We had our long awaited appointment with Dr. Bader, Logan's Geneticist, to discuss the genetic findings. I did not sleep the night before because I was so sure she was going to be the bearer of bad news. Although, there was a small little glimmer of hope that she would deliver great news.
When she called us back I was trying to analyze her mannerisms...the look on her face, the way she was walking, etc. I was making myself crazy. :) We sat down at the table and she had a huge stack of papers...and I honestly thought I was going to throw-up! She then gave me a comforting, sweet smile. She proceeded to inform Neil and I that there were NO genetic findings. PRAISE GOD. She said this was great news...but the only downfall is there is no explanation why Logan has the developmental delays and the ADHD. His developmental delays include social/emotional delay, behavioral delay, fine motor delay, and gross motor delay. His MRI and EEG came back normal. I was so glad to hear that. Dr. Bader was extremely happy and so personable @ this appointment. She was really excited with his behavior while we were in her office (thanks to the Intuniv). He played nice, didn't interupt, etc. She wants Logan to continue the Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy. After telling us all of this wonderful information she released us from her office and said we can follow up with our pediatrician from now on. Wow! Of course if anything changes she wants us to contact her right away.
We left this appointment excited that there were no findings, but also with the "what now?" thoughts. I just kind of shrugged it off and went into "get through the day mode." Logan also had an appointment with the Allergy and Asthma Center at 12:45, so that took my mind off of things.
We arrived at the allergist with somewhat of an idea what was going to happen...see the dr, get poked a bunch, get results, etc. We were a little wrong. Logan's first question to the front desk lady was "Am I going to get shots???" Her response was "Not today!" Neil and I looked at eachother thinking why is she lying to the poor kid? We went back into his office and the nurse charted his height and weight, asked a bunch of questions, and then asked if she could do a "pulmonary function test." This was a test for asthma. We agreed, but didn't really think it was necessary. She tested him twice and then took a break. Asked if she could test him again... Tested him two more times and said she wanted to do a breathing treatment to see if the test results improved. He did the breathing treatment and was tested two more times and she informed us that in that short ammount of time that his breathing had improved over 10 percent. We could actually hear the difference. It was odd! She then prepped him for the allergy testing, and believe it or not, the front desk lady didn't lie! It was a little plastic type grid that looked like these:
There were 8 sets of 8 that he had put on his back in a grid. He had a total of 64 allergens that were applied to see how he reacted. Out of all the allergens that were applied, he reacted to 5 out of 8 outdoor molds, 1 indoor mold, and corn. The doc came in and he was seriously the BEST doctor out of all the ones we have encountered over the past year! He asked if he could do a CT and an X-ray to view Logan's sinuses and chest. We went right down the hall and had these two things done and he was back into our room within 30 minutes. He informed us that Logan is indeed allergic to corn, the outdoor molds, and the indoor mold and also has asthma. Asthma that REQUIRES an inhaler twice a day. He presented us with a plan that includes: Advair (inhaler) once in the morning and once at night and Zyrtec (allergy med) once daily at night. He said he see's this ALL THE TIME. He said that the asthma is the leading cause of behavioral problems that he see's in his office and that if we do this regiment for a month he thinks that we will see a tremendous decrease in the behavior problems, he will sleep better, and he will not get sick near as much. They gave us a list of items to avoid (about 24 different things) that contain corn. I do have to say my husband was VERY skeptical of this entire appointment.
What did I do when we left? I headed straight to the natural grocery / co-op where my husband and I proceeded to argue the entire time about the cost of the foods and the benefits. I was pissed. How could he not understand that Logan needed this stuff? We were seriously at opposite ends of the spectrum. I was ready to send us to the poor farm so I could buy EVERYTHING in that place! After 15 mins of arguing I gave in and we headed to Meijer's where we had agreed to go shopping and compare ingredients. I hate to admit it, but Neil was right! We were able to find a lot of foods that didn't have any of those harmful (to Logan) ingredients in them.
So we made a "corn free" dinner and did our normal nightly routine. Neil still argued that Logan did NOT have asthma. Really??? They tested him numerous times to come to this conclusion and he didn't believe it! I was a little annoyed. Anyhow, we gave Logan his inhaler, and put him to bed. About 30 minutes after he fell asleep I snuck upstairs to check on him and guess what... No loud or labored breathing. The first time since my baby boy has been alive that I could not actually HEAR him breathing. It was scary! I went to tell my husband this info, only to find out that he had snuck up earlier than I did to hear the same thing...nothing! :) So, needless to say the doctor was right on about the asthma and my husband admitted it, too. I spent last night listening to see when his breathing was going to change...and it never did. It stayed quiet all night and he had his dose this morning. He slept 12 HOURS. I cannot recall the last time he has slept this well! I am one happy mommy!
Had it not been for my cousin Mary Ellen I would have never even thought of taking Logan to the allergist. I am so thankful to have such an amazing and supportive family. We are truly blessed!
Hopefully we are on our way to see bigger and better changes! At this point I am very excited and feel like we have finally accomplished something!
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