Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
That's the official diagnosis from the specialists at St. Louis Children's Hospital. The first question we had was if our daughter would struggle with this forever. All of these thoughts start to run through your head. Will Everly always struggle to walk? Will she ever be able to play soccer or take dance? Will she always have flare ups? Will this affect her for life? Will she have to be medicated? What are the side effects if so? A million questions begin streaming through your mind as a parent.
Well I am thrilled to report that her arthritis diagnosis isn't chronic! Knowing that was the case, the doctor gave us two options. The first option involved a steroid injection in the foot. 50% of patients who receive the injection see relief in 2 days. I liked those odds! Should we choose to forgo injections then our next option was to medicate for up to a year, until the arthritis cleared. The medication of course comes with side effect risks.
We were willing to take the gamble of the 2 day relief option, so with that choice, we were given an appointment to have the procedure done. We marked our calendar and made the drive back to St.Louis. Everly was not thrilled to be back in the hospital, that is for sure. What toddler really is happy to be there though?
We were taken back to a procedure room. Everly was given laughing gas for the procedure. Standing by your child, holding her hand as she is put under never gets easier. As strong as I tried to be, I couldn't help by cry as she squeezed my hand and screamed under the mask. It took about a minute and she was no longer coherent.
We were taken to a waiting room and my nerves were on high, but it wasn't ten minutes and she was done! Everly has no recollection of the procedure itself! The only thing she remembers is that mommy wasn't standing there when she woke up. We were discharged and left with the hope that relief would be in sight!
We kept Everly off of her foot for the first 24 hours, a REAL challenge for a three year old! You don't realize how often your kid goes potty! Just saying!
The following day, Everly woke up and hollered down the hall "Mommy! Is the medicine all the way through my foot yet?"
I said, "I think so honey! Try walking!"
Everly hopped out of bed and took off running! You could see the relief. You could also see the difference in her foot's appearance. It's crazy!
She said "Look! My foot doesn't hurt anymore! Watch me jump! Watch me run!"
She hasn't slowed down since!
We are so relieved to have put this journey behind us. We haven't had a single flare-up! We will be back for annual checkups to make sure everything is in order, but things are looking up.
I'll say it again! Never (ever) doubt your intuition as a parent. This was a long journey, but so worth it in the end to see the relief for our Everly and for her to live a normal life free of pain.
Now we wait for the bill.....yikes! But it's worth it!
That's the official diagnosis from the specialists at St. Louis Children's Hospital. The first question we had was if our daughter would struggle with this forever. All of these thoughts start to run through your head. Will Everly always struggle to walk? Will she ever be able to play soccer or take dance? Will she always have flare ups? Will this affect her for life? Will she have to be medicated? What are the side effects if so? A million questions begin streaming through your mind as a parent.
Well I am thrilled to report that her arthritis diagnosis isn't chronic! Knowing that was the case, the doctor gave us two options. The first option involved a steroid injection in the foot. 50% of patients who receive the injection see relief in 2 days. I liked those odds! Should we choose to forgo injections then our next option was to medicate for up to a year, until the arthritis cleared. The medication of course comes with side effect risks.
We were willing to take the gamble of the 2 day relief option, so with that choice, we were given an appointment to have the procedure done. We marked our calendar and made the drive back to St.Louis. Everly was not thrilled to be back in the hospital, that is for sure. What toddler really is happy to be there though?
We were taken back to a procedure room. Everly was given laughing gas for the procedure. Standing by your child, holding her hand as she is put under never gets easier. As strong as I tried to be, I couldn't help by cry as she squeezed my hand and screamed under the mask. It took about a minute and she was no longer coherent.We were taken to a waiting room and my nerves were on high, but it wasn't ten minutes and she was done! Everly has no recollection of the procedure itself! The only thing she remembers is that mommy wasn't standing there when she woke up. We were discharged and left with the hope that relief would be in sight!
We kept Everly off of her foot for the first 24 hours, a REAL challenge for a three year old! You don't realize how often your kid goes potty! Just saying!
The following day, Everly woke up and hollered down the hall "Mommy! Is the medicine all the way through my foot yet?"
I said, "I think so honey! Try walking!"
Everly hopped out of bed and took off running! You could see the relief. You could also see the difference in her foot's appearance. It's crazy!
She said "Look! My foot doesn't hurt anymore! Watch me jump! Watch me run!"
She hasn't slowed down since!
We are so relieved to have put this journey behind us. We haven't had a single flare-up! We will be back for annual checkups to make sure everything is in order, but things are looking up.
I'll say it again! Never (ever) doubt your intuition as a parent. This was a long journey, but so worth it in the end to see the relief for our Everly and for her to live a normal life free of pain.
Now we wait for the bill.....yikes! But it's worth it!
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