missed Joshua immensly!  We wish he could've come with us to Arizona.  He adds fun and brightness to our family.   We are looking forward to this next week where we get to have him home all week!

Andrew had a great time with Angela and Jeremy in AZ while I was laying down and resting.  It was good bonding for all of them.    They got to have lots of fun together.

During our 10 hour drive I would look in the back seat at the two kids and see them holding hands.  So sweet.  Angela would constantly find games for the two of them to play together.  She would help Jeremy when he needed it and encourage him.  Someday she will make a great babysitter or mommy.  She has a way of talking to him that is so mature and responsible.  

Jeremy would keep saying, "Angela my brother or sister?  I love my sister."

After this 3rd blood patch, I still have my headaches.  

Big PRAISE:   The recovery has not been bad at all!  

No pain in my legs, just the usual pain at the needle insertion sight.

We talked to a different neurologist this time (because our usual Dr. was out for two weeks).  It was nice getting a different perspective.  He was very intent to take time to study the different MRI and Cat Scans and tests I've gone through.  He wasn't as personable as our other dr. but I think he's going to add a good demention to the care we receive.

He said that he does not think that my headaches are from a spinal leak.  If they were they would've been resolved with the blood patches.  Also the steady placement of where my head hurts he believes gives way that the irritation must be located in that region or near there.

Here is one idea he presented us with:
He restudied tests I had done on my head and with the Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor.
I have a devited septum with a small spur.
Translated: one side of the airway in my nose is smaller than the other side with part of the inside wall slightly touching the other side.  The tissue in that area is very sensitive and if it gets continually pressed on it could cause pain.

We had heard all this info before, from the ENT dr., except he said that it wouldn't cause pain, only that it would slightly restrict breathing on that one side (which I have noticed for a long time).  He didn't think it had anything to do with my headaches.

Thus, the two Dr.'s will converse (or might I say argue about it!) and then get back to us on their thoughts.  :)






This is a Normal Septum
Its straight, right down the middle...
(the bottom of the picture shows the opening into where you breathe in and up into your sinuses).







This isn't my scan but it is a picture of a Deviated Septum (the middle ridge "breaks it's straight line" and goes off a different direction and then back again).
Do you see how the middle ridge curves off to the left, practically poking the other side of the nasal passage?
That's what mine does.  






Here's a picture of a septal spur.  It causes the deviated septum to touch the other side, causing pain:






In the meantime I was sent home with a numbing agent to drop in my nose.  If it is able to relieve the pain I feel then we have a good agument that my headaches are due to the septal spur.

The other idea he had was:
There are nerves that come out of the scull near the eyebrows and behind the eyes.  If they have been irritated or pinched somehow they could cause pain in that area.

(I have done a lot of study on that already.  It seemed quite likely to me so I had done some research.  My pain is not the normal description of pain a person would get from nerve irritation in that area but rather atypical, but it could fit).

Click here to go to a link that shows the facial nerves.

If the septal spur doesn't seem like the solution we can also try to numb the nerves that I described above and see if that relieves the pain I feel.

Blood Patch

We made it to Arizona.  It was a loooonnng drive.  I've never driven this direction before so it was all quite fascinating.  Angela and Jeremy did great. 

The worst part was: about 4 hours into the drive Angela began looking pale and sick.  She puked all over her blanket on her lap.  Thankfully most of it was contained.  We made a quick deture and amazingly there was a CVS Pharmacy right there in the desert, right when we needed it.  Thank you God!  One Dramamine later and we were back on the road.

This morning, Wednesday, I went in for another Blood Patch.

This one was intensely painful and they were only able to put in about 1/4th of the amount of blood that they put in last time.  They even tried another location to see if they could put more in, but without much success.  

 The Dr. who was leading the procedure was very concerned about the nerve pain I had in my legs last time and did everything possible to be sure it wouldn't happen again.

So far the recovery has been much better.  My back is not in pain and my legs feel fine.

On the way home from the hospital I could feel the pressure in my head.   Even now as I am laying down I feel it.  Nothing major, just that normal, dull, achy pressure.  Normal.  Not what I want to feel. 

Hope: that maybe it will progressively get better?  Not what is supposed to happen.  The blood patch is supposed to seal any leak up within a few hours, producing a pretty immediate effect.  I will still somehow keep hope that maybe...?

I have to admit I'm fighting the emotion to give up courage.  But I am keeping my mind on the truth in God's Word.

Thank you Michelle for the scripture you posted in the comments of the last post: Proverbs 

18:10- "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." 

Psalm 70:4-5- "But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, 'Let God be exalted!' Yet I am poor and needy; O God. You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay." 

Job 1:2- "I know that You can do all things; no plans of yours can be thwarted."

The Lord is a Strong Tower, Deliverer, He can do all things, and none of His plans can be thwarted.  We are weak, poor, and needy. We need to be delivered and we can not do all things.  His ways are not are ways.  His ways are perfect. When we are weak; He is strong. His power is made perfect in our weakness.   His grace is sufficient.   May you rely on Him and His truth today.

GREAT DAY

Yesterday was a GREAT day.

I hardly felt any thickness in my head and there was no pain!

We even had a busy cleaning day.

The kids surprised me with their good attitudes as we all pitched in and worked together.  It was the most cleaning I've done in a long time.  It felt so good!  I kept waiting for the headache to kick in...but it never came.

What a wonderful break!  My body was sore from all the cleaning..a good sore, the kind that comes when you've been productive.

 Angela's drawing of our Thanksgiving Cornucopia

Today (Thursday) the headache was back.  Not in full force, but definitely there.

But the rain cheered me up.  I love the rain.  The sound of it is so soothing.  It causes me to dream of popcorn and family board games around a fire place...

The Mayo Clinic called and scheduled me in for another Blood Patch.  The Dr. is quite positive that the spinal fluid leak is still the problem.  He said that sometimes it takes a couple procedures before it works.  He would rather we make sure that we've given it all the focus we can before we move onto a different path.

We will be heading back to AZ on Tuesday, the Blood Patch will happen Wednesday morning and we'll drive back home Friday.

Am I looking forward to this?

The 1st patch was bad, recovery okay.

The 2nd patch was not too bad, recovery very difficult.

The 3rd one...

I Will Lift My Eyes

Thank you God that I can trust you.  

You are the unchanging holy God.  

Everything You do is perfect and right.  

You are all powerful, all knowing, ever present.

Even when fear and doubt surround me

I know I can hold fast to Your truth.

You know all about the pain I am in.

You are my Deliverer.
 

 Psalm 91:1,2

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High 

will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, 

My God in whom I trust!"

Hello, my long lost friend.

  Hello, my long lost friend.

  

 We have not spent time together in over a year.

My fingers don't have your evidence anymore.

 I'm sorry it has taken so long for me to invite you over.

I've thought of you often.  

We used to spend hours together.

You have been with me during some of my highest of highs and lowest of lows.

There is something about working together to produce praise to God that has been comforting to my soul.  My heart enjoyed how God has used you to draw me before His throne.

I have been humbled many times by my inadequacies and God's working in and through my weaknesses for His glory.

But there you have sat, 

closed up in a case,

until now.

Even though your case is dusty

as I pulled you out you are still beautiful and shiny.

 

 As I began to play my fingers surprisingly remember 

where they are supposed to go.

I am a bit rusty.

Although it will take a while for my hand to regain it's strength,

the aches and pains are an old familiar feeling.

In the end it is worth the effort and perseverance.

I am looking forward to spending time together in the days to come 

to sing praise to the King of Kings, my Everything.

Music is a gift from God to us

that we can give back to Him in worship.