Isaac’s Appointments and A Thought About Burdens

 

Good morning!

Here's a quick update of Isaac's doctor visits this week:

 

His first visit with the dentist/oral surgeon.  He was rather a young man, but we felt comfortable with him.  Sigh…I find that the older I get, the younger Isaac's doctors get! :o/

The appointment for teeth cleaning and teeth pulling will probably not happen until September or October.  Evidently St. Joseph's Children's Hospital has quite a full schedule for dental procedures. 

We also found out that he will be intubated while they do the procedure.  They do not put the massive tube down the throat (tracheal intubation), but rather a smaller tube through the nose (nasotracheal intubation).  I was really glad when they explained that me!

Isaac's second doctor's visit this week was to the neurologist.  She's the one who works with us for seizure control and sleep issues.  (Although she is constantly trying to get us to have surgeries for various and sundry other issues:  drooling, spasticity, hip subluxation.  Fortunately she is not pushy about these things, because we feel that Isaac has had so many surgeries already, we almost never choose "selective" surgeries for him.)

The neurologist was very pleased to hear that we have not been seeing any seizures, and that Isaac is sleeping fairly well right now.  He had gained a bit of weight and is currently 69.7 pounds.  We do keep a pretty close eye on weight with the neurologist, because each weight gain could be the tipping point between seizure-control and a total lack of seizure control.  We never know which ounce gained will cause that change.

All in all, we had pretty good visits with Isaac's doctors this week.  We still have 2 more scheduled this month, and I will let you know how those go.

Here's a thought that I hope will encourage you today:

 

"There is no burden which, if we lift it cheerfully and bear it with love in our hearts, will not become a blessing to us.  God means our tasks to be our helpers; to refuse to bend our shoulders to receive a load is to decline a new opportunity for growth." ~J.R. Miller

 

I know that life is not always easy, and it often seems that instead of the burden growing lighter as we go along, it gets heavier and more cumbersome. 

However, Jesus promised us the following:

 

Matthew 11:[28] Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
[29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
[30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

When we accept our situations as being designed for us by our Heavenly Father, the burdens turn in to opportunities.

I do not wish to go through another surgery with Isaac.  There is always a risk and I am not ignorant of that fact.

However, I know that my Father has planned this out for us.  I trust that He is in control of all of it.  I know that He has been faithful in the past, and I trust Him to be the same in the future.

So, instead of looking toward the upcoming events with a sense of dread, I have a peaceful heart.  No matter the outcome, I know I can trust the heart of my Father.  He will only do what is best for me, what is best for Isaac and what is best for Doug.

When I accept this as fact, I can turn my focus from the "what ifs" and be prepared to face whatever opportunity lies ahead of me.

I encourage you today to take a new and perhaps "radical" view of your burdens.  Rather than focusing on the pain of carrying them, imagine what opportunities God might have waiting for you because of them.

Blessings to you,

Alesha

 

---