Merry Christmas!

Thought I'd best write a post before Christmas and let everyone know what's been happening, if they are interested! The E Coli infection E had eventually went away but it took almost 5 weeks and 2 courses of antibiotics. It made her so poorly, she missed so much nursery as well. We thought after a fortnight she was doing really well until the infection came back, giving her headaches so the hospital gave her stronger dose of antibiotics this time. She was poorly for her 4th birthday, we had to cancel her party. Would have been her 1st ever one as well. Family came to visit though but she was miserable bless her. 2 days after that she was back in hospital. Apart from that and now a cold she seems loads better and is getting excited about Christmas! She loves all the displays in shops and keeps singing "When Santa Got Stuck Up The Chimney" which she's been learning at nursery. Luckily PM has been doing much better than her big sister. Again she's full of cold and 2 weeks ago had a trouble cough and ear infection which soon cleared up after a week of antibiotics from her GP. Luckily no hospital trips needed for her. Touch wood! She's settled into nursery now and enjoys going thankfully. Her speech is coming along at an amazing speed and her Makaton copying skills are awesome! E is finally using the potty sometimes during the day and so far only 1 accident at nursery as she couldn't get her tights off quick enough bless her. PM shocked us today to by doing her 1st ever wee in the potty! Girls will be seeing their eye specialist soon too so hopefully no bad news will come of that although they sad last time E's lazy eye was much worse than PM's so she might get a new prescription for stronger glasses in a few weeks. Don't think there is much more to say really at this moment. Just got my fingers crossed the girls stay out of hospital over Christmas and stay pretty healthy.

When It Rains, It Pours.

That's our new motto for this family as when something happens it seems a catalyst for more stuff to happen. Since my last post E has spent a week in hospital with E Coli in her blood. She went in Friday night after being sent home from nursery. Temperature was 39.9 but after some Calpol she seemed to brighten up. A few hours later during bath time she started to shake, go pale and blue and then said she saw monsters. So we rang the renal ward and was told to bring her in for a check up. Few hours later she had been admitted, had bloods done and a urine sample. Find out later she had a kidney & urine infection which caused the E Coli to grow in her blood along with the infections and make her poorly. Took her in in time it seems as they said if it spread she could have ended up in ICU. Luckily she responded well to very strong IV antibiotics and had to have IV fluids too due to being dehydrated. She was in hospital for a week, took them a few days to get her temperate under control! Glad she's home now as its her birthday on Monday and would have hated for her to be in hospital for that. We had to cancel her party though as wasn't too sure when she would be discharged. During her stay she went for a scan to check her kidneys, liver etc. They noticed again she has an enlarged spleen and now they want yearly checks on it so they can keep an eye on it. They aren't sure if its Cystinosis related. In 4 ish months time she has to go back for an x ray on her Kidneys after being injected with some special dye to see if the infections have left any scarring on her kidneys. Hopefully not! She has to stay on the antibiotics for another 8 days but she can have them orally now, well via her G tube and she's having 2 bolous feeds a day. She even ate some yogurt in hospital. Seems staying there helped her achieve a few things as she also started drinking from a cup! The night she came home she did her 1st ever wee in her potty too. So proud of her. E's back in clinic in 3 weeks to double check the infections have gone and that she's doing okay. PM is doing pretty well, being a bit naughty lately but think she felt a little left out with all the attention Emily was getting. Soon as we where all home it was back to normal and they where fighting as usual! Think she's glad her big sister is back though, regardless of the fighting. Regards to other things, the girls Grandma was diagnosed with lung cancer and has been in hospital now for about 3 weeks and their half uncle died recently after a major heart attack and our over is broke! Anyway, have to go as the girls want to play outside so best go grab them lots of warm clothes as its rather cold today.

All's Well...

Girls recent trip the Renal Clinic bought more good news for them both. Both again had grown and gained weight. Both had pretty good Blood Pressure too. Love it when we go and its all good news. Bloods from the last appointment all came back too so no worries there. Except the results this time showed E's potassium level was a little low so now she's up to 18mls of KCL. PM is being referred to Physio soon as she still trips over her own feet a lot and her feet turn inwards. She's currently now doing her allocated 3hrs a day at nursery, she's still not too sure about it all but after a 10-15mins she's not too bad and enjoys playing outside. Nothing new there! E turns 4 in less than 2 weeks. Cant believe how fast the time is going lately. She's come along so well in the past 6 mths with her speech and other things. She loves dancing and singing, esp to Gangnam Style which is her new fave song lately. She's having a party for her birthday, I'm nervous no one will turn up and its the 1st party I've thrown so no idea what kind of things to do yet! Christmas shopping is all under way, most of the stuff that's been bought has already been wrapped so the girls cant see anything haha. Not much else to report I don't think. We are all full of cold at the moment but girls are just getting on with it, poor PM has almost lost her voice though. Sounds good but its sad at the same time bless her! Back to clinic in 6 weeks and eye clinic beginning of November :)

Late Update!

Well sorry it's been a while since updating. My laptop broke but have managed to get the app on my iPod touch! The girls are doing excellent lately, E was admitted a few weeks ago being dehydrated and generally unwell. She spent 4 days in bless her and didn't get woken every morning at 6am for bloods which we both appreciated. PM still isn't growing much and is full of cold again but apart from that she's doing well. She's started visits at nursery now and is enjoying them. Her speech is coming along beautifully as well. E is still loving nursery to and her speech is amazing now, she has loads of friends there :) No new medicines lately which is great but both their Cystagon dosages where upped, unfortunately neither of them coped well with the increase even when starting slowly. But apart from that everything is going well lately and my girls are still happy and relatively healthy! Clinic again in Oct to make sure and a few other appointments in between. PM does so well with her glasses she doesn't even settle at night unless she falls asleep wearing them! E lost hers somewhere but she should have a new pair next week hopefully. Girls now have another pet rabbit and 2 little hamsters. They love animals :)

May Update.

Well clinic visits are always fun. I say this totally in a sarcastic manner. Last clinic visit last week wasnt too bad though. Except again with the high BP's and the crazy old fashioned way of finding one and the use of a doppler on little feet. The Dr says Cystinosis patients dont usually suffer from high BP anyway so I dont get the point of all the big whoo haa about it that takes like 30 minutes but never mind. Girls where happy after being given a sticker. Surprising news that E now weighs 30lb!! Seems to have come on from no where, such a hugh improvement and an awesome milestone. She's also grown a few cms. PM the same, although not so heavy but gained weight and a bit of height. E's Cystine level was pretty high so an increase there in her medicine, now on 200mg every 6hrs. PM's was SUPER low, like the lowest its ever been we where so amazed. It was like she didnt have Cystinosis for a few seconds. Everything else came back pretty good as well. PM's x ray showed no signs of rickets in her legs/feet and they'll be checking her hips soon, mainly due to the way she walks/trips over a lot. Rickets is very common in children with Cystinosis before anyone comments about me letting them out in the sun or whatever, do some research! E's managing fab with her insoles, she has a review in June on them. Both doing well with their glasses but its a struggle keeping them on some days and PM has a habit of hiding hers, in pretty good places for an almost 2 year old. Took us 3 days to find them last week. They also started E on a new medicine, bringing her daily total to a whopping 10! Im sure over the years we'll beat that record at some point. PM still on 8, still a lot but normal to us. PM's going back to eye clinic soon, she seems to be having problems with her left eye so it needs reviewing. She turns 2 in 15 days!! Cant believe how fast that has flown by, she doesnt look big enough to be 2. Few more months and she'll be at nursery with her big sister :) PM's speech/Makaton is coming along nicely, she's trying to communicate more and picks it up so fast! She's a clever little monster. I never give these blogs good titles, never know what to put. So sorry its a bit lame. Not many people read it anyway so not too bothered lol. But I think thats everything at the moment. All is well that ends well as they say!

Highlighting Cystinosis & Being Honest.

A few weeks ago I recieved a message from a publishing company, interested in my girls story and available to get the story out there and highlight Cystinosis. Didnt think it would do much but any awareness is better than none, well to my surprise we where featured in The Sun newspaper and online via The Sun and Daily Mail. Lovely articles as well with some gorgeous pics of my girls together. Have also been told a few TV programmes might be interested but we are still waiting to hear back. While its nice they highlight the disease and get some awareness out there they never fully understand what Cystinosis is and what it entails 24/7. Most of the time no one even knows the girls are sick and that in itself can be a blessing, they can lead normal lives and be happy little girls. But sometimes, it all gets too much. For me, for them. Medicines every 6hrs including during the night. Near on impossible to do eye drops hourly during the day and preparing the machines/milk feeds over night, lots of nappy changes due to fluid intake. The trips to hospital, the blood tests, the x rays, the tears and tantrums. E getting so upset when retching from afternoon meds or saying her legs hurt or her eyes hurt or asking for the blinds to be closed as the sun is too bright at only 7/8am in the morning. PM always full of cold, sneezing, coughing, not sleeping well. No offence to anyone but until you live it day in/day out they have no idea of what goes on or seem to think these children are going to grow out of it all. If only it was that simple and easy! This disease has NO cure. It takes children away for their parents, loved ones away from families. It can make you blind. The medicine makes you even more sick, gives off funny smells and some children are bullied because of this which makes me very angry. Makes some children not want to take their life saving mediciation due to bullies. Some children have been home schooled due to this as well. I know some people with Cystinosis who are in there 30's and seen as miracles, told they wouldnt live passed their 10th birthdays but still fighting strong, still in some ways suffering from stuff like muslce wasting but healthy in their own little ways too. Some are mothers which again is a miracle, its very hard for anyone with Cystinosis to be a mother and so very dangerous for both mother and child during pregnancy. Its hard knowing your child is likely to be bullied, hard seeing them play with dolls and know deep down they might never get the chance to be a mother and you a Grandmother. Knowing there's a big chance you are going to outlive your child(ren). Know if your child doesnt keep taking medicines kidney failure comes much quicker. A transplant DOESNT cure these people. Cystinosis then affects other organs like the brain, liver etc. If only it was as simple as outgrowing it or getting a kidney transplant. There's simple things in life I cant enjoy like other mums, having your child climb into your bed when he/she is upset or scared or poorly. Mine cant do that due to being attached to milk feeds all night. I dont normally blog such personal stuff but feel like getting some of this out there today. I am so blessed to be a mother I know this, especially to 2 amazing little girls who make my life worth living. I wish Cystinosis didnt exist, I had never even heard of it until E was diagnosed and by then I was 7mths pregnant with PM. Ive lost count of the amount of times Ive had to literally pin them down for nasal tube passings or blood tests or G tube changes, lost count of all the hospital stays. The Drs and Nurses know us all, like a little family in a way. My girls are only young so I know there is so much more to come but we are also hopefull for new medicines, especially the delayed release Cystagon which will only need doing every 12hrs instead of 6 but there's the added worry of the NHS getting hold of it or wanting to. Cystinosis affects people differently. Some seem to have no other underlying issues whereas others do. So in some ways some suffer more than others. I dont like to use the word suffer but when your almost 4 year old cant even walk down the street without being in pain then its needed. E is getting a disablility pram in a few weeks as she's outgrown her normal one. Both girls are having hearing tests done soon as well and we are at hospital again on Thursday for Renal Clinic. Sometimes you feel like you live at the hospital or might as well do. It would be much easier!

Good few weeks.

Well the recent clinic appointment went pretty well. Both girls levels are looking excellent, G tube sites looking good and both had gained some weight and a little bit of height. E is now 13.5kg and 88.3cm while PM is 9.3kg and 77.6cm. PM had an eye test recently due to a squint, turns out she is actually very long sighted so she now wears glasses. First few days she wouldnt keep them on but now she normally only takes them off when she's tired or frustrated. We also mentioned about her walking as she tends to limp and stumbles a lot. Dr had a look and decided to send her for an x ray. We are just waiting for any news now really. E is still currentyl loving nursery and had adapted so well to the 3+ room, her speech is just amazing now. PM is due to start in September. She is currently seeing a portage worker who comes to the house to play with her, this has helped her confidence loads and she is also now trying to say words. We use a lot of Makaton which both girls have taken to, both superstars at it. Yes Mr Tumble is a firm favourite in our house, we all enjoy watching it and learning new signs. Both the girls due another eye test soon to see if the crystals in their eyes have improved, got worse or no chance. PM's had improved last time, unfortunately no change for E. She still hates the sun shining in her eyes so just had to stock up on sunglasses for her. PM is now in a big girls bed bless her, I didnt want her to at 1st as she's still so small but she loves it and sleeps loads better in her bed. She looks super comfy in it as well!

We visit the renal clinic now every 6 weeks. Just routine stuff mainly and never really expect anything eventful to happen. Until our last appointment there!
All was going normal until they checked PM's blood pressure. High 2 times so they said come back after you've seen the Dr. Anyway. we're in seeing the Dr who now thinks E has asthma and was given an inhaler and they think PM might also develop it as well. Not the easiest thing at 1st trying to get a 3 year old to take her inhaler through a mask! E had to have another chest x ray and she's getting special insoles for her feet soon as her ankles are going in but her knock knees don't look any worse, bad thing is they don't look any better either.
Then they test PM's BP again and still high so we get sent up the ward for manual testing. Cut along story short it was done 8 times until they finally got a lower reading. They even used a Doppler twice on her little foot to listen for the heartbeat! We had to get her asleep before the last test but luckily that didn't take long as she was shattered bless her.
It was quite an eventful visit to say the least. Then the pharmacy didn't give us a mask for E's inhaler so we had to go through the GP and they are pretty useless most of the time but alas, they prescribed her one and gave us another tube with teddy bears on!
She's fine taking it during the day when wide awake but when she's coughing at night and half asleep she isn't keen at all. Think she panics at the thought of having a mask put over her face. I know I would!
PM been referred to eye clinic about her lazy eye. E's back at the bone clinic to get her insoles fitted soon then again in 6mths for another review. PM might be joining her as she walks with a limp and to say she's been walking for a few mths now she is still very unsteady and trips a lot.
E had lost some more weight and PM was about the same so growth hormones still in the pipeline for PM.

Hello!

Been quite a while since I last posted so thought I best get on with it! We had a lovely Christmas although there was a day or 2 when we thought we would be in hospital celebrating. Both girls where poorly week before and E was admitted, they tried with PM to but the ward was pretty full. Took them 6hrs to get E a bed!
Her potassium was low at 1st then when that was fixed her phosphate went low so she was on drips most of the time. They both where given anti biotics and after a few days where much better! They do not manage well with colds at all, it knocks them for 6.
Both of them have also lost a bit of weight and we where having problems with E's button hurting her, she wouldnt scream and cry if you went anywhere near her belly. It was a nightmare getting her on and off her milk and doing meds. The community nurses didnt want to change it 'cos of "its costly" but we couldnt leave her in agony so we decided to change it ourselves. Its been better since although still a little sore for her but bet its been rubbing and thats what has caused the pain.
Missed PM's endocrine (growth) appointment, we didnt even recieve a letter so was pretty pissed about that. Been waiting for months and now we have to go on the waiting list again! Also missed her Speech & Language appointment, another one we didnt know about until a letter came saying we had missed it! Really annoyed me as well.
E goes back to orthapedics in Feb to see if her knees have got any worse or better. She has to go every 6 months for that now. PM still hasnt really grown bless her, she's 20 mths old and still fits in 6-9mth clothes! Only thing growing on E is her bloated belly lol.
PM has lazy eye as well so we are awaiting an appointment to see her special optician. Hopefully it will correct it self or she might need a patch over it for a while. She might also be starting nursery in September! She's become a very cheeky madame and has started hitting E back if E hits her!
Apart from that everything has been pretty good. Looking forward to the warmer weather when we can get out more and do things! Oh and MrD has finally started his driving lessons, so hopefully maybe by Christmas we might be driving ourselves rather than relying on Grandad! Yaaay.