My Son, My Hero
Tougher than most...
Thursday, December 13, 2007 by messiah1 | Discussion: WinCustomize Talk
Well...after getting on the internet and looking up a few things we took our son Ethan to the doctor on Thursday due to some unusual nasty bruising he was getting all over his body. We were sent directly to the hospital for some blood work. We were told to stay put and wait. We were then sent back to the doctor where he informed us that he was pretty positive he didn't have leukemia but thought he may have what's called ITP (Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura) and that we needed to get him up to Lutheran Hospital ASAP to see a hematologist, Dr. O'Brian. They would be waiting for us. Let me tell you what....when you can get in to see a specialist without an appointment like right now you know it's serious.
Once we got to Lutheran they took more blood and we found out that ITP is a bleeding disorder caused when your body's defense system mounts an attack and destroys healthy blood platelets thinking they are disease-causing agents. Well, your platelets maintain the integrity of the blood vessels and basically keep you from bleeding to death when you get an injury. A normal platelet count is 150,000 to 400, 000. Anything less than 10,000 is considered an emergency. His count at Huntington was 10,000. By the time we got to Lutheran it was 7,000.
He was admitted into the children's hospital and given an IVIG, which is an infusion of healthy plasma that lasted about six hours. Besides taking his blood four times (a lot of it I might add) and having to put in an IV five times (he pulled out two in his sleep, two veins blew, and they had to put the final IV in his foot which meant he could not get out of bed for about 24 hours); one of the side affects of the IVIG is nausea. So he spent most of the day Friday puking everything he ate or drank back up so they ended up hooking him up to fluids. By Friday night his platelet count was up to 30,000 and by Saturday morning 85,000. They let us come home then. Now....we wait....and see if his body is going to maintain a normal platelet count. He has to go in once a week for a blood test.
During this whole ordeal Ethan was so brave and seldom cried and never had to be held down while everyone poked and prodded him over and over. It was so heartbreaking for us to see him go thru that but we were so proud of him for being so brave. We were told he may never have an episode again or he may have to deal with this his whole life. We'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime he has to take it easy. No craziness. Like jumping around on the furniture or from one bed to the next or basically anything a rambunctious three year old boy loves to do because of the chance of injury, especially a head injury. If you have a three year old boy you know that is easier said than done.
Why post here...I need to vent. It's frustrating for me to have to see my child go through that. All the while they were sticking needles in him, to see him look over at me with his pleading eyes seeming to say "Daddy, they're hurting me." And I couldn't do anything because I know that they are helping him...
He's a trooper. He's my hero.
Once we got to Lutheran they took more blood and we found out that ITP is a bleeding disorder caused when your body's defense system mounts an attack and destroys healthy blood platelets thinking they are disease-causing agents. Well, your platelets maintain the integrity of the blood vessels and basically keep you from bleeding to death when you get an injury. A normal platelet count is 150,000 to 400, 000. Anything less than 10,000 is considered an emergency. His count at Huntington was 10,000. By the time we got to Lutheran it was 7,000.
He was admitted into the children's hospital and given an IVIG, which is an infusion of healthy plasma that lasted about six hours. Besides taking his blood four times (a lot of it I might add) and having to put in an IV five times (he pulled out two in his sleep, two veins blew, and they had to put the final IV in his foot which meant he could not get out of bed for about 24 hours); one of the side affects of the IVIG is nausea. So he spent most of the day Friday puking everything he ate or drank back up so they ended up hooking him up to fluids. By Friday night his platelet count was up to 30,000 and by Saturday morning 85,000. They let us come home then. Now....we wait....and see if his body is going to maintain a normal platelet count. He has to go in once a week for a blood test.
During this whole ordeal Ethan was so brave and seldom cried and never had to be held down while everyone poked and prodded him over and over. It was so heartbreaking for us to see him go thru that but we were so proud of him for being so brave. We were told he may never have an episode again or he may have to deal with this his whole life. We'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime he has to take it easy. No craziness. Like jumping around on the furniture or from one bed to the next or basically anything a rambunctious three year old boy loves to do because of the chance of injury, especially a head injury. If you have a three year old boy you know that is easier said than done.
Why post here...I need to vent. It's frustrating for me to have to see my child go through that. All the while they were sticking needles in him, to see him look over at me with his pleading eyes seeming to say "Daddy, they're hurting me." And I couldn't do anything because I know that they are helping him...
He's a trooper. He's my hero.
 |
|
Page 3 of 10 | |
|
|---|
ZubaZ
Reply #42 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:05 PM
Reply #42 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:05 PM
Everyone, switch deities!!
Pray more!
{And now without humor - I wish again that I could do something . . my heart goes out to you}
Pray more!
{And now without humor - I wish again that I could do something . . my heart goes out to you}
vStyler
Reply #44 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:08 PM
Reply #44 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:08 PM
Man... (
Keep thinking positive, keep up his spirits and have faith..it's a powerful thing.
Keep thinking positive, keep up his spirits and have faith..it's a powerful thing.
rickalot
Reply #45 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:26 PM
Reply #45 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:26 PM
Sorry to hear that.
Hope you get better news next week after next visit to the hospital.
Hope you get better news next week after next visit to the hospital.
ArileenDesign
Reply #46 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 2:21 AM
Reply #46 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 2:21 AM
I wish we could do something.... anyway i keep you and your son in my heart and prayers.
Keep being strong for him, think positive (even if it's the hardiest thing to do in the universe when it's our childs).
It's your son and your hero, but for him i'm sure you are his hero too.
I wish you (with all my heart) all will working out soon
Keep being strong for him, think positive (even if it's the hardiest thing to do in the universe when it's our childs).
It's your son and your hero, but for him i'm sure you are his hero too.
I wish you (with all my heart) all will working out soon
starkers
Reply #48 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 6:10 AM
Reply #48 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 6:10 AM
I have a nephew named Ethan who went through some real rough stuff - losing his dad and getting hit/messed up real bad by a 4WD not long after - and I hope your Ethan comes through his problems as strongly as ours did. He was a real fighter when the chips were down, and it seems your young bloke is as well, but prayers and well wishes from the missus and I just the same, to help with all the positive vibes. 
wulfn1
Reply #49 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 7:25 AM
Reply #49 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 7:25 AM
My first thought after reading the first paragraph you wrote was "thank you God for giving Ethan's parents the feeling they needed to check on this "
Having raised three boys myself, I know you expect alot of bruises and bumps and more often than not you dismiss them as a rambunctious spirit.
Glad for devine inspiration.
Will be keeping your whole family in my prayers.Glad to hear Ethan is doing well.Get out the crayons and coloring books, and the finger paints... it's messy but it'll keep him in one place for a little while. ooh, and driving tiny cars with daddy on the floor will keep him semi calm too, and give you some special time.(went through chicken pox with a two year old and while it was only a couple weeks , I do know how hard it is to restrain those wild little spirits.)
much love and prayers,
Donna
Having raised three boys myself, I know you expect alot of bruises and bumps and more often than not you dismiss them as a rambunctious spirit.
Glad for devine inspiration.
Will be keeping your whole family in my prayers.Glad to hear Ethan is doing well.Get out the crayons and coloring books, and the finger paints... it's messy but it'll keep him in one place for a little while. ooh, and driving tiny cars with daddy on the floor will keep him semi calm too, and give you some special time.(went through chicken pox with a two year old and while it was only a couple weeks , I do know how hard it is to restrain those wild little spirits.)
much love and prayers,
Donna
messiah1
Reply #50 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 7:57 AM
Bloodwork from Monday shows his count dropped to around 20,000. He's scheduled for another IVIG treatment Wednesday...we wait...
Reply #50 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 7:57 AM
Any updates on Ethan?
Bloodwork from Monday shows his count dropped to around 20,000. He's scheduled for another IVIG treatment Wednesday...we wait...
HG_Eliminator
Reply #52 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:26 AM
Reply #52 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:26 AM
I hope all goes well and Ethan will be in my thoughts. Im hoping for a holiday Miracle for the lil guy.
Sincerely. HG
Sincerely. HG
I.R. Brainiac
Reply #53 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 5:07 PM
Reply #53 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 5:07 PM
Yeah,whats Christmas without a few miracles?
RoseNell
Reply #54 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 5:19 PM
Reply #54 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 5:19 PM
messiah1, What a nice looking son you have. I pray that everything goes well. Please keep us informed. I will say prayers and send good thoughts your way.. God Bless...
zakai1369
Reply #55 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:30 PM
Reply #55 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:30 PM
messiah1,
cute kid youve got there.
I buried my son when he was 9 1/2 (rode his bike through a stop sign). Its a thing noone should ever have to go through. I cant imagine what its like having a reason to worry every day that you might. I've never been the praying type but i hope for your sons and you and your wifes sake that he gets better and everything turns out fine.
cute kid youve got there.
I buried my son when he was 9 1/2 (rode his bike through a stop sign). Its a thing noone should ever have to go through. I cant imagine what its like having a reason to worry every day that you might. I've never been the praying type but i hope for your sons and you and your wifes sake that he gets better and everything turns out fine.
ZubaZ
Reply #56 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:34 PM
Reply #56 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:34 PM
zakail . . I'm very sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharign here. Family, ya dig?
J. Aroche
Reply #57 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:18 PM
Reply #57 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:18 PM
Man I just saw this, it sucks! I hope your kid gets all right man
zakai1369
Reply #58 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:18 PM
Reply #58 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:18 PM
Thank you Zubaz. I appreciate it.
But if others could refrain from commenting about my situation i'd appreciate it.
The purpose of this thread is messiah1's son and the purpose of my post was not to look for sympathy but to convey to messiah1 my sympathy toward his situation.
p.s. Zubaz thats a 1 not an L
But if others could refrain from commenting about my situation i'd appreciate it.
The purpose of this thread is messiah1's son and the purpose of my post was not to look for sympathy but to convey to messiah1 my sympathy toward his situation.
p.s. Zubaz thats a 1 not an L
elvee
Reply #59 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:28 PM
Reply #59 Tuesday, December 18, 2007 9:28 PM
Stopping by to keep tabs on the little guy's progress.
messiah1
Reply #60 Wednesday, December 19, 2007 4:00 PM
Reply #60 Wednesday, December 19, 2007 4:00 PM
Some good news...Ethan went in today for his second IVIG treatment and they did a blood test first. His count had rebounded to 38,000 on it's own. The doc said that he has seen that happen in cases before...the count will bottom out after a treatment and then start to climb on it's own. So my little buddy didn't have to get hooked to an IV for six hours and all that entails. We hope his count will continue to rise, he'll go in next Friday for another blood test to see where he's at. 
Thank you all for keeping Ethan in your thoughts and for the kind words. I love this place!
Thank you all for keeping Ethan in your thoughts and for the kind words. I love this place!
Please login to comment and/or vote for this skin.
Welcome Guest! Please take the time to register with us.
There are many great features available to you once you register, including:
- Richer content, access to many features that are disabled for guests like commenting on the forums and downloading skins.
- Access to a great community, with a massive database of many, many areas of interest.
- Access to contests & subscription offers like exclusive emails.
- It's simple, and FREE!
|
|
Page 3 of 10 | |
|
|---|
Reply #41 Sunday, December 16, 2007 6:04 PM
If you need anything or just need to vent... mylogic at msn dot com