Lyme and it's co-infections are unique in so many ways. How many other illnesses have a tendacy to plague the whole family at the same time? How many illnesses go undiagnosed for not only years, but decades, causing symptoms to progressively get worse, misdiagnoses, and the associated emotional trauma with being sick and not knowing why, or even worse, having no one believe you!
Parents who are sick trying to take care of their sick children are in an overwhelming situation. Think about the time when you were bed ridden with the flu and then your children came down with it as well. How hard is it to take care of them when you can't even take care of yourself? Now imagine living that way for years, that is what it is like to have Lyme Disease even before treatment. Let's go even further into this scenerio. Imagine going through chemo, and then add to that your children also getting chemotherapy, and then stretch that out for three or more years. That is how it is to have lyme treatment.
There are so many choices to make, where to prioritize money, who needs the more aggressive treatment the most because you can only afford for one person to have it, and simple things like should I spend today's energy on the dishes, the laundry, or paperwork? Today, for instance, I (Holly) have chosen to do a newsletter for taekwondo, update this blog, and then go to taewondo and teach a thirty minute class. That is all I have done today (besides my quiet time with God).
Some days we have not choice but to extend more energy then we have. We always pay for it later, but there are times where there is no choice. When Ellen had to make an emergency trip to a hospital 30 minutes away I drove her, when Jenna had a difficult herx and was up all night I had to stay awake with her, when Scott has a big job on a day he isn't feeling well he still goes and pushes through, when Ellen is needing rest she still needs to care for Emma's needs on Emma's bad days. Going through this disease makes us wonder how much we could accomplish when we are healthy!
We choose, during this time, to focus on what's positive and also to be watching how God works in both big and small ways in our lives. We've had some really big prayers answered this week but also have had many small prayers answered on a daily basis. We are also so proud of our kids and how much strength they are showing. Jenna has been dealing with severe symptoms this week but remains determined to get well. Chelsea has missed a lot of school but is still determined to maintain high grades. Emma has been extremely anxious about her own health but has been utilizing coping strategies to keep her anxiety manageable. We now can include Jenna's husband Paul in our numbers, and he has been calm and consistent with Jenna while helping her through some tough days. The kids experience pain every day and often they are able to hide their symptoms from the rest of the world.
We encourage you to keep tabs on not only our prayer requests that are listed on the right of this blog but also watch as the answer to prayer list gets longer. Please continue to remember us in your prayers, God's strength and provision is why we have come this far and he will hold us through the rest of this journey.
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