I have a mixture of feelings today. After many tests over the last couple of months, we found out today that Taylor has Hepatitis C. I am so relieved, sad, scared, mad and confused - but I also feel a sense of peace. 1)I'm glad that we know what we are dealing with. 2) I am sad and scared because Dad had Hepatitis C and he ended up dying from complications from it and other things. Course, medicine has come a long way since then. 3) I am mad because this happened to him - and it's pretty obvious to us that he somehow got it in the DR, maybe when he had his accident. 4) I feel a sense of peace, because I feel Heavenly Father's hand in our lives and know that He will take care of him.
Back around Christmas time, Taylor started getting weird growth/tumor-like things in his arms and hands. But only from the elbows down. Over the months, he has gotten more and more and they have gotten bigger and his hands really hurt him. We went to my knee doctor (because he also specializes in hands). He then sent us to a dermatologist who ran blood tests, told us it was a bad immune disease but he didn't know what. He then sent us to a rheumatologist who ran more tests - he then sent us to a gasttroenterologist/liver specialist who ran more tests and then told us he has Hepatitis C. We just got done with him and we REALLY didn't like him. He was very negative.
Our next step is to see if we can find proof that he got this from his accident in the DR and talk to the church and see if maybe we can take him to Mayo Clinic.
Here's the thing though. Taylor was going to go and buy and engagement ring for Mallory today. We talked him into doing it anyway. We feel really strongly that he is being tested and so is Mallory. She is having a surgery next month to put a shunt into her brain to help drain fluid. These kids belong together and Heavenly Father has big things in store for them. So, here is Taylor after he bought the ring having the kind of day he did. Huge mixture of feelings.
p.s. (Later date) We have experienced many tender mercies from the Lord. As far as any of us had known, Taylor hadn't gotten any type of blood transfusion in the DR, but we knew that he had IV's, so we assumed that is where he got it. Well, ever since the accident, I had kept all of the medical papers in a file. One day I was going through some papers in a box looking for something and I came across 2 prescriptions written in Spanish. They were orders written for 2 units of blood in the hospital in the DR. Brad also called the doctor there and he said that yes, Taylor had gotten blood there. Proof!! - that it happened in the Dominican Republic!
The church was very helpful and understanding and is moving forward to get him treatment at Mayo Clinic. We are feeling very blessed.
