Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Some Good, Some Bad :-)-:
A busy day for our little man and he is still fighting his very best. I guess we'll go with the bad stuff first today. Charlie had his hearing test and what we thought might be ended up being true. Charlie is deaf. His brain didn't show any response to the stimulus, noise or vibrations. They tested him with sound up to 100 decibels and we got nothing. But that’s O.K.! Whenever we hit a road block like this I am constantly reminded of my plea to the Almighty that I made 2 weeks ago when Charlie's survival was grim, and that is that if the Lord saw fit, please let us keep him one more day. I've made that same request every night since then. I didn't ask for him to be perfectly healed, I just asked that he would be HERE, and by damn my little stud muffin of a boy is still HERE! So yes the bad news sucks but Charlie is still with us and of that I'm very grateful. Good news. The little hair thingy's (that’s the Latin medical term) in his ear that pick up sound waves are still functioning in his left ear so there is a possibility that sometime in the future he might be able to get cochlear implants that could restore some hearing. Second, he had a repeat CT scan and his noodle is in much better shape now that we're draining the fluid for him. Third, he had a ultrasound of his wrist to investigate some swelling that was concerning and they suspected a clot. No clot. Fourth, his storms aren't nearly as bad today as they have been and he seems to respond better to meds and calms down faster. Fifth, he's had some good cries today that have made his old man very very happy. All in all it's been a good day and we are eagerly awaiting even the smallest signs of improvement. The Neuro-trauma Attending Physician (Attending = Big wig in Dr. speak) was in today and was hopeful that Charlie's condition would start some gradual improvement. She also commented on what a wonderful support group Charlie, Angel and I have and that sad but true a lot of patients aren't so lucky to have so many people that care, visit and support them. Charlie, Angel and I are very lucky and we are so very thankful for all of you.
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26 comments:
The GOOD NEWS is we will all be learning sign language starting NOW!!! Ive always wanted to learn to sign.
I am so proud of you two as parents. Charlie is a very lucky boy. I love you all very much. Grandma K
Oh and Rob, as far as that "Stud Muffin of a Boy"...The Apple doesn't fall far from the tree my friend.
I am proud of you Rob and I know that Mother #1, #3, #4, and #5 are too.
He conquers who endures. ~Persius
Hang in there Rob and Angel. We love you.
You are such an inspiration to us all. PS, I'll work on the Paypal account--that's a good idea!
I love you all so much. Hang in there.
I am with Troy, I have always wanted to learn sign language and now I have all the more reason to sit in front of the TV with Kit while she is watching her "Talking Hands" video. I am proud of you guys!!
Heavenly Father truly answers prayers. I just hope there are enough sign language teachers to accommodate us all!!
Love you all,
Stefanie
hi.
first of all i'm sorry for the hearing loss. as i told you b4 i lost my hearing at age 2 from maningitis.
today at 36 i am a father have an MA in Psychology i drive have an amazing job and will start vet school in the fall.
i treveled the world on my own and 10 years ago moved to canada and learned to read write and speak and then sign english.....so it's not bad at all.
charlie will have some adjustments to do and so will you. but being deaf will not prevent him from reaching his full potential. especially with amazing family and friends he'd been blessed with.
yours, shahaff.
(Hebrew in toronto)
am i that mother #5 of which you speak suz? i am proud, pleased and prayerful right now. i also pleaded with my heavenly father 2 weeks ago that we needed charlie, not his ability to hear. ryan is still signing "sorry"... i guess that is a start, right?
thank you for your posts shahaff...
Your post made me cry...you guys are such amazing, strong parents!! Charlie has touched SOOOO many people. This little boy has got a big purpose here on Earth.
I am so happy for you that CCC is making some great progress. I don't think that any amount of hearing deficiency will have any effect on this family. As you read thru the different comments, you know that there is more than enough love and support that this won't even phase the Christensen Clan. There are more than enough words coming from family, friends, and just plain strangers that Charlie only has to feel the love! We love you CCC and continue to pray for you ~ your cousins in Texas, Kelly & Johna
Caroline will start working with Charlie right away - she is the signing queen! Start Tivo'ing Signing Time on channel 9 (?), the kids all love it. I'm so happy for all his improvements! (My uncle lost his hearing from an illness like this 9 years ago, he was just implanted with a cochlear and it worked! It will probably be even more improved when Charlie gets one, like bionic hearing with super powers.)
Yes Meggie.....you are #5
Ok, so the bad news is pretty big. BUT, it sounds to me like there were a lot of positive things that came out of today--even one that might make the bad news good one day. You guys amaze me at your strength and fight for your little guy. You never give up and always have something positive to say even in a bad day. I am constantly thinking of you and praying that you will have many more positive days ahead.
Much love,
Jen McFarland (Grimm)
From Charlie's deaf Grandpa Barlow
Finally I get a grandchild that talks my language. Keep up the fight Coop - we have a lot of learning to do together.
Most of you haven't noticed something special has happened with Brtitton and me. About 9 or 10 months ago he developed a type of sign language on his own to be able to talk with me. Angel explained to him that I couldn't hear him very well. Britton said, "That's OK, I will still play with him." Then he started to use his own developed sign language. Now I can understand everything that he needs. Kids adjust - it is us old people that have a hard time learning things.
I love you Charlie. Grandpa Barlow
grandpa barlow is right, kids learn and adjust so quickly. way to go charlie! you are one tuff little dude.
Angel and Rob
I'm so stinkin proud of you. You are the best parents that he could ever be blessed with. You amaze me so much. I'm happy about his improvements, and he'll be the cutest little signer. I did sign language for about 3 years, you guys will pick it up fast, little Britty will do great too. And the cochlear implant is a great idea for the future, I've seen some amazing things happen in those cases. I'm just so happy that Charlie is still with us and improving. Keep fixing up your noggin baby Charlie!!!
-Sara L.
Come on, little Charlie. We're pulling for you!!
Yahoo! I have always wanted to be bilingual and seeing how Espanol was never my forte.....I have a feeling sign language will be my thing!
It seems I should be sad about Charlie's hearing loss, but you know, I just feel really blessed and comforted. Like Robbie said, he is still HERE, which would explain feeling blessed and I am looking forward to knowing more Sign than I now know.
I read Signing Times mentioned, Max and I have been watching our "Signing Time with Alex and Leah" DVDs again recently, now we will be watching them with more purpose!
I love that little Charlie, and love you too Robbie and Ang!
Thanks, Meghan, for keeping us all in the know on the blog and for coming all the way to Disneyland to give me an update! I know that must give R&A much less to worry about knowing they can do the blog sometimes, but when they can't, you are doing a great job! Thanks Girlfriend.
Ann(abelle)
PS- I meant to comment on Grandpa Barlow's comments. He is a great Grandpa for any kid to have. Now that Max has only one Grandfather, I feel blessed he has one who loves his Grandkids so much and wants to be so involved in their lives. Grandpa has a special connection with each of his Grandkids. Max and Grandpa have the "Snakes eat Birds" (Diamondback vs. Cardinals) connection (kind of like the U vs. BYU). His connection with Charlie will be that he does something for Charlie that he wouldn't necessarily do for himself, learn Sign Language. Thanks for being such a great Grandpa and caring so much for all the kids. We, and they, all love you.
Ann(abelle)
Hello, My name is Shyla.I found your site from the Herrin Twins website. I visited a while back and I am glad tosee that your family is hanging in there. I am praying for Charlie too. I have disabilities also and have been amazed @the love you have. Some families struggle alot. Iam sure of one thing! Charlie and Britty will not fail in life!!
Your attitude about Charlies hearing loss is so amazingly healthy. It is a great blessing that he has made it this far. He is a strong little guy with very strong and loving parents and family. My daughter had to learn sign language as a toddler/preschooler because her severe epilepsy delayed her talking ability. Then when her baby sister was born and also developed epilepsy and developmental delays, she could talk to her baby sister with sign language. Kids pick it up so quickly, and so will you.
God bless this amazing family. Stay strong.
I am the mother of a son who lost his hearing at age 13 months due to meningitis. Although he was never as sick as Charlie has been, reading the blog brings back the memories of our time in the hospital and finding out our son was deaf. He was fortunate to have no other permanent effects. It has been more than 20 years now, and our son has had a normal life. Through my long association with the deaf community, I can tell you that deaf people are NOT handicapped. Technology exists today to make things so much easier for them to communicate with other people. I can't say I haven't had some hard times, but your post said it all - Charlie is HERE with you, and the rest doesn't matter so much. To all the wonderful supportive family members and friends, PLEASE follow through on the sign language so that Charlie will always have a place where he is understood - I have no doubt he will know he is loved. :) This doesn't seem to say what I really wanted, but I wanted you know that life with a deaf child can still be good. My prayers have been and will continue to be with you. God Bless you all, and Charlie, keep fighting!
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