Recovering and Healing!

Hello dear blog followers! So sorry I haven't written in such a long time! Below I'll let you all know what has happened the past few months, prior to my scoliosis surgery:

June 29th was surgery day.  It was a 7 hour surgery, and I grew 3 inches!! :D I am so thankful for my surgeon Dr. Clark- he did a really good job.  Also, it was less than 70 hours after surgery that I got to go home- yeah! (No offense, but a hospital isn't my preferred hang-out place :)  So once I got home, pretty much all I did for the next 2 weeks was sleep, read, sleep, doodle, and sleep! :)  Also, not only did tons of sweet family and friends come to see me and bring meals, but also my great grandma Lawanda! She was personal companion and advocate for a week... :)  Since then I have had a couple check-ups at Dr. Clark's. I learned that my spine was corrected from a 97 to a 23 degree curve, (PRAISE THE LORD!!), and I also learned I have to wear my brace till December. (bummer... ;) Better safe than sorry he said- I suppose I agree... :) 

I'll attach some pictures in another post, since I know I personally love a visual aid, and I hope you all enjoyed my short but sweet surgery update! I am so thankful for friends and family like you, who have supported me and encouraged me the whole way.  It means so much to me- thank you all! :)

With Love and a straight back!

~Caroline

Praise the Lord!!

WHOOOOOO-HOOOOOOOO!!!! Caroline has successfully made it through the surgery...!!! Below are the contents of an email our dad sent out. Usually I'd come up with my own wording and such, but seeing as I've been up since 5 AM, my dad's words are sounding more and more perfect for this particular post.... ;-)



PRAISE THE LORD!!!!

God was with Caroline throughout the 7 hour surgery..........and she is now in PICU..........trying to find a comfortable position.......which is impossible without serious medication!

But the great news is that she IS feeling the pain............and able to move her legs.............and that her curve progression has been halted......and she is already breathing MUCH MUCH better!!!!

Dr. Clark’s goal was to get somewhere near 50 degree correction.........and as you can see from the pic............it is much closer to 15 degrees..............OR LESS!!!

We are thrilled!!

Caroline’s rib cage is back to where it belongs.........her shoulder blades are symmetrical......her shoulders are more even......she is taller.......and I think her teeth are whiter also!!!

Thank you for your prayers and support...........it is greatly appreciated.

Please continue to pray for a speedy recovery and that the grafted fragment for the lumbar 5 vertebrae would fuse perfectly together.

Thank you God.....and thank God for friends like you!

Thank you once again for supporting Caroline throughout this time! She can still use a LOT of prayer! And as we can see by the results of her surgery-God is powerful! So keep it up Prayer Warriors!!!!

I will continue to keep you all updated!!

~Caitlin

Please Pray!

Hey Guys!
I don't have much time to write, but I just wanted to make sure that everyone knew that Caroline will be having surgery on Wednesday! I know that we haven't blogged about how we came to this decision, and I hope to do that in bits and pieces, but I just wanted to get this word out so that you can keep her in your thoughts and prayers. I know that she would REALLY appreciate it if you all would be praying extra hard during this time. Here's a quick shake down of what will be happening.....

WEDNESDAY MORNING

• In the wee early hours of the morning, Carrie will go to St. John's with my mom and dad. My mom's mom ("Grandma Ginny") will be at the house helping me babysit everyone all day and for the rest of the week.
• Caroline will be administered anesthesia and Dr. Clark will probably cut skin at 7:30-we don't have any times set in stone, so these are simply educated guesses.

THE SURGERY

• In each of the vertebrae to be fused, two holes will be drilled and then 6mm screws will be inserted into the 6mm holes previously drilled....not a lot of room for error~!
• Each vertebrae will be individually straightened and then attached to a rod....
• I realize that my understanding of this is very limited, so I might be posting later and revising this information!

RECOVERY

• Caroline will be in ICU for the first night, just so that she can have constant monitoring.
• She will then be in the hospital for about a week, give or take.
• It will be anywhere from 2-6 weeks before she resumes a few of her activities such as Sunday School, and possibly piano.
• By 6-9 months, she should be completely back to all normal activities, taking into account any difficulties she might have. (i.e. hurts to run, can't stand for long periods....)

PRAYER REQUESTS

• That Dr. Clark would have a clear mind and focused energy, and that if any split second decisions came up, that he would have the discernment to make the right choice.
• That all of the nurses and assistants would be especially alert and on their "A" game.
• That Caroline would have an unmistakable sense of God's presence and she would be completely surrounded by His peace and comfort.
• There is an issue surrounding a cracked and slipping 5th Lumbar....Dr. Clark will decide in surgery whether to fuse to L4 and put pressure on L5, or to fuse to the sacrum and decrease mobility. Please pray that he would be led to the right choice.
• That Caroline would be so very flexible that they are able to get her several times straighter than they had anticipated.
• That they would be able to fully de-rotate her ribcage and shoulder blades.
• That Caroline would have a full and quick recovery.
• Most of all, that God would be glorified and Caroline kept safe.

Thank you so much for your continued prayers! I will try and fill you all in later as to what has happened and to keep you updated as Caroline recovers!

Trusting in Him,

Caitlin

The Overdue Review of Our Time in Alpharetta, Part 3

Hello, sorry it's been so long since we last updated! School's now officially out, (besides my 40 math lessons to catch up on!) and our whole family is so ready for summer. Caitlin has a part-time summer job now, and this morning we made homemade flour and bread! :)

Below is finally the next week we spent in Georgia. . . enjoy!

March 21-27, Monday through Sunday

On Monday, after renting a car for that week, we went to Dr. Brian’s, and started intensive treatment week one. We went on many machines, and worked on lowering the curves. Both Caitlin and I had braces, and both of us faithfully did the machines. Also, every night we both did wedges (untwisting of the spine) and the 'roll' (re-shaping the spine). But don’t worry- we had a little fun, too. After all, the 23^rd was our mom’s birthday! :) That day we went to Macoroni Grill (a crowd pleaser) and a hockey game! 

To sum up this week in one word, I’d say it was encouraging. My curve had reduced to 65 (from 83), and Caitlin’s was reduced to 45 (from 60). Although there was much improvement, Dr. Brian asked us to stay another week regardless. He said my spine was now too flexible, and he wanted to monitor it.  But with the improvement we had so far, we decided to go celebrate (and get a change of scenery) in Nashville! We stayed at the Opry Land Resort, (it was the biggest hotel I’ve ever been in! It had a waterfall in it. A waterfall!) and we went to the Grande Ole Opery that night. Sarah Darling, Rio Diamond, and ‘Toy Story’ singers were there- what a show! The next day we explored the hotel.  And yes, if you're wondering, we got lost. ;) Also we got to go on a boat ride. . . In the hotel! ;D

Sadly, though, after shopping, boating, and exploring in the hotel, we split ways. Mom, Caitlin and I left for Alpharetta again, and the rest of the crew went back home. After a quick stop for shopping to finding some church wear, we made it to a hotel room in Alpharetta once more. The next day was Sunday, and we got the treat of going to Charles Stanley’s church! It was especially neat to go there, because we watch him on TV all the time. :) Below are a few pic.'s we captured. . . thanks!

 ~Carrie

The Overdue Review of Our Time in Alpharetta, Part 2

Thursday, March 17, 2011

This morning, after our first (super uncomfortable and awkward) night with the braces, we head down to the abundant breakfast buffet and then we head off to Doc Ouellette’s for a half day of treatment. Rather than start the intensive work just before we leave for the weekend, Dr. Ouellette is mainly loosening us up today and tomorrow. Afterwards, most of us head to the hotel pool and gym facilities. Everyone has fun splashing in the pool before going upstairs and crashing. For reasons I’m still not sure about, I decided to skip the swimming, and instead check out the gym. . .The only problem with this is that underneath my sweatpants, I had on my brace shorts PLUS a pair of shorts underneath those to keep them from itching. After over an hour of gasping for air and chugging water, I decided that this was NOT the best way to get exercise! :-)  Anyway, after cooling down, Carrie and I headed back to Dr. Ouellette for an abbreviated afternoon round of treatment. For dinner, we eat at an amazing mexican restaurant with live music and patio seats-perfect for the awesome weather! But by the time we got back to the hotel, Carrie and I were exhausted! However, we were surprised to see that we had gotten an adorable flower arrangement from our friends, the Paschals. The flowers were arranged in the shape of a teddy bear! That was really cool, and enjoyed by all.

Friday, March 18, 2011

After another amazing buffet breakfast (I could sure get used to this!), Carrie and I are off to another 1/2 day at Doc Ouellette’s. After saying goodbye for the weekend, we head back to the hotel, where we have lunch and I head down to the gym for another (albeit shorter) round. Because we thought we were only going to be here for a few days and packed accordingly, we (OK....the girls) decided that we needed to go shopping! As you can imagine, my dad and 9 year old brother were fully behind the idea. . .OK-maybe not! :-D We also get birthday gifts for our mom and dad, who will celebrate their birthdays here in Alpharetta. Once we’re back in the hotel room, we watch Yogi Bear. Fun! 

Saturday, March 19, 2011

We decide to go into Atlanta today, and check some things out there. We go to the Aquarium there-it’s the largest in the world...or so they say! My favorite part were the belugas-they were really hammin’ it up! There was this one that kept on rubbing up against the glass ~ :-) And finally after walking around the aquarium for almost four hours, we got to sit down in a 4D movie, complete with water, wind and vibration effects! We eat at a yummy steak place and then head back to the hotel. . . It was a fun family day!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Happy Birthday Dad! After a family church service in our hotel room, we all head back to Atlanta to do some more touristy sight seeing! We visit “The World of Coca-Cola”!!!!!! And even though we gave up soda and candy for lent, because it was Sunday, we got to have the entire experience! We try all kinds of sodas from around the world, including one that was supposed to be wonderful. . “The Beverly” from Italy. Let me tell you-it was the MOST disgusting drink I have ever had! After thoroughly scouring the gift store, we went and saw a production of “Peter Pan” in the 360 Theatre. It was sooooo cool! Evidently, when my mom looked down the row of seats at everyone, I was totally absorbed in the action-so much so that I was totally unaware that my mouth was gaping! Oh well-at any rate, I enjoyed the show!

~Caiti

The Overdue Review of Our Time in Alpharetta

Wow- this is so late. We apologize for the big delay, and for making you wait so long for an update!

Well, Monday morning, March 14th, my dad called the doc in charge of scoliosis bracing. Dr. Ouellette, SpineCor specialist in Georgia, informed us that we needed to get an appointment set us as soon as possible, for immediate bracing. At the time, we had just completed two weeks of intensive treatment at Dr. Fuh's, and were told our spines were 35 degrees (Caitlin) and 52 degrees (mine). I needed to see an Urgicenter physician on Monday for Strep throat, and then we left on Tuesday for a 13 hour road trip to Alpharetta, GA. 

Below is a day-by-day entry of our experiences in Alpharetta, GA~ I hope you all enjoy!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011 

We're on the road for Alpharetta, GA! As a family we all get ready for a short trip to Georgia, singing silly songs and playing random games along the way. We ate dinner at a Cracker Barrel in Memphis, Tennessee, and got a cute picture of Beau being his silly self. :) After trying a couple full hotels in GA, we finally made it to one, safe and sound. Unfortunately there was no crib for Beau at the hotel, and we got to bed at around 3:30am. . . not a good combination! ;) But we were so grateful to be together, and safe- God is good!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

It’s a big day today; we tour through old time Marietta, Georgia, ooh and ah over adorable boutiques, and go to a museum both Caitlin and I were excited about- the Gone with the Wind museum! {Probably Caitlin was more thrilled about going. . . More like going insane to see the place! ;)} 

Here are some pics from the museum- we loved Scarlet’s massive costumes. . . Not to mention Rhett! ;D After the exquisite museum, we had a delicious lunch in a local ‘vineyard’ restaurant; I’m not big on teas’, but their Georgia sweet tea was astounding! 

Right after the meal, it was time for our appointment with Dr. Ouellette. We reluctantly left Marietta and headed toward Alpharetta.  Dr. Brian Ouellette founded was a very well-dressed, kind man, who seemed to know a lot about what he was doing. We took some x-rays, and when those full- length pictures made it into the room, I couldn’t believe that was my spine. “This is not 52 degrees,” Dr. Brian said, measuring my x-rays with an electronic protractor. “This is more like. . . 83.” We were all in shock. To be honest, I started crying. 83 degrees?!  How could 52 degrees jump up to an 83 in literally a few days? {Since we had just finished Dr. Fuh.} My family in the room were all upset, and totally thrown off-guard. How was this drastic change possible? 

We got Caitlin’s x-rays next. Her curve had increased, too! From recent x-rays at Dr. Fuh’s, Caitlin’s curve was 35. But Dr. Brian brought other news. “35?” he said, “How did you get 35? This is 60!” Are you kidding me!? I truly don’t remember much after the news of our scoliosis progression. All I remember was just feeling like I wanted to die. Yes, a little morbid. 

After viewing the x-rays, and discussing them, both Caiti and I got fitted for the brace. Working like magic, {sort of :)} Caitlin’s brace was working. From a 60 degree curve, Caitlin {in the brace} got her curve number down to a 48! Praise the Lord!

Wellll. . . My turn didn’t go as well. {I’m such a problem child, I know! ;-)} In Dr. Brian’s office, I took a breathing test, because my high curve number could very likely effect my organs- lungs, respiratory system, etc. So I took the test- and failed. I tried and retried the test nearly 8 times, without improvement.  I did have strep at the time, so we let it slide and planned to test it after the infection was gone. After that I got into the awkward brace, {by awkward, I mean wearing unbelievably tight shorts, which have no use whatsoever in any fashionable closet!} and got my 83 degree curve down to an 81- barely any correction. On the verge of not going home in the brace, and being very likely to be going to surgery, Dr. Brian still wanted to see if the treatment in his office would help get my spine flexible, or possibly corrected enough for the brace. That very evening I did a mini treatment in his office. He took x-rays of my spine afterwards, and concluded that it would be best, necessary even, for my spine to be monitored the coming week. We have to be here next week? Yep. 

So we booked two side-by-side hotel rooms, ready to stay a whole week here in Alpharetta. That night both Caitlin and I left with SpineCor braces. We ate at a ‘California Pizza Kitchen,’ talked over what we learned, {such as posture is so important. Who knew that you’re training your muscles and spine to bend when slouching?} and we also discussed and planned out our coming week in Alpharetta. That evening was the hardest evening of our entire stay, because we had just received such discouraging news about how our curves were worse than when we started, and the brace was so new and uncomfortable.  So what a wonderful surprise it was, on this discouraging day, to walk into our hotel room and see a gigantic basket full of games and snacks from Aunt Jamie and Uncle Kevin! We felt so encouraged and loved by this extraordinary gift . . . What perfect timing! :D

~Carrie

Dr. John; Orthopedic

Hey Everyone!

    Wow-it's so good to be sitting at my own desk! Carrie and I have a day off before tomorrow when we start week two of Dr. Fuh Intensive. More on that later. . .

    The subject of this particular post is to update you all on another part of our scolioSIS journey-that of the Orthopedic. (dum dum dum DAAAAAH) We kept meaning to post about our visit to Dr. John, but being at Dr. Fuhs from 9 to 5 has it's limitations. ;-) SOOO this is a (not too) long anticipated post about Dr. John, orthotics, and tennis shoes. Monday morning, Caroline, my mom and I all set out to visit Dr. John. That and his address was all that we knew of him- the nurse said his last name was too long to give over the phone...?

     Sure enough, as we rode up the elevator and found a map/directory we knew exactly which Dr. John we were headed toward! Anyway, once we made our way into his little back room we all sat down and volunteered Carrie to go first! We filled out the paperwork and then proceeded to gape in horror at the orthopedic shoes while waiting for Dr. John. Seriously, I was surprised that there wasn't a little sign on the side that said "S.S. Ortho" or something of the like. Caroline and I promptly decided that we were going to die. But it would seem that was not the case. :-D

    Then, in walked Dr. John. A really nice guy, he had a great accent and way of saying "Suriously" that Carrie and I thought was absolutely awesome! But I digress. He then told me that the little (very cute, I might add) silver flats I was wearing were the absolute worst kind of shoe out there. Ouch. But I was not alone- Carrie's little sketchers were the second worst. And somehow our moms wedges were deemed "a pretty good shoe". Go figure!

     We each got a plaster of paris mold made of our feet and got to sit way up high in his moving chair--It was really fun!

He told us that we needed to get at least 2 pairs of shoes; one for outside and one for inside. They would both need to be able to support our ankle pronation and the orthotics. He said that because my ankle pronation was so severe I would need a new balance 1100 series, while he suggested the 660's for Carrie and my mom. So although they aren't exactly fashion savvy, at least we get to go shoe shopping!

After, we went to P.F. Changs for lunch. Carrie REALLY wanted the Mongolian Beef, but it only comes in a family portion size. . . .

Hope she was hungry!!

Then on Thursday, after Dr. Fuh's, we went back to Dr. Johns to pick up our orthotics and get his feedback on the shoes we had picked out. He said that the Uggs and cute tennis shoes were not sturdy enough and only aesthetically pleasing. "Yes Doc, we know they're pretty--THAT'S WHY WE GOT THEM!!" 

Really though, they are a long shot better than the Orthopedic boats we saw on Monday! Mine have some pretty blue (my favorite color) touches, while Carrie's have neon green and yellow-she's pumped!

Hope you enjoyed my lengthy and mostly fact-filled synopSIS. . .

Caitlin