The Journey so far

If you are reading this, thank you.  You are the love of Christ. 

Tracy, Drew and I started this journey over a year ago, right after we returned from a mission trip to Jamaica. 

God did mighty things through us while we were there. However Tracy started losing a lot of weight when we got back. She started seeing doctors in September of last year about it.  The weight loss continued and over the last year, we have seen, I think 12 doctors and God only knows the number of tests and needles, with no conclusive reasons for her extreme weight loss, which is now at 65 pounds.

Three and a half weeks ago she woke up with vertigo and spent a day and a half in the hospital.  The vertigo hasn’t subsided.  It has led to blurred and double vision (of which has caused Janice (Tracy’s sorority sister) to have Foreigner’s “Double Vision” on her mind, she says luckily not her lips).  But the worst part is Tracy’s hearing has become so sensitive it sent us back to the ER, this time for three days and nights.

Prior to this last ER visit she had a scope of her small intestine, which looked good to the doctor, Dr. Dahlstedt, but he thought he should take some samples as long as he was there (remember this).  We had been praying for wisdom for everyone involved with her care and answers that we could do something with.   He then ordered a CT scan of the abdomen that showed something he thought looked suspicious.  So he ordered an MRI of the organs in the abdomen.  This also was negative and she was released from the hospital Friday evening 11-11-11.

Late Monday night, 11-14-11, we received a call from Dr. Dahlstedt.  He said the biopsy he took revealed answers. Tracy has b-cell follicular lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma) and that it is very treatable.  We got what we prayed for -- an answer.  It isn’t the one we wanted but it is the one God gave us.

Yesterday we visited Dr. Folbe, the hematologist who will be directing this fight for us.  Because of Tracy’s lack of strength and weight, he is going to be treating her with Rituxan, an immunotherapy. She will have treatment once a week for four weeks and then be reevaluated.  Hopefully during this time she can gain some strength and weight.  We start this Friday, 11-18-11. 

God only knows the number of prayers that have been said for Tracy and Drew and me and I know he hears them all.  Thank you again for all the prayers keep them coming.

•  Please continue to pray for the doctors and everyone working with her.
• Pray for strength, courage, peace and confidence to kick this thing in the butt real hard for Tracy.
• Pray the same for Drew.  He has been my ROCK.  He has so much on his plate at school this year and is keeping it all together, including me.
• For me, I am not the most patient person, so pray for patience, comfort and peaceful rest when I can get it.
• Also pray for our employees as they continue to keep our business running strong.

God is good and He hears and remembers His people.

May God Bless and Keep you,

Rob