We waited all day, but the doctor didn’t call…..I know he had a surgery this afternoon so perhaps it lasted a long time. Anyhow I was told to call first thing in the morning if I didn’t hear anything today so that’s what I plan on doing…
Hopefully we’ll definitely know something tomorrow….
I am so glad that today is behind me…I was not looking forward to the test today, but honestly everything went very smoothly. I saw God giving us peace in so many ways…from the nurse praying with Eddie and I before the test, to the doctor who was very thorough and made me feel so well taken care of, to the recovery time that although lasted five hours seemed to pass very quickly. Thank you for praying…God was definitely there with us today!
Although the doctor had not wirtten his report yet, he did share with Eddie that he thinks my aneurysm IS repairable!!! Praise The Lord!!! We should hear from our neurosurgeon on Wednesday and we eagerly await his interpretation of the test results.
God is working…wow I feel Him in so many ways! What an awesome God we serve! I am so thankful that God is one who will NEVER leave us…..what peace that gives me. As the nurse prayed this morning, there were definitely five people working on me during the test…one that maybe my eyes couldn’t see, but I truly could feel. We know He is in complete control….please continue to pray for our next steps. We love all of you…again you are so appreciated.
This week-end has been one of a lot of feelings and emotions. Friday was my (MM) birthday, and I realized so many things that day. First of all I have taken birthdays for granted…almost like I’ve been entitled to another year whereas really it is totally up to the Lord my time on this earth. I have had 29 years on this earth and what a privelege that has been! There are many who never make it to their 29th birthday and I feel richly blessed. Please know that I truly believe with all my heart that I have many, many birthdays ahead of me, but I will now celebrate them in a different frame of mind. They won’t be as much about me anymore…at least in my mind…they will be so much more about Him and His glory….I’m just in awe of the things He does through me that I’m so unworthy of…..being used by Christ to bring this world to Him is truly an honor for all Christians and how seriously we should take this calling. I’m sorry to ramble but just in the last week I look at things differently. From this moment on I want to live life intentional….I have a purpose…God’s given it to all His children and that is to show our world Him.
I have my next test on Monday. It is called an angiogram and it doesn’t sound like much fun :) The test will take about an hour and then I will be in recovery for 4-6 hours which then I will get to leave the hospital but will go home to rest for another 24 hours before resuming normal activities. I have been told that on Wed I should get a call from the Dr with the results from the test and he will better know what our next steps should be. We are not sure whether the Dr is God’s man for me but I am thankful that he has played a part in this journey and know that God has used him to reveal additional information for us. Please pray for specific direction for Eddie and I. God knows the exact team of doctors for me….may we trust Him 100% and be sensitive to His voice. We are already looking at some other options…like I said before, “doing nothing” is not an option and we believe that’s not God’s will in this…He wants to heal me and He’s going to….we just don’t know the when and how. Help us to be patient in finding those answers, because honestly I want to know NOW! God’s thoughts and ways are so much higher though and for that reason I’m ok with waiting..as long as He gives me the patience :) Please pray as well for me concerning the test on Monday. I have to be at the hospital by 7AM…I have to admit, I’m already nervous about it.
Thank you again for all your support….Eddie and I are truly humbled by the outpouring of this love and support….wow, it has been awesome to watch the Body of Christ come together in this! We have felt so loved by Christ through all of you…thank you for that rich blessing!
“With God, ALL things are possible.” I’ve had to repeat that statement several times since leaving the doctor’s office today, because honestly Eddie and I left with heavy hearts.
Dr Kanos is a very sharp, to-the-point kind of doctor, and we appreciated his honesty and thoroughness very much. I will admit though that hearing some of his explanation of the aneurysm was tough. He explained to us that this is not your typical normal aneurysm. It is a very unusually shaped aneurysm and it involves three different arteries in the brain. The only way I can think to describe it is that it looks somewhat like a three-way stop with a very broad center, and that is putting it as simplistic as I can.
So…how is it going to be fixed? That’s the part that was very discouraging. Our doctor is not sure if this aneurysm is fixable. I (MM) have to undergo another test and after that is completed our doctor will be able to tell whether surgery is even an option. He explained that it would be pretty tedious surgery because they would have to go in and somehow reconstruct the three arteries where the aneurysm is located. So we asked if surgery turns out not to be an option then what happens then? Basically nothing. It would be like living with a time bomb in my head….at least that’s the way it seems to me.
We really need a miracle. Eddie and I are in the process of trying to adopt a child at this very moment. If this aneurysm is not fixable then we know adoption won’t even be an option. Plus I don’t want to live in fear and walk on eggshells the rest of my life….we know God doesn’t want that either. We are refusing to accept the possibility that there may be nothing that can be done. We serve a BIG God who can do BIG things. We know that nothing is impossible with Him, and He can heal this in an instant. This is where radical faith comes in…..believing God for COMPLETE healing!!! He can do this!!! And I believe He WILL do this! Will you just please pray that this aneurysm will be fixable? Pray specifically for wisdom for our doctor, pray that God will help us trust Him 100% in and through this, and pray God will receive incredible glory from everything that is done. We truly covet your prayers through this, because Satan so wants to discourage us and for us to settle and be content to live with this for the rest of my life….nope, not an option. Our God is AWESOME and He’s about to show us yet again just how incredible He is!!! He is the GREAT PHYSICIAN!!
Today was an emotional roller coaster……I (MM) had a pretty crazy morning even before we made it to the appointment, and the appointment made it even crazier…..I guess you could say we feel a little beat up from Satan lately….
Basically after the doctor looked closely at my CT Scan today, he decided I would be best going with a neurosurgeon….he said where my aneurysm is located it’s pretty much out of his league, so he referred me to a doctor he puts a lot of trust in which means another doctor, another appt, more waiting… I was really discouraged in the doctor’s office after he told us that news because honestly all this waiting has been pretty tough. Thankfully though Dr Langan who we saw today asked that the neurosurgeon see my ASAP and they got me an appt for tomorrow at 2pm.
Continue to pray specifically for the right doctor…..I’m hoping Dr Kanos who we meet with tomorrow is it just so we can get moving on this….. I do believe God answered my prayer today though because all morning I prayed that after the consultation Eddie and I would know without a doubt whether to go with Dr Langan or not. Well, God totally did that and we walked out knowing he wasn’t the surgeon for us. We really liked Dr Langan a lot and he didn’t charge us a dime for our consultation which was so appreciated…he just wasn’t the one that God has picked for us.
Well that’s all we know for now. I pray that tomorrow we’ll know a whole lot more. Thanks for praying for us….those prayers are really appreciated.
Every stock shareholder likes to see what kind of dividend their investment produces. I thought you would like to see some of the eternal dividends that your prayers have produced as you are a shareholder in our current situation.
Thank you for being a link in the chain of our life changing process. Every time you invest in prayer for us or any one else, you invest in an endless chain of influence for someone elses eternity. Thank you!
Matthew 6:20
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Our doctor and her practice has decided that we need to be referred to a vascular surgeon. The little I understand, a vascular surgeon specializes in arteries which is very important since the aneurysm is located in one of the main arteries that runs through the neck and up in the brain (read the post below for more info). Our appointment has been scheduled for next Tuesday the 8th at 2pm with a specialist in Greenville, SC. Pray specifically for peace for the appointment….I’m already nervous and it’s still almost a week away!
I must admit that to me this is becoming more and more real. For the first few days I walked around in somewhat of a fog, but now that we have this appointment reality is definitely sinking in. It is somewhat terrifying but again I’m so thankful we don’t go through this alone. We have friends, family, and most importantly we have Jesus Christ. It really is a peace that “passeth all understanding,” because to have moments that I am completely at peace makes no sense to me in the midst of it. The fact that I have slept so well the last two nights again makes no sense. Prayer changes things and that is exactly what’s happening in this situation! Thank you again for your prayers…..we just can’t show our appreciation enough!
~MM
We got some good news today and some not so good….
The wonderful news is that there is only one aneurysm!! The place that they thought was an aneurysm turned out to be a place of bone with some air in it….and that was the one that was located pretty deep in the brain tissue so we are so thankful that that is not a worry anymore!! I know there were some of you that were specifically praying that one or both would disappear……Thank the Lord for answering prayer!
The not so good news is is that there still is one aneurysm that we’re dealing with. It’s about 1 cm in size and it’s located on the carotid artery. That’s the same artery that runs on the left side of your neck where the pulse is felt. That artery then splits as it runs up the head and one part goes left and the other right. The aneurysm that we’re dealing with is up on the left side of the upper head in that artery. We were told that if you had to have an aneurysm on the brain, then this is a good location and it looks like it is repairable.
So we’re waiting on next steps now. We do know that there will be surgery and most likely very soon. Please pray for our doctor as she makes some important decisions…pray for God’s guidance and direction in finding the right surgeon and deciding next steps.
We love all of you guys so much and are so thankful for all your encouragement and support. God is faithful and we have already seen His hand in this situation in so many ways! Thank you for your prayers….we covet them right now.
~Martha Marie