Lucia and Cephas Surgery Updates

  I promised an update to so many of you so long ago......

It seems my moments keep slipping by me.  So before I close my eyes for the night I wanted to check in here and thank all of you who pray for our family and who love us so purely!  Truly, I feel so grateful for the encouragement many have poured out over Lucia since the beginning of the year.

Lucia......sweet, sweet Lucia.

She is hanging in as best as she can.  She had lost weight since surgery and our ride home from the hospital - 6 hours - from St. Louis was tremendously challenging.  She vomited most of the way and we ended up taking her back into ER in the middle of the night to get her pain level under control to stop her. 
Lucia with Dr. Luhmann...the doctor who did her back fusion surgery
After two very intensive weeks, she finally began to smile again.  Oh how I had missed her smile.  She has several weeks to go yet still in her body brace.  The official date we can toss it out is May 10th.  She just had her check up on February 21st and the doctor says everything is going well. 
With Dr. Tam Williams - her pulmonologist (I LOVE HER!)
She will return to the hospital for her next check in July at which time she will meet with orthopedics about her hips.  Her greatest pain isn't in her back right now, it's actually her hips.  She has bone on bone rubbing and finding her right position is sometimes difficult.  She has some very big goals.  She told her dad at bedtime the other night that she plans on doing gymnastics!  Until then, we are anxious to see her sitting upright.  She can't come higher than 30 degrees angle and she can't tolerate much stretching.  Because her bones are so soft the doctor has ordered she be still to allow her bones to attach to the hardware well.

Cephas also had a big appointment on the 21st with orthopedics and he will be having both of his legs amputated at the knee on April 21st!  We are all excited about this....him too.  His legs have just been in the way of all he really wants to do.  Both legs, but the right leg in particular is so severely deformed with his foot completely rotated, his heel facing up and his shins curved from breaks and malnutrition. 

He is making HUGE strides!  He now does his own toileting and catheter.  He goes up the stairs and uses that bathroom to give HIMSELF baths....climbing in and out of the bathtub.  In order to come down the stairs he has to sit like a V with his feet up by his face and he slides bottom first coming down.  It's slightly terrifying as mom to watch but he really does handle himself well.  I'm not sure its the best thing for his hips but then again I dont know if he can do too much more damage there either.

So the big question everyone wants to know is if Cephas is going to walk with prosthetics.  We don't know.  His spina bifida is at the L2 level.  He has some quad muscles that work in his thighs but both of his hips are dislocated.  There isn't really a way to fix that at this point.  He has no feeling from his bottom on down and no glut muscles.  With all of that said, the doctor made it clear that about the time he tells someone they can't do something, they prove him wrong. 

He will start off with learning to get around and see what he does on his own on his stumps.  After that we will shoot for getting him up. He is so highly motivated!!  So yes we are believing with him for walking and we ask that you would join us in believing for his miracle too.  He knows he won't feel anything and he remembers his spine surgery this last September and feels good about that too.  We are told he will be in the hospital no more than three days and recovery is about 1 to 2 weeks so in the scheme of things it seems really quite short.  It will be all of the physical therapy and work afterwards that will be needed for him to reach his full potential.

Thank you again for praying and I apologize for not updating sooner.

Love,

Tina





Comments

Nicole said…
Thank you thank you for this update!!! God bless you...praying for Lucia and Cephas! So glad to hear that things are happening for them medically to help them! And the biggest thing-even more than the surgeries- is that you and your husband love them. And that is worth more than anything else. God bless you and your family!
Lisa said…
I love hearing updates on beautiful Lucia and handsome Cephas! Thanks for taking the time to let us in on how they are doing.
dannette said…
Thanks for taking time to update. I can't even begin to imagine how busy you all are. We are now looking at surgery for our little one, so hearing your updates give me a sense of peace as we journey through this part of getting our daughter's back straightened out. Prayers continue for all of you as you get both kids through the healing process and feeling so much better.
Anita said…
Thanks so much for this wonderful update. The smiles on Lucia and Cephas faces just say it all, what incredible kids! Always sending prayers their way.
Unknown said…
Tina, I sincerely thank you for the updates! I pray for your entire family as the love shown is well deserving of thanking Our Blessed and Holy Father. It's amazing how much Cephas has improved in such a short time, even with his poor legs. I hope this is not offensive, but I do offer extra prayers for sweet, radiant Lucia. My scoliosis was not half as bad, but I was treated the summer after my freshman year at college as no one back home accepted my pain as real. My right hip and knee were also damaged, but again not as bad as Lucia. If Dr Luhmann and Dr Williams concur, may I pass along that the biggest help I've had post surgery is wearing my brace if I'm sore. I notice the tension starting in my hip, then I wear my brace for a few days. It seems to reduce the pain faster. Additionally, when Lucia is comfortable with this and her team gives approval, a careful massage helps better than strong narcotic pain killers for me. I hope I'm not overstepping any boundaries. It just touches me to see how truly beautiful Lucia is, her pure heart for Jesus just glows from her.
Unknown said…
I hope both of them recuperated well from the surgery. How are they doing with the physical therapy? I wish both of them a quick recovery. I know you probably have a lot in your plate right now, but please keep us posted. Take care!

Javier Carol @ U.S. HealthWorks

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