Mr. Prince and I met with the pediatric neurologist this morning to go over her MRI results from last month. Unfortunately, I left with little answers to my questions and a little more anxiety about her condition. But, I'm trying hard to not be swayed by the medical side of it, knowing that God is truly in control and has the power to change anything we can see on a test. Yet, there is much pain knowing that something significant has happened to my little girl from just a few scary moments in the hospital. It's amazing that with today's technology that children can still be victims of birth trauma even while they are in the hospital under constant care. Life just gives us no guarantees, does it?
The neurologist started out by saying that there was severe brain damage done. She showed us the images of her MRI, which were very hard to understand at first. They splice the brain every few millimeters and take a photo. In the bottom left corner you can see what splice the photo is being taken of.
This is an image of Myra's brain. You can see the ventricle (area in the middle consisting of fluid) take up a significant amount of her brain matter. Also, all around the ventricles there are dark areas that indicate brain damage, and fluid has collected in those areas as well.
In this next photo from a different angle, you can see the enlarged ventricles and the dark areas of damage also.
Most of her damage is in the back part of her brain. They said the area that interprets vision is in this area, but PRAISE GOD, Myra CAN see! That is one thing they are still amazed about.
The neurologist basically said that she expects this damage to affect her speech, motor abilities and learning to some degree. She said she can't predict to what degree. She said Myra will continue to be at high risk for cerebal palsy, seizures, infantile spasms, and mental retardation.
We also talked about why her head was not growing. She said there is so much fluid and room for the healthy white matter to grow, that it's just not putting pressure on the skull. She said she doesn't know when it will, either. She also said in a previous appointment that if her head is small, it's just small. They don't do anything to make her head look normal. She said even if the skull fuses, that they wouldn't do anything because of the severe damage. Yet, my pediatrician said they can cosmetically make her head look normal even if the brain isn't growing, and that it would still be concerning if her skull fused at this point. I side with my pediatrician in that we would still like her to look normal and not add to the hardships she might have.
BUT, we are still expecting her brain to continue to grow and eventually put pressure on her skull. We know her brain/skull will always be smaller than average, but a 3-year-old with a head the size of a two-year-old isn't as concerning as a 3-year-old with a head the size of a newborn. So, we'll just have to see what comes. And keep praying about her brain growth.
I think I did well in taking in this information KNOWING this is not the full story or scenario, KNOWING that brains are very spectacular in how they heal and make new pathways after damage, and KNOWING that my God can do ANYTHING!
A week ago at a healing prayer service at church my head pastor prayed over Myra and he and Mr. Prince felt Myra's skull move. Later, after examining her head fully, I realized that a part of the overlapping suchers had smoothed out. I rub her head everyday, and that evening during service was trying to memorize the structures of her head so that I would KNOW that something had moved. It was VERY clear that a certain part has smoothed over. So, I believe that was God's reminder that He's not done dealing with this matter. And, that was not the first time my baby girl has been touched by God's very hands...
Like the Israelites in the desert, I need to remember all He has done for Myra so far. He made her heart beat after resuscitation. He didn't have to do that. He made each one of her organs begin to work perfectly after the doctors told us none of them were working properly. She is moving all of her limbs, she can see and she can hear. He made her suck/swallow/gag reflex come back after 3 weeks! He has healed her tremors and her seizures are controllable, if not healed. I've read about, and have met families with conditions much worse than hers. I even had a cousin who was completely immobile and died prematurely. We are blessed. We also have four perfectly healthy children. We are extremely blessed. And I give God all the Glory for that.
All that said, in my search to find a normal infant MRI scan tonight online, I came upon this story. I believe God orchestrated this search so that I would be encouraged.
This scan actually looks much worse than Myra's scan. The ventricles take up almost all the white matter. You would think this person was very disabled. Not so. Read his story
here. This shows that no matter what this scan shows, we can still have hope, even from a medical standpoint!
But, I have put my hope in an Amazing God.
Will you hope and pray with me? I believe the prayers of many is what pulled Myra through her hardships in the hospital. And, I believe if we pull together and pray for Myra's brain like we did for her life, God will move greatly to show ALL those people what He is capable of. Please continue to pray for Myra. For her to stun all the doctors with her capabilities, for her brain to heal and create new pathways, for her head to grow. For Him to heal her completely.
Matthew 7:7-11 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Matthew 18:19-20 "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."
Matthew 21:22 "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."
Mark 10:27 "Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
