Update January 2007

First and foremost we would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! We hope everyone’s holidays were filled with nothing but good cheer. We certainly enjoyed ours. It was the first Christmas we were all home and not in a hospital since Jenna got sick. We truly enjoyed it. With the exception of her seizure episode in August 2006, we have been free of hospital stays since March 2006. Yeah!!!! (I hope I don’t jinx us by saying that!)

Jenna did another round of Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments and did well. The facility where she gets the oxygen treatments also provides a type of therapy called Conductive Education Therapy. It is a type of therapy that “deals with multidisciplinary educational program focused on the child’s emotional and cognitive growth as well as motor function.” She seemed to really enjoy this therapy and did well with it. However, it is very expensive and it is not covered by the insurance at all. So we were limited to the amount of sessions she was able to receive.

She also had another video swallow done and everyone was happy with the improvement since the last one. Although, her progress is coming along very slowly she is still making progress and that is what is important. The doctors said it was going to be a slow and difficult process for her and it has been, but she is doing really well. Jenna is now vocalizing more in response to conversation with others. She is doing that more and more each day. She is going to be starting a new swallow therapy at John Heinz called Vital Stim. It is a relatively new type of therapy for patients who have developed a disability in swallowing/eating as a result of stroke, brain injury, etc.

Jenna had follow up appointments with her rehab doctor at CHOP, her orthopedic doctor at CHOP and her neurologist at Danville since our last update. She is continuing to receive the botox/phenol injections in her hands, feet and shoulders. These injections seem to really help her move along in therapy. They loosen up the muscles so that those particular areas can become functional again. For example, like using a pencil, sitting up straight or placing her feet flat on the ground. The orthopedic doctor says that Jenna is definitely a candidate for surgery for her scoliosis. However, he wants to put it off as long as possible since she is still growing. Her neurologist is pleased with her progress as well.

We recently switched Jenna’s outpatient therapies closer to home. Instead of us traveling to Allentown a couple of times a week with the weather so unpredictable we didn’t want to chance the trips. Hopefully, if everything works out, we may be able to start up again in the spring.

As far as the holidays went, Jenna really made up for missing Halloween for the last 2 years. She really enjoyed trick or treating and the haunted house. Mackenzie other hand could have done without the haunted house.

Christmas was really nice. Jenna was all smiles this year while we were opening presents. Mackenzie freaked with the single thought of Santa coming into the house. Brandon was pleased with the addition of Su (our new miniature schaunzer puppy) to our family.

Once again, I would like to thank everyone for keeping our Jenna and our family in your prayers. Please continue to pray for her. May God bless you all.

Here are a couple of updated pictures. I plan on including many more on the next update which will be soon.