First off thank-you to everyone, for the prayers, thoughts, meals, cards, gifts, etc. and especially love! We love you all and Praise God I will be fine!
Last week was a lot of confusion for me but I know one thing definitively. God the Great Physician is all over this one and leading we through it with love and compassion.
Last week M-F we spent the week in Gainseville / UF and Shands Hospital at the EEG monitoring lab.
The Doctors were attempting to localize the seizures and defintively determine that they were coming from the area of the tumor. All of the Neurologists on the team and our Neurosurgeon all met on Tuesday reviewed the data (from the 24 hour monitoring) and agreed that they were not able to determine with certainty that all of my seizures were coming from the tumor. I know I was confused too!!!
They also said that they could not rule out that the symptoms I'm having on my left side, numbness in my lip, tingling in my hand, slurred speech due to lip twitch are not being directly caused by the lesion in my brain. So they advocated that I wait and see and not rush in to epileptic neuro surgery which is a serious form of brain surgery.
However Dr. Roper our Neurosurgeon believes that it is most prudent to wait and see what the tumor does as my major seizures have stopped and the symptoms on my left side are minor. We will do another MRI in 6 months and if the lesion grows or my symptoms change in any way then he advocates taking it out with surgery but does not advocate that at this point in time.
So in Gainseville's opinion wait and see what my symptoms and the lesion does after six months and be prudent about any decision for brain surgery. Sounds good to me!!
We already had a second opinion in the works at Mayo and are working on that for as soon as possible. We are also consulting other opinions in Massachusetts and California.
We were waiting to hear from the team in Gainseville and also had a second appointment with another neurologist here in Jacksonville on Tuesday December 14, which is why it has taken so long for an update.
While in Gainseville, some of the episodes profiled differently and could have been a combination of medication or other factors. Oddly enough as soon as they took me off the medication that they put me on 2weeks (takes two weeks to get into system) before this round of shenanigans began began. Anyway they changed my medication and I feel much better.
In fact my symptoms immediately improved when they took me off seizure meds which appears too clean to be just coincidence and I don't believe in coincidences anyway. Things that make you Go HMMMM!!!
When I mentioned that and said I thought it was the meds things got much less definitive and exact and we suddenly heard a lot of maybe and not for sures but anyhoo I feel better.
I've been seizure free for three days. Praise God for that. He's healing in radical ways. I feel strong again and finally like myself.
I know this post is long but a lot to say:
While we were in Gainseville God did some incredible things:
On Thursday Night we were going to leave and then in walks this woman named Jackie an anointed sister in Christ who I just know God sent. She had heard I'd be in the hospital from a dear friend at our church and if the whole week made no sense in the practical God brought it all together in the spiritual praying with her.
It was a Divine Appointment! God gave me a bible verse as we prayed Psalm 20 which when I read it could not have been more perfect. Julia who hardly ever gets words and pictures felt the Holy Spirit telling me clearly to " pick up my mat and walk.". Read earlier posts for reference.
If the Gainseville trip proved confusing and hard in so many ways this God prescribed meeting made the whole ordeal well worth it.
On December 14 I also went to Christian Healing Ministries here in Jacksonville after my doctor's appointment. The two amazing prayer ministers prayed for my seizures and for the lesion and let's just say The Holy Spirit came to heal and I walked out of there feeling like I could run down the street! I almost did!
I'm loved healing is happening, God is Good and if you are reading this... I love ya!
I can't wait till I can move around a little more and get to share this testimony.
Love and peace!
Rick has been dreaming of the chance to have a green mohawk at some time in his life. He had the chance years ago in college while playing in a band, but chickened out. Teaching at a small private school does not lend to the realization of his dream.....but having a brain tumor with likely brain surgery does. This blog will track his latest news, progress and with any luck a picture of his green mohawk.
To my inspirational, faith-filled, loving, kind cousin with the rockin green mohawk:
ReplyDeleteI'm filled with God's love as I write this. You are in my prayers as well as Julia, Trace, Auntie Donna, Uncle Dickie, Melissa, Bryan, Mia and Kaitlyn are also in my prayers.
Although there is the distance between all of us, my heart is close by.
Thank you for being who you are. Anytime I think of you I think of your smile, your faith, your beautiful wife and son and I feel so blessed to have you as my cousin. Your strength in your faith will bring you through.
I heard this Yolanda Adams song recently and it made me think of you:
The Battle Is Not Yours
There is no pain. Jesus can't feel. There is
No hurt that he can not heal.
All things work,[yes they do]
according to the master's purpose and His holy will
No matter what,
you're going through.
Remember that God only wants a chance to use you
For the battle is not yours.
It's the Lords.
There is no sadness
Jesus can not feel
and there is no sorrow
that the master is not able and willing to heal remember that
All things work they're not going to be all good but they shall work according to God's purpose and His Holy Will. No matter what, no matter what you're going through remember God sees all and he knows all and all he wants to do is use you
For this battle is not yours.
It's, it's, it's the Lords
(It's the Lords)
[till fade]
no, it's not yours, it's the Lords
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN26jw53c0M
I love you cousin!
Julz