A Gift from God (part 3)

Many questions kept swirling round the wife’s mind. Will her precious daughter be able to accept her physical disability when she grows up? How will she look after herself in old age, should she suffer from a severe form of OI? How much will she need to pay for her medical care in future? Will her siblings be willing to take care of her when her parents leave this world? Will she be ridiculed by her friends when she starts school? Will she be able to even start school? All these questions could not be answered at that time.

Fortunately, the baby did not suffer any fractures during that fall (mentioned in the previous post). The mother observed that this baby had a very high tolerance level for pain. (The baby never cried after each vaccination.) But, she also noticed that this baby hardly smiled. She wondered why? Was her poor baby in so much pain that she could not even smile? No one knew.

At about one year of age, they noticed that the child had very bow legs and was pigeon toed. A visit to the specialist indicated that her left leg was shorter than the right by about one to two cm. They were told that the child could end up walking with a limb if this difference increased significantly. If it was a small difference, special shoes could correct the difference. With this, the Mum started a series of leg massages for the child every day. Not certain that it would work, but praying that whatever little they did could help the bow in her legs straighten out.

They tried to introduce the child to a diet high in calcium - lots of fish bone soup. However, this child, with highly sophisticated taste buds, refused a common baby diet - no porridge, no rice cereals, no same food for two consecutive meals!! She wanted what everyone else was eating or she would not open her mouth. And, at 9 months!! The parents knew they had a difficult child on hand, even without the medical problems!

At 2 years, the child went for a bone mineral (BM) density test. Whilst there are no data on what the BM level of a two year old should be, the test indicated that the child's BM was not alarming low. Phew! It was a relief for the parents.

Whilst they are not able to buy any insurance for this child, you would be pleased to know, that the doctors have now concluded that she probably suffers from a mild form of OI. And, they are really relieved, coz this little girl, simply loves doing all things dangerous - jumping from stairs, sliding down from sofas, jumping on beds, etc.(just like her brother). She does not demonstrate any other symptoms of OI and goes to school and is disciplined like the other children. And, her femur has since straightened out, and her two legs are now of the same length! Now, she even goes on the slide!! You will be happy to know that she now smiles a lot!

She has brought lots of joy and laughter to her home with her constant singing, incessant talking and laughter. She has taught the family how to be thankful for all the simple joys in life, and to count their blessings.

However, the parents are still constantly monitoring the child, and on the look out for any signs that may indicate that life has handed them another screw ball.

After 3 years, her mother is now able to talk about it a little, without getting too emotional. However, there is one BIG question that is still constantly on her mind: Could it have been a wrong diagnosis?? No one knows. But the poor child will be branded for life as suffering from OI, and will always live with the uncertainty of when OI will rear its ugly head again.

This Gift from God turns 3 today! May God continue to pour his Blessings on her!