Elliott Update

Elliott Update:

Based on what the Dr. can see from the EEG and UltraSound Images, His best guess at this point is a disease called WEST Syndrome... Don't get me to lying about what it is... Google it. That's what I will do.

We can't be sure until we have an MRI. The entire country only has one working MRI machine. It is in Douala which is 3-4 hours away depending on traffic. We are working to get an appointment for tomorrow. If we are successful we will leave Yaounde early tomorrow morning so that we can travel back tomorrow and visit with the Neurologist on Friday. He is pushing us to try to get the MRI before the end of the week.

Elliott has 2 ventricles that are severely enlarged and a third that is almost closed. This is making his brain to shrink. The MRI will also help us to see if there is anything else going on that we can't see from the previous tests.

He is on anti-seizure medication for the next 7 days. He has too many seizures throughout the day to count. At the end of the week, we will repeat the EEG to see if there is better brain activity. If this medication works, the Dr. will give us a long term treatment plan. If it does not work, then we will be hospitalized for several weeks in Yaounde while Dr. Mbassi treats him as an in patient.

Despite all that he has been through, our boy is a trooper. He smiles in his sleep and loves on us during the day. He loves to give Elliott kisses. It's the sweetest thing... Now if I could just get him to sleep at night instead of all day. Life would be fabulous!

Please keep praying. With any diagnosis, we need God to work a serious miracle in this baby's life. I'm so glad that we were able to catch this before we lost him. Thank you all for your prayers, your financial giving and your emails of encouragement. It is all greatly appreciated.

This is by far the hardest thing I have ever encountered. I was a Foster Parent in the U.S. and I only worked with Special Needs and Medical Needy Children and nothing I saw then compares to this. My heart has been overwhelmed. I'm grateful for my friends both here and abroad who have allowed me to "cry on their shoulders," allowed me to vent, and prayed for me and my sanity!

I am so-so grateful to my Cameronian family that has watched him so I could sleep, helped me get laundry done and found someone to clean the house while I attended to so many other things. Special thanks to Bessie, who has given up her real job for a few days to help with the kids and act as a translator because we are in the French Speaking side of the country. And a very big thanks to my partner in crime, Sherri who has been "sharing" Elliott through this entire journey.

Thank you to all of the Dr.'s around the country and in Ghana and the North Eastern part of the country who have and are still consulting to be sure that we don't miss anything and that our boy is getting the best care possible. Big, Big thanks to Dr. Jeff... WOW - your input has been invaluable. Elliot sends you big hugs and kisses. There aren't words to thank you.

Thank you to my church family that is always there for me and the many people that I encounter that need help.

I love you all.

This renews my passion to see the Medical System in Cameroon changed and drives me to work towards building our Medical Clinic here. Dr. G and I have been brainstorming for several months about a plan to recruit Doctors and Nurses to see the children at the Orphanage monthly to ensure that they are getting the help that they need. We will be meeting again whenever I go home to start this work as soon as possible.