Scared

Adam is at stake meetings tonight. I have the boys to bed early, so this gives me some free time to myself. I thought I'd try to back-track a little and explain how we got to where we are today...with Adam's health that is.

He has been suffering with UC (Ulcerative Colitis) now since May 2001...that's 8 years. And I do mean suffering. Constant diarhea. He has to go to the bathroom several times during the day, and usually up 4-5 times at night. He has tried so many meds we can't even remember them all. He has had remicade infusions, and tried a few diets. He's even gone so far as to give himself enemas.

It has been 2 years since his last scope, and I think almost as long since we've seen K (his gastrointerologist).

Last fall he contracted a virus that nearly killed him. He lost about 25 lbs., and has not gotten his strength back since.

A few weeks ago we had our Stake Conference with a visiting General Authority. Long story short - the General Authority told Adam he needed to call a Dr. Doty at the missionary department. He said there were some meds that they give missionaries who come home from foreign countries to kill all sorts of bacteria, bugs, parasites, ameobas, etc. Dr. Doty referred us to Dr. Hale at the UofU, whom we had seen back in '06. We spent about an hour giving him Adam's history, and he ran a bunch of tests. Now here's the kicker. He told us that since Adam had been suffering so long without relief, he would recommend getting his colon removed.

We had told ourselves we would only consider this option as a last resort, and hadn't thought of it since our first visit with K...where she did suggest it. Suddently it all seemed clear. We believe that General Authority was ispired to send us that route so that we would once again consider removing his colon as a viable option. It also sent us to see K again.

Our visit with K was informative and eye-opening. When she walked into the room she couldn't believe how sick Adam looked. She actually used the "c" word, and said that it is a high possibility the longer he suffers from the disease without responding to treatment. She was actually glad we had decided to look into removing the colon. She requested a bunch of labs.

....turns out Adam is not producing enough Prolactin, which is related to having low testosterone levels.....this indicated that the pituitary gland is not functioning properly. So..naturally that means MRI. She also ordered a Chest X-ray. We are scheduled for the MRI and a scope on April 17.

Since Adam's Kidney stone last summer he has been seeing the Urologist...he's the one who had ordered the testosterone test and discovered it was low.

So, we wait until the 17th. Hopefully there will be no tumors or cancer, and we can just proceed with meeting with the surgeon.

As I look back on the excruciatingly painful events that have taken place in Adam's life over the past year, I can't help but think it has all been to lead us to this catalistic decision. Without the kidney stone he would have not had his testosterone level checked, therefore leading us to the problem with the pituitary glad. Without that awful virus we probably would not have gone to see K or even think about colon removal as an option.

Or perhaps his body is telling us it just can't take any more!

Now...we are just scared. The not knowing is the hardest part.

Adam..you are the strongest person I know...I love you!