Last night, Michael was entirely too sick to function--the antibiotics and pain killers that he was on were making him downright miserable, and the progress was not as pronounced as we would have liked it to have been. So after discussing it for a long time, we decide the best course of action is to go back to Dr. Smith and see what he can do for us in the morning. Luckily, Ken agrees to watch the kids for a few hours so that I can go with Michael to the appointment.
That night, all four of us got very shoddy sleep. I was uncomfortable from pregnancy and nervous about the next day; Michael was very apprehensive about going back to the doctor and very ill; and the kids had trouble settling because they were picking up on the anxiety in their parents. End result is--when we woke up at 8 this morning, we only had a handful of hours of sleep between the four of us, and we were all pretty cranky and unhappy.
Ken picks up Emerald and Gabriel and I go with Michael to Dr. Smith's, who says that Michael needs to have the infection lanced and packed, which is what we have been dreading. Michael straight up does not want to do it and he is worrying himself sick over how much pain it is going to cause.
Luckily, Dr. Smith takes pity on poor Michael because he (Dr. Smith) cannot prescribe anything for the pain or the procedure, and he refers us to a wound specialist in town that is more than happy to work with us. It is looking much brighter, much more optimistic.
Because Michael may be out of commission to drive home, Rhonda drives us both to Dr. Wolcott, where he gives Michael an anti-anxiety pill and tells him to come back at 1pm.
There's a problem.
Today is Wednesday, and as previously stated in this blog, Gabriel has a Ear, Nose, and Throat appointment to check his tonsils and his adenoids and determine if they need to be removed; as well as to decide if ear tubes would be beneficial. It is also scheduled at 1. Which means that Michael would not be able to attend the appointment with me and Gabriel.
Rhonda and Ken were very helpful--Rhonda opted to take Michael back to the wound-care clinic, and Ken took me and Gabriel to the ENT and hearing appointment. Emerald stayed with her great grandmother, Grannymom (Rhonda's mom) so that we wouldn't have to keep up with her as well.
First, Michael's staph infection appointment:
They gave him lots of antibiotics and pain management treatment (four shots directly to the site, plus numbing gel), but he said it still hurt a very great deal. It was awful for him, and I am very sorry that I was not able to be there.
The infection had affected the muscular tissue of his thigh, which meant that a great deal of muscle tissue had to be removed, which I can only imagine would be incredibly unpleasant while still lucid. It had gotten into the lymph nodes, but it didn't get into his blood stream or organs, which is good.
He has to remain on the antibiotic treatment that he has been on even though it makes him ill, as well as taking vicodin and using a cane. He has to stay off of his feet and stay out of the sun (because the antibiotics cause photo-sensitivity), which means that he will be unable to go to work for another week. We also have to pack the wound with gauze which is uncomfortable but will help keep it clean and help it heal.
All in all, it was a horribly miserable experience, but considerably better than the last time when he had to go to the Emergency Room, and now we know for the future to keep an eye out for it coming back.
Now, Gabriel's ENT appointment:
I know it sounds weird, but we were actually going in there praying (but not expecting) Gabriel to need surgery. It felt like the best option right now for us.
First, he had the hearing test, in which I sit in a booth with Gabriel on my lap. They place a thing in Gabriel's ear that measures the functionality of his eardrums--both of those went just fine and showed that his little eardrums are working well. Then they play sounds of varying volume intensity to the left and to the right, rewarding him for looking in the right direction by flashing some pretty lights. Unfortunately, because of his age and inability to focus or interact, Gabriel was unable to complete this portion of the test to produce satisfactory results--basically, he is going to have to take a different hearing test because the results were inconclusive.
We were sent back to the waiting room, but we were only there for a few moments before the nurse called us back again.
It was really hard reining in Gabriel while the doctor examined him, but luckily Dr. Marchbanks works a lot with pediatrics so he was very quick and efficient.
Dr. Marchbanks is actually a very nice guy--he reminds me of a flamboyantly gay Mad Hatter, and his good cheer is always contagious. He saw Emerald when she was about Gabriel's age because she also had the speech delays, but hers were due to a series of ear infections that interfered with her ability to perceive the full range of sounds.
After looking down Gabriel's throat and in his ears and nose, after the medical history and discussing our concerns, Dr. Marchbanks gave us some good news and some bad news:
The Good News is that physically, Gabriel is perfect. He doesn't need surgery or ear tubes; his throat, ears, adenoids, tonsils, and everything look healthy and to be functioning well. Dr. Marchbanks even thinks Gabriel is hearing just fine, judging by his history and the limited results today yielded on that front. They scheduled him for a ABR--an Auditory Brainstem Response--test, which is like the EEG in that they attach nodes to his head and figure out how his brain is responding to auditory stimulation via bluetooth. This is to further determine his range of hearing, but that is more of a formality since they are fairly confident there is nothing wrong with his hearing.
The Bad News is that all the information we have been gathering through the specialists is pointing more not to a physical malady, but rather a social-developmental disorder. The ENT said that Gabriel is most likely on the spectrum, such as Asperger's syndrome or Autism, which would explain all Gabe's developmental delays.
ENT's are called in to determine an individual's responsivity to sound stimuli since so frequently with autism (even one of the questions on the M-CHAT) are fears of deafness or hearing loss, or ear-plugging/ear-cupping.
I wish I could say I took this news like an adult, but I can't deny that I was a little depressed and worried when I heard that. It was particularly hard to take because I didn't have Michael there with me. Not unexpected, and absolutely nothing definite, it's just....I would be lying if I said it didn't shake me a bit.
Anyways, we are all home now and quite exhausted mentally and physically and emotionally. We are very appreciative of having family there for us on this difficult day. Hopefully tomorrow will be brighter. =)
~Andie~
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