Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

[Guest guest]

Misty,

I can completely understand your feelings. ((((hugs)))) I would

have been scared to death with the coughing of blood. I guess it

takes a lot to rattle a nurse, though, who sees much worse.

They did give Jack versed when we were going into the OR - it helped

SO much. He was loopy and sleepy and didn't even mind being taken

away from us (which he has NEVER done, he's never been away from us

except during his MRI - sedated - and his cast). So, that meant a

lot. I'm really grateful for the versed - it's also an amnesiac, so

they don't remember a lot of it. I don't know if that's what she was

talking about, but Jack was 12 months when he had it and did great.

I wonder, too, if 's rotation has been addressed even if the

cast didn't hold the curve as well as we would have liked. But, we

did go from 64* down to 55* so far, so - I don't know - maybe that's

good. It IS progress.

But, yeah, I echo the sentiment of wanting to see more. We were down

to 38* in the cast and I'm so royally bummed that it didn't hold

better. I guess a few of us are looking at baby steps now.

Jack hates all doctors and nurses now, too, it seems. These kids have

endured so much already in their tiny lives.

Sandi &

[Guest guest]

Hi Misty and Amy,

My daughter Abby, now just about 32 months, went through a phase where she w

as absolutely horrified of the doctor! It all started after her MRI at

roughly age 1 1/2. I was a bit shocked that they didn't give her something for

the anxiety of having the IV put in. All they did was wrap her in a blanket

and hold her down...and they lost the blood return on the first try and had to

go to her other hand after fishing in her vein for a good 5 min. Needless to

say, she was hysterical at that point! Then about a week later we had her

casted for her first brace and again, nothing to calm her, we had to hold her

down, screaming, for over a half hour. Even just going to the doctor for a

well visit was a nightmare after that! They would go to take her temperature

under her arm and she would scream hysterically. Thankfully enough, Abby's

pediatrician is very patient and always took her time and tried to make Abby

as comfortable as possible...which sometimes meant I held her through the

entire exam. She has since gotten much better. We started to " play " doctor at

home a few times. I bought one of the little Fisher Price doctor kits. I'd

show her what to do and let her do to it to me as well. She loves flash

lights, so we'd play letting her open her mouth and stick out her tongue and

look

in her ears. Now she LOVES the doctor. She asks for her doctor by name and

can't wait to jump up on the scale and table and actually ASKS the doctor to

look in her ears and mouth! What a change. Even for follow ups with her

brace she is much, much better. She is hesitant, but ok with it. The last

brace that she was casted for a few months ago she did much better as well.

Still cried, but more like a whimper...of course, I always ask for the same

person so Abby trusts her a little now. Good luck to you both and hope it gets

easier for you both and your little ones. I know how heartbreaking it is to

watch them scream and cry out of fear. Sometimes I think its as hard on us

emotionally. Our little ones look to us to protect them and it's so hard to

explain at this age that it's for their own good.

Good luck again!

, mom to

Abby (32 months)

& Noah (8 months)

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Misty,

Haley is in out thoughts and prayers. One encouraging thought is

that the curve is not dramatically worse. Max got the best

correction in his first cast. When Max saw Miss Mehat in August

she did say if csting was going to help Max it would happen at a

very slow rate.

I'm not sure I understand the concept of keeping the child in the

cast longer if the cast isn't holding the curve in 4, 6, or weeks?

Max has been casted for 1 year and each anesthesia recovery

experience is different. Every cast change Max had the " happy juice "

before they took him to the operating room, exept his first cast at

12 months of age. I was angery they did not give him anythign before

htey took him back. I've worked in pediatirc healthcare for over 6

years and shocked they wouldn't give him anything even after i

requested it at the first visit. He's gotten it at every cast change

starting at cast #2 at the age of 15 months.

This last cast is when Max was the most sick and they even gave him

Zophran (anti-nausea meds-I had to take it when I was pregnant with

Max), but he still vomitted. He never vomitted before this last cast

was put on.

The hardest thing for us is Max doesn't drink any juice so it is

hard getting clear liquids in him. So the past 6 weeks we've

introduced apples juice, jello, & white grape juice. He's getting a

hang of it in small ammounts. He still doesn't like to drink a lot

of it, but hopefully it'll help during recovery next week. I'm even

bringing pedialyte just in case.

Max gets very hesitant around unfamiliar nurses, doctors, etc....I'm

not sure if it's his age, but he does not like being messed with. He

had a hair cut thursday (nearly cried thru the entire thing-a recent

development) and had his 2 year pictures today (I'm 2 months behind)

and he didn't want to come in the photo room. So, I believe he is

getting afraid of people moreso than ever, but we constantly

reassure him that we're with him, everything is alright, and he's

doing a great job. Always find something positive even if the

sitaution isn't positive, children need to know no matter how much

they cry or are scared they are doing great for even just

helping/trying! Positive reinforcement.

Max was very bruised after his last cast was taken off. In 7 casts

we never saw that. But by the next morning his skin looked great.

Hang in there....easier said than done.

Aekta

>

> Hi everyone,

>

> We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast

(her

> second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

> dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the

cast

> was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even

he

> was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

> was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve

to

> 18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

> He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

> cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st

cast

> did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation

much

> better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

> out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would

show

> some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was

going

> to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he

wants

> to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

> b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and

does

> the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

> VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast

was

> taken off.

> This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an

allery

> to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along

with

> anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

> reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very

nauseated

> after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

> her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

> very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

> upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of

you

> had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The

nurse

> wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually

they

> only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine

person

> anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

> help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

> your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them.

THANKS

>

> Misty and Haley

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Misty,

I can relate to you, My daughter Adelaide will be going into her 10th cast in

two weeks. She had a 74 degree curve when we started casting and we are now

holding in the 50's.

She always gets sick after anesthesia and it is always quite scary for me too.

Our biggest problem is that Addy has severe anxiety issues since this all

began. She is absolutely afraid of Dr's,Nurses, Hospitals, scrubs. She's

extremely afraid of anyone she doesn't know. She recently started pre-school

with her twin sister and they started painting the first day, the teacher tried

to put a smock on her and Addy climbed up in her twins arms knocking her over

and making them both upset. They called me in and when I got there she was

hiding under the table crying.Now I am the teacher's asst/volunteer in the

classroom and I stay with them. It's just so sad that they have to go through

all this and have such fear too. We do the " happy juice " each time but it

doesn't help they still have to have to pry her out of my arms at the

door,kicking and screaming. For me, I feel each time gets a little worse because

she is getting older now(3) and knows what to expect.

Does anyone else have children with anxiety issues or severe fears of Dr's and

Hospitals?

Misty, I wish you all the best with Haley. I wish I had some advice for you.

~Amy

mom to three amazing girls

(Ella 6, Lucy & Addy3)

mistyhld wrote:

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

---------------------------------

Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos.

[Guest guest]

Hey Aekta!

Dr. K and Dr. used to change casts more frequently (every 8 weeks), but

then Mehta advised keeping the casts on longer (12 weeks if possible). Most

casts actually hold the curve and you do get more correction towards the end as

the cast tightens up. But, it sounds like your situation is different in that

the cast isn't even holding Max's curve, so I assume the protocol would be

different if the child continues to progress in cast.

Still keeping my fingers crossed that your next cast at least holds the curve.

Noelle (12-2-01)

Ian (8-15-04)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

Haley is in out thoughts and prayers. One encouraging thought is

that the curve is not dramatically worse. Max got the best

correction in his first cast. When Max saw Miss Mehat in August

she did say if csting was going to help Max it would happen at a

very slow rate.

I'm not sure I understand the concept of keeping the child in the

cast longer if the cast isn't holding the curve in 4, 6, or weeks?

Max has been casted for 1 year and each anesthesia recovery

experience is different. Every cast change Max had the " happy juice "

before they took him to the operating room, exept his first cast at

12 months of age. I was angery they did not give him anythign before

htey took him back. I've worked in pediatirc healthcare for over 6

years and shocked they wouldn't give him anything even after i

requested it at the first visit. He's gotten it at every cast change

starting at cast #2 at the age of 15 months.

This last cast is when Max was the most sick and they even gave him

Zophran (anti-nausea meds-I had to take it when I was pregnant with

Max), but he still vomitted. He never vomitted before this last cast

was put on.

The hardest thing for us is Max doesn't drink any juice so it is

hard getting clear liquids in him. So the past 6 weeks we've

introduced apples juice, jello, & white grape juice. He's getting a

hang of it in small ammounts. He still doesn't like to drink a lot

of it, but hopefully it'll help during recovery next week. I'm even

bringing pedialyte just in case.

Max gets very hesitant around unfamiliar nurses, doctors, etc....I'm

not sure if it's his age, but he does not like being messed with. He

had a hair cut thursday (nearly cried thru the entire thing-a recent

development) and had his 2 year pictures today (I'm 2 months behind)

and he didn't want to come in the photo room. So, I believe he is

getting afraid of people moreso than ever, but we constantly

reassure him that we're with him, everything is alright, and he's

doing a great job. Always find something positive even if the

sitaution isn't positive, children need to know no matter how much

they cry or are scared they are doing great for even just

helping/trying! Positive reinforcement.

Max was very bruised after his last cast was taken off. In 7 casts

we never saw that. But by the next morning his skin looked great.

Hang in there....easier said than done.

Aekta

>

> Hi everyone,

>

> We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast

(her

> second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

> dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the

cast

> was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even

he

> was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

> was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve

to

> 18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

> He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

> cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st

cast

> did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation

much

> better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

> out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would

show

> some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was

going

> to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he

wants

> to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

> b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and

does

> the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

> VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast

was

> taken off.

> This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an

allery

> to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along

with

> anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

> reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very

nauseated

> after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

> her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

> very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

> upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of

you

> had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The

nurse

> wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually

they

> only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine

person

> anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

> help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

> your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them.

THANKS

>

> Misty and Haley

>

[Guest guest]

,

That's really good to know about the correction in the end. I guess

that's part of harnessing the growth force. I always wondered what

the theory was - if the manual correction in the OR was what they were

trying to hold or if it was the growth force that would cause the most

correction. I think it's a combination of both, now, but wasn't sure

if we should be looking at more correction or less after this

follow-up.

I pray we see better numbers before the re-cast.

I'm also wondering if he would have been better off waiting another

couple weeks instead of the urgency with which Dr. Sturm wants to

re-cast. Hm.

Food for thought.

Does anyone have any kind of documentation that Miss Mehta recommends

waiting longer and that they show more correction in the end? Anyone

have numbers based on their own experience of follow-up appointments

versus re-casting day?

Thanks

Sandi

[Guest guest]

Hi Misty,

We usually get the " happy juice " just before she is going into the

surgery holding room, and I can't imagine life without it, it really

calms her down, like a happy drunk so to speak. She's had it since she

was 2 and 1/2.

________________________________

From: infantile_scoliosis

[mailto:infantile_scoliosis ] On Behalf Of mistyhld

Sent: Sunday, September 30, 2007 2:42 PM

To: infantile_scoliosis

Subject: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

[Guest guest]

Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him

from what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It

has always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the

MRI. He gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else

mentioned this............if you find someone she does well with it is worth

asking for that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good

connection with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a

long time not to be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was

very minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now.

Prior to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to

15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

---------------------------------

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.

[Guest guest]

If he's able to better address the rotation, that's good! I bet you will see

some improvement with the next cast. Rigid curves tend to take longer to

straighten, so don't give up hope.

Noelle (12-2-01)

Ian (8-15-04)

Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

[Guest guest]

Misty,

If if makes you feel any better, Abby also went through the " people " anxiety

as well. She was always a social baby up until around 1 1/2, which also

coincides with the MRI. After that, she'd hide behind me with strangers or

cover her eyes if people started talking to her...even people she already knew!

It was still always much, much worse with doctors. Sometime around 28 months

thank goodness things changed. Now she's the complete opposite! You'd

laugh! We go to the playground now and she walks right up to other kids and

waves at them and says " Hi, I Abigail, how are you? " My only problem is, she

now

does it with adults as well! She'll even grab other moms by the hand to

walk with her! Time to start having the " stranger " talk! So hopefully, Haley

is going through the same stage and will be out of it soon.

Good luck!

, Abby and Noah

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Thank you for the information. That makes sense now. I just keep

relating all the info to Max and sometimesforget to recognize that

he isn't the classic casting case.

Thanks again,

Aekta

> >

> > Hi everyone,

> >

> > We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth

cast

> (her

> > second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would

see

> > dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the

> cast

> > was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said

even

> he

> > was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her

spine

> > was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her

curve

> to

> > 18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

> > He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from

this

> > cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the

1st

> cast

> > did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation

> much

> > better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38

degrees

> > out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast

would

> show

> > some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was

> going

> > to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he

> wants

> > to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the

better

> > b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest

and

> does

> > the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is

already

> > VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the

cast

> was

> > taken off.

> > This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an

> allery

> > to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along

> with

> > anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo,

she

> > reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very

> nauseated

> > after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube

down

> > her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it

was

> > very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets

very

> > upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any

of

> you

> > had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The

> nurse

> > wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that

usually

> they

> > only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine

> person

> > anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this

would

> > help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if

any of

> > your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them.

> THANKS

> >

> > Misty and Haley

> >

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Amy,

thanks for the info. Who is your doctor? Is he hoping that the curve might

still straighten, or is he just casting to hold it where it is? That is so

interesting b/c when Dr. Khoury said this cast just kept her from getting worse,

my husband asked him how many cast he would try before he realized casting is

just going to keep the curve from progressing, not sraighten it. He said 3

casts! If by the end of the 3rd cast the curve was just holding he would do a

brace until the curve progressed further, then another cast...kind of

rotating...Very interesting how even among the Mehta trained docs there are

still differences in protocol!

Best of luck to you also with the anxiety issues. It's just not fair for our

little ones. I had a nurse tell me that she was very sick as a child and was in

and out of the hospital for the first few years of her life. She told me how

hard it was on her parents. But she said it created so much character for her

later in life and she is now a nurse! So maybe there is that glimpse of hope

that our little ones will become that much stronger for all they've had to

endure

Misty and Haley

Amy Norenberg wrote: Hi

Misty,

I can relate to you, My daughter Adelaide will be going into her 10th cast

in two weeks. She had a 74 degree curve when we started casting and we are now

holding in the 50's.

She always gets sick after anesthesia and it is always quite scary for me

too.

Our biggest problem is that Addy has severe anxiety issues since this all

began. She is absolutely afraid of Dr's,Nurses, Hospitals, scrubs. She's

extremely afraid of anyone she doesn't know. She recently started pre-school

with her twin sister and they started painting the first day, the teacher tried

to put a smock on her and Addy climbed up in her twins arms knocking her over

and making them both upset. They called me in and when I got there she was

hiding under the table crying.Now I am the teacher's asst/volunteer in the

classroom and I stay with them. It's just so sad that they have to go through

all this and have such fear too. We do the " happy juice " each time but it

doesn't help they still have to have to pry her out of my arms at the

door,kicking and screaming. For me, I feel each time gets a little worse because

she is getting older now(3) and knows what to expect.

Does anyone else have children with anxiety issues or severe fears of Dr's

and Hospitals?

Misty, I wish you all the best with Haley. I wish I had some advice for you.

~Amy

mom to three amazing girls

(Ella 6, Lucy & Addy3)

mistyhld wrote:

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

---------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

Hi Sandi,

Thanks for the info about the " happy juice. " I think I will let them give it to

her next time. Did Jack get a new cast, or was that his check up? When will he

get another cast? I am hoping the best for you, your family and little Jack.

Keep me posted

Misty and Haley

" *\\o/* San *\\o/* " wrote:

Misty,

I can completely understand your feelings. ((((hugs)))) I would

have been scared to death with the coughing of blood. I guess it

takes a lot to rattle a nurse, though, who sees much worse.

They did give Jack versed when we were going into the OR - it helped

SO much. He was loopy and sleepy and didn't even mind being taken

away from us (which he has NEVER done, he's never been away from us

except during his MRI - sedated - and his cast). So, that meant a

lot. I'm really grateful for the versed - it's also an amnesiac, so

they don't remember a lot of it. I don't know if that's what she was

talking about, but Jack was 12 months when he had it and did great.

I wonder, too, if 's rotation has been addressed even if the

cast didn't hold the curve as well as we would have liked. But, we

did go from 64* down to 55* so far, so - I don't know - maybe that's

good. It IS progress.

But, yeah, I echo the sentiment of wanting to see more. We were down

to 38* in the cast and I'm so royally bummed that it didn't hold

better. I guess a few of us are looking at baby steps now.

Jack hates all doctors and nurses now, too, it seems. These kids have

endured so much already in their tiny lives.

Sandi &

---------------------------------

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Yahoo! Answers - Check it out.

[Guest guest]

Hi Aekta,

I know Max has a rigid curve also. Do you think as they get older the curve

becomes more rigid and that's why it takes longer?

Positive reinforcement is a must But, I ALWAYS second guess myself about

everything it seems (when it comes to Haley)...for instance, after she went in

for the trimming of the cast, my husband, mom, and myself were all in there for

the entire 45 minutes of her SCREAMING and reaching for us. So, then I

wondered, would she be better off not seeing me and maybe wondering " why is

mommy not helping me?!?!? " Then I thought no way, I want to be with her at all

times if at all possible. Soooo, here I go again wondering if I've done the

right thing for her. Is that just part of being a mom ?

Misty and Haley

babymaxpd wrote: Hi Misty,

Haley is in out thoughts and prayers. One encouraging thought is

that the curve is not dramatically worse. Max got the best

correction in his first cast. When Max saw Miss Mehat in August

she did say if csting was going to help Max it would happen at a

very slow rate.

I'm not sure I understand the concept of keeping the child in the

cast longer if the cast isn't holding the curve in 4, 6, or weeks?

Max has been casted for 1 year and each anesthesia recovery

experience is different. Every cast change Max had the " happy juice "

before they took him to the operating room, exept his first cast at

12 months of age. I was angery they did not give him anythign before

htey took him back. I've worked in pediatirc healthcare for over 6

years and shocked they wouldn't give him anything even after i

requested it at the first visit. He's gotten it at every cast change

starting at cast #2 at the age of 15 months.

This last cast is when Max was the most sick and they even gave him

Zophran (anti-nausea meds-I had to take it when I was pregnant with

Max), but he still vomitted. He never vomitted before this last cast

was put on.

The hardest thing for us is Max doesn't drink any juice so it is

hard getting clear liquids in him. So the past 6 weeks we've

introduced apples juice, jello, & white grape juice. He's getting a

hang of it in small ammounts. He still doesn't like to drink a lot

of it, but hopefully it'll help during recovery next week. I'm even

bringing pedialyte just in case.

Max gets very hesitant around unfamiliar nurses, doctors, etc....I'm

not sure if it's his age, but he does not like being messed with. He

had a hair cut thursday (nearly cried thru the entire thing-a recent

development) and had his 2 year pictures today (I'm 2 months behind)

and he didn't want to come in the photo room. So, I believe he is

getting afraid of people moreso than ever, but we constantly

reassure him that we're with him, everything is alright, and he's

doing a great job. Always find something positive even if the

sitaution isn't positive, children need to know no matter how much

they cry or are scared they are doing great for even just

helping/trying! Positive reinforcement.

Max was very bruised after his last cast was taken off. In 7 casts

we never saw that. But by the next morning his skin looked great.

Hang in there....easier said than done.

Aekta

>

> Hi everyone,

>

> We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast

(her

> second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

> dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the

cast

> was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even

he

> was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

> was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve

to

> 18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

> He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

> cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st

cast

> did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation

much

> better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

> out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would

show

> some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was

going

> to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he

wants

> to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

> b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and

does

> the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

> VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast

was

> taken off.

> This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an

allery

> to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along

with

> anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

> reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very

nauseated

> after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

> her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

> very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

> upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of

you

> had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The

nurse

> wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually

they

> only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine

person

> anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

> help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

> your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them.

THANKS

>

> Misty and Haley

>

---------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

Hi ,

That is such a GREAT idea about the doctor kit and playing doctor! I think I

will have to try that Haley has had this " people " anxiety for a while (not

stranger anxiety b/c up until recently she wouldn't even let my parents hold

her) I HOPE with some more time it will get better like it did for Abby! Thanks

for the insight

Misty and Haley

Lkyla@... wrote: Hi Misty and Amy,

My daughter Abby, now just about 32 months, went through a phase where she w

as absolutely horrified of the doctor! It all started after her MRI at

roughly age 1 1/2. I was a bit shocked that they didn't give her something

for

the anxiety of having the IV put in. All they did was wrap her in a blanket

and hold her down...and they lost the blood return on the first try and had to

go to her other hand after fishing in her vein for a good 5 min. Needless to

say, she was hysterical at that point! Then about a week later we had her

casted for her first brace and again, nothing to calm her, we had to hold her

down, screaming, for over a half hour. Even just going to the doctor for a

well visit was a nightmare after that! They would go to take her temperature

under her arm and she would scream hysterically. Thankfully enough, Abby's

pediatrician is very patient and always took her time and tried to make Abby

as comfortable as possible...which sometimes meant I held her through the

entire exam. She has since gotten much better. We started to " play " doctor

at

home a few times. I bought one of the little Fisher Price doctor kits. I'd

show her what to do and let her do to it to me as well. She loves flash

lights, so we'd play letting her open her mouth and stick out her tongue and

look

in her ears. Now she LOVES the doctor. She asks for her doctor by name and

can't wait to jump up on the scale and table and actually ASKS the doctor to

look in her ears and mouth! What a change. Even for follow ups with her

brace she is much, much better. She is hesitant, but ok with it. The last

brace that she was casted for a few months ago she did much better as well.

Still cried, but more like a whimper...of course, I always ask for the same

person so Abby trusts her a little now. Good luck to you both and hope it

gets

easier for you both and your little ones. I know how heartbreaking it is to

watch them scream and cry out of fear. Sometimes I think its as hard on us

emotionally. Our little ones look to us to protect them and it's so hard to

explain at this age that it's for their own good.

Good luck again!

, mom to

Abby (32 months)

& Noah (8 months)

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him

from what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It

has always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the

MRI. He gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else

mentioned this............if you find someone she does well with it is worth

asking for that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good

connection with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a

long time not to be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was

very minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now.

Prior to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to

15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

---------------------------------

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[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I was excited to hear that he addressed the rotation!

I hope I'm blown away by the improvement next time

How is Ian doing?

Misty and Haley

Claflin wrote:

If he's able to better address the rotation, that's good! I bet you will see

some improvement with the next cast. Rigid curves tend to take longer to

straighten, so don't give up hope.

Noelle (12-2-01)

Ian (8-15-04)

Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

[Guest guest]

He's looking very straight! Funny how skinny he seems to me now that he isn't

in a brace or a cast.

I miss Dr. Khoury!!!!!! I keep meaning to drop him a line and haven't done it

yet.

Also, Ian stayed at 10 degrees for about 6 months and even Dr. K thought we

wouldn't get more correction, but then the last cast he applied did the trick.

So, there is always hope for improvement even if it is slow!

Noelle (12-2-01)

Ian (8-15-04)

Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

[Guest guest]

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast

and alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot wrote:

Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it

just fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She

had on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek

around to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have

ANYTHING to do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him

from what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It

has always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the

MRI. He gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else

mentioned this............if you find someone she does well with it is worth

asking for that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good

connection with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a

long time not to be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was

very minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now.

Prior to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to

15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld wrote: Hi

everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

---------------------------------

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail,

news, photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Hi Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast and

alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It has

always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the MRI. He

gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else mentioned

this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth asking for

that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good connection

with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long time not to

be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was very

minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now. Prior

to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to 15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Hi Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast and

alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It has

always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the MRI. He

gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else mentioned

this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth asking for

that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good connection

with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long time not to

be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was very

minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now. Prior

to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to 15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Hi Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast and

alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It has

always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the MRI. He

gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else mentioned

this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth asking for

that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good connection

with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long time not to

be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was very

minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now. Prior

to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to 15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Esther,

I would love to hear how they are approaching the halo traction for your

daughter. My daughter had a halo twice. Would you mind sharing her degree of

curvature, what they hope to get her to, and the plan for after the traction

process is done? I will be praying that her pain subsides, and for strength to

endure this treatment.

Shellie Grant (Moriah's Mom)

PS. Remind me what town you both are referring to?

" A. E. R. " wrote:

Hi Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast and

alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It has

always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the MRI. He

gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else mentioned

this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth asking for

that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good connection

with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long time not to

be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was very

minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now. Prior

to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to 15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

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photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Hi Shellie,

ish Rite is in Dallas, Texas.

Tasha

Shellie Grant wrote:

Esther,

I would love to hear how they are approaching the halo traction for your

daughter. My daughter had a halo twice. Would you mind sharing her degree of

curvature, what they hope to get her to, and the plan for after the traction

process is done? I will be praying that her pain subsides, and for strength to

endure this treatment.

Shellie Grant (Moriah's Mom)

PS. Remind me what town you both are referring to?

" A. E. R. " wrote:

Hi Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast

and alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It

has always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the

MRI. He gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else

mentioned this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth

asking for that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good

connection with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long

time not to be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was

very minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now.

Prior to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to

15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.

[Guest guest]

Esther,

Where do you live? Remind me of your daughter's story? How old is she?

Sorry for all the questions.

has been going to ish Rite since he was 9 months old. He is now 30

months.

We are blessed to be going to ish Rite and living only 30 minutes away.

Most importantly to have found a doctor that has been able to help him. The

nurses are always wonderful with . And the Child Life Specialist are GREAT!

Make sure you ask if they can help with your daughter.

What is your daughter's name? I would like to say a prayer for her and like to

pray specifically.

Keep us posted on how things go this next week. Wish we were going to be there

so I could meet you.

Take care,

Tasha

Mommy of twin boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

" A. E. R. " wrote: Hi

Tasha!

What a blessing to read your story! We are going to the same hospital, but our

Dr. is Dr. ston. We are driving there on Sunday in order to get our daughter

admitted on Monday for her Halo Traction on Tuesday. I would love to hear more

about your experience there. So far, it's all good. My little girl really needs

to get her body " fixed " as soon as possible! She is in so much pain! It hurts to

see her ache so bad! We will definetely need to see a Child Life Specialist. She

is getting scared...

Thanks for your help!

Esther

If anyone speaks ill of you, Praise them always. If anyone injures you, Serve

them nicely. If anyone persecutes you, Help them in all possible ways. You will

attain immense strength. You will control anger and pride. You will enjoy peace,

poise, and serenity. (Unknown)

Re: Home from Birmingahm/new cast

Hi Misty,

We go to Texas ish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.

His doctor is Dr. Karl Rathjen.

The cast worked very well for about the first 3 casts. had a total of 6.

After his 4th cast his curve stayed the same. Never improved, but never got

worse. His last cast he improved 5 degrees.

The plan is to continue in the brace. If need be we will go back to the cast

and alternate back and forth. I don't even want to think about it right now.

We go in January for an xray to see how he is doing.

I had another thought about Haley being afraid of the medical staff.

Does your hospital have Child Life Specialist? Maybe you could ask them to come

help. I use to volunteer at a Children's hospital with Child Life. They are

wonderful! Just a thought.

Take care,

Tasha

Misty Dennis <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi Tasha,

Who is 's doctor? Did they decide to brace b/c the cast wasn't helping

anymore, or do they think the brace will do the job? I know exactly what you

mean about feeling your emotions. Haley does the same, but I get tense b/c

I know how she is going to act, so in turn, she also gets upset...Vicious cycle

huh?!?!? Thanks for your prayers...please continue

Misty and Haley

Tasha Fontenot <ryanswalkyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Misty,

I can totally understand your disappointment.

This is a long road, but one well worth it and you all will get through it just

fine.

It has its ups and downs and I am sure you are well aware of that by now.

Well I can tell you that had the " happy juice " for every cast change. He

would have been a complete monster without it.

He is VERY leery of all medical staff. Anyone that is not in street clothes.

We were in Fedex the other day and a nurse was a few people behind us. She had

on scrubs. He saw her and immediately hid in front of me. He would peek around

to find her, but knew she was someone that he did not want to have ANYTHING to

do with.

Sad that our babies make that connection, but I guess I would too.

I always made sure I had ALL of 's favorites the day of the cast change.

Toys and snacks. I usually had a new toy as well. Anything to distract him from

what was about to go on.

I made sure I was very positive and upbeat throughout the whole day.

totally feeds off my actions.

I would suggest trying the happy juice(can't remember what it is called). It

has always worked for him and he has had it since he was 13 mths old for the

MRI. He gets really silly and then he just chills out. I think someone else

mentioned this........ ....if you find someone she does well with it is worth

asking for that same person if they are available. Help her make/find a good

connection with the hospital. I know easier said then done. It took a long

time not to be upset everytime we walked through the doors.

had the best correction of course in the first cast. From there it was

very minimal and basically stayed the same. That is why he is in a brace now.

Prior to his first cast his curve was 34 and after this last one he was down to

15.

Hopefully the brace will hold his curve at 15 and over a LONG period of time

help to bring it down some more.

We know we still have a good bit of this road to travel.

Most of 's casts were on for 12 weeks. One was even on for 3 months and 8

long days.

Anyway I pray that Haley does get better correction in this cast.

Good luck and hang in there.

Take care and keep us posted,

Tasha

Mommy of twins boys- and 30 mths

Fort Worth, Texas

mistyhld <mistyhldyahoo (DOT) com> wrote: Hi everyone,

We are home from Birmingham and Haley is now in her fourth cast (her

second Mehta cast. We really had our hopes up that we would see

dramatic results. She even looked much better to us after the cast

was removed Thursday! So we were shocked when Dr. Khoury said even he

was dissapointed with the results. Last time he told us her spine

was rigid and hard to manipulate, but he managed to get her curve to

18 degrees in cast (she was 38 degrees out of cast.)

He said at best there was maybe 2 degrees of improvement from this

cast, depending on where he measured the curve. He said the 1st cast

did " loosen " her spine and he was able to address the rotation much

better this time. She is currently 20 degrees in cast (38 degrees

out of cast). He said he was still hopeful that this cast would show

some improvement (he's hoping for 5 degrees), but that it was going

to be a long road. She was in the previous cast 8 weeks and he wants

to shoot for 10 weeks in this cast. He said the longer the better

b/c towards the end of the cast is when it fits the tightest and does

the most work.?.?.?. What do you all think of that? It is already

VERY fitting :)She was very bruised aroud her belly when the cast was

taken off.

This visit was not quite as smooth as last time. She has an allery

to egg and was not able to have some of the meds that go along with

anesthesia (because there is egg protein in the meds) Sooooo, she

reacted quite differently to the anesthesia. She was very nauseated

after waking up and coughed up blood (I guess b/c of the tube down

her throat) the nurse acted as if this was no big deal, but it was

very SCARY for me! Haley is very scared of doctors and gets very

upset even walking into the hospital. I was wondering if any of you

had suggestions on how I might could help her cope better. The nurse

wanted to give her some " happy juice " but explained that usually they

only give it to kids 3 yrs and older. I am NOT a big medicine person

anyway, so when she told me that, I said no thanks! If this would

help her I would be willing to do it, but I want to know if any of

your little ones have ever had it and how it affected them. THANKS

Misty and Haley

------------ --------- --------- ---

Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news,

photos & more.