WHEW!!!!

An update from yesterday's post. My worry stopped once I got home. Wyatt didn't give me or my mommy instincts any reason to think something more serious was going on with his silly little self. He has been in great spirits lately. So, my ulcer that I gave myself while I was at work wasn't flaring as I cooked dinner, ate dinner, and finally sat down on the floor to play with my boys. Once the boys got to bed, Dale and I had a talk about what we thought was going on. We were both really concerned. I actually was able to talk about it without getting emotional and share my real fears with Dale. Wyatt has shown no signs of being sick in any way. His energy level is normal or above, he hasn't been coughing, sneezing, complaining of any kind of pain, hasn't had a fever, and he has been eating really well lately. The only thing that could go a little better is his weight and that lump to go away in his neck. Part of that made me optimistic, part of that made me really question what on earth that lump was doing there though. I surprisingly had a great night's sleep and didn't dream about it at all. That's what I do when something is worrying me; I usually have really weird dreams with some reference to whatever is on my mind mixed in. I got to sleep in a little and Waylon even joined me for some cuddle time, which never happens!

 

Anyway, as I was getting ready Wyatt emerged from his bedroom with a sleepy smile on this face saying that he needed to eat some "brefkist" before he goes to the dr. He was right so we sat at the island together eating our bowls of cereal and making silly noises. It was great. But, I did take another feel of that lump which was much bigger than last night even. Then off to the dr.

We finally got in to see the dr – no fever, a big weigh in of 30lbs 8 oz. Heavyweight : )! The dr felt his neck for awhile asked me how I found it, asked about any fevers or sores on his face or neck, and his energy level. Nope, nothing, I told him. Then he took a look down the skinny boy's throat, "WHOA! There is something going on down there!" Me: on the verge of panic attack but decided to hear what he had to say before completely going into heart failure! "His throat looks horrible, streppy even." He should be telling you he has a sore throat unless he is some kind of stellar kid and can take the pain. I've asked him several times in the last week if his throat was hurting and his answer was always no.

 

Last night when I was talking to Dale I told him I probably wouldn't be satisfied until we had some kind of blood work done to make sure everything was ok, but by the dr's reaction I felt relieved. I told him that I had been really worried about it and he knew what I was referring to. Showing signs in the lymph node under the chin is a rare place for Lymphoma or Leukemia to show 1^st signs. It happens, but it is rare. He put him on an antibiotic to treat his "sore" throat before it got any worse in hopes that the lymph node would go down or stay the same. If it gets any bigger in a week's time then we will do some blood work. In reviewing his chart, the dr said the last time he was there for a fever he had a red throat, a swollen right tonsil and a swollen right lymph node. So, it looks like that lymph node is just being reactive to anything that is going on in his throat whether he is showing any other signs of sickness or not.

 

Boy, what a relief. I can breathe a little easier now and that ulcer isn't burning as bad. I feel so much for parents that have to live through a constant battle of illness. I can only imagine what that does to a person to see their child struggle through things. For a long time I have lived with the attitude that it can happen to me and why not. It is one of my biggest fears and I hope it never comes true or hits close to home. Maybe it seems silly to some that I panicked over a small lump in his throat, but I read these blogs and hear some of their pain when it comes to taking care of their child who was dealt a bad hand, I just wanted to be sure. I don't know what I would have done if I didn't check it out and then we found out later that something was brewing and I should have taken steps earlier to try to figure it out. I wouldn't be able to live with myself.

So, for now… Praise God! 1. For my healthy STELLAR of a boy and 2. For the peace in my heart and mind