Emma Update:

Emma Update:

She is being hospitalized at Animal Medical Center for the next few days.  She is in critical condition.

There is so much to tell.  We took her to Dr. Long the week before last because she was thin, weak, throwing up, having diarrhea, and bleeding out of the nose (just barely).  Her tonsils were swollen, so the first thing we did was give her antibiotics, steroids, and Phenergan.  It seemed to help, but a few days later she was still having diarrhea, so I took her back and we got an extra medication.

After that she seemed to be on the mend, so that was great.  Dr. Long said if she was worse, he'd see her this past Thursday, but she was ok.  If she was not a lot better he wanted to see her on Monday (tomorrow).  She finished her steroid, antibiotic, and Phenergan on Friday, but by yesterday she seemed to be declining (as far as weakness, panting hard, and nose beginning to bleed again last night).  I got up this morning, made her an appointment at AMC, and then decided we couldn't wait.  She was bleeding pretty bad out of her nose, her poop was black, and she had lost her appetite.

We took her in and one of the nurses said we definitely made the right call by bringing her early, so that confirmation felt nice that I wasn't just over-reacting.  They ran some tests and it's not looking great.  Her platelets are low, so she's kind of just bleeding freely out of her nose.  They did an x-ray to see if there was something causing her nose to bleed.  They didn't see anything there, but did notice that her spleen is enlarged.  The best we can hope for right now is that this is an auto-immune thing that will respond to more steroids and the chemo drug they want to give her.  Worst case, this is looking like possibly something cancerous.

So... we loved on our baby girl and admitted her.  She is still in good spirits and I don't feel like she is "done."  When we took Scooter in last year we could tell he was ready to go.  But Emma J. is still hanging in there, so if she is still fighting we will fight for her.  I know she's in great hands.  I feel relieved having left her so that they can keep an eye on her.  They are starting her treatment, and we should know within a couple of days if she's responding or not.  We can visit her and call for updates, so that is also nice.

Priority 1 is getting my baby well and brought home.  Priority 2 is figuring out the money thing.  The bill is estimated to be between $1200 and $2000.  My birthday is this month, so I am thinking about asking anyone who is considering getting me something to just donate towards her medical bill instead.  With me not working, Shaun is supporting me and the kids on one income until I finish school.  Money is tight.  We're ok, but this unplanned large expense is a big strain.  I may or may not make a GoFundMe for this.  Many of you were generous to us when my dad lost his home to a fire last year, but I really hate to depend on everyone else to get us through hard times, especially since my contributions to the community have greatly decreased since I started school.

Well, I'm off for now.  My stress level is through the roof, my shoulders are killing me (yay arthritis!), and I'm all-around exhausted.  For those who don't know:  Kira lost two relatives this past week, so we've all been stressed, sad, and stunned.  It seems like when it rains it pours, but we're hanging in there - together.  Anyway, I'll post updates as they come in.  Love to all of my friends.  ❤

At AMC with Emma.

 

Emma is going to AMC at 2:30.

I registered for my spring classes this morning.

I registered for my spring classes this morning.  I picked 5, but I'm not sure that I will keep them all.  Two seem easy-ish.  I don't want to overload myself, but at the same time I feel that I need to catch up because I dropped a class this semester.  In the long run, that won't add or erase a semester from my time at JSU, so maybe (as usual) I need to calm down... but I do want to get done, so it's hard not to rush.

I really need to look into summer classes, as well.  I heard that year-round Pell Grant might be a thing now, so that would be great if so.  I had planned to work / intern over the summer, but it is clear to me that life doesn't care about my plans, so I've gotta just keep on keeping on the best I can.  LOL

Happy Friday, friends!  ❤

Garrett Counseling seems really great.

Garrett Counseling seems really great. Kira feels comfortable and like she can make some progress with her new counselor.  Instead of this mad-dash, once-a-month at the school crap that Highland was doing, they are going to see her weekly for now after school.  I think we are all breathing a sigh of relief in that regard.

As for her family, that has been and will probably remain to be a volatile presence in her life (especially with the upcoming funerals and all of that), but we have been and will continue to try to protect her the best we can.  Since we don't have legal custody, it's stressful because we worry that not enough interaction with her relatives will result in someone trying to take her from us.  But when she turns 18 in March it will no longer be an issue, so we've just gotta get through the first of the year.

Thank you to everyone who offered advice and help during this situation.  Having her here has been great, but transitions are tough (even good ones) and she was already having a hard time before we got her.  She was going to Highland before she came here and had already had a bad experience with the counselor at Anniston Pediatrics.  We asked her pediatrician 3 weeks ago (and reminded her 2 weeks ago) to refer her elsewhere, but they didn't for whatever reason until I left upset messages this morning with a specific place we wanted her to go.

Unless I post another upset, private-ish post, assume all is well.  If you want to check on her, feel free to message us.  Since I'm friends with some of her relatives on social media I don't want to talk about anything too deep publicly.  Like I said, we are kind of walking on eggshells to keep the peace.  It's a tenuous situation and we're just doing the best we can.

Much love to you all, and thanks again.  ❤❤❤

They got her in at Garrett today at 2.

They got her in at Garrett today at 2.  Thank you so much to everyone for your help and suggestions.  It means the world to  us!  ❤❤❤  I am so thankful for you all!

This is not a public post. I would appreciate your discretion if you can see this.

This is not a public post.  I would appreciate your discretion if you can see this.

As we all know, the mental health care in this state sucks ass.  Kira has been seeing the therapist at Highland Health, but she doesn't feel like the woman listens to her or gets very deep.  She has also seen an in-house therapist at Anniston Pediatrics who isn't helping her, either.  Since she is not legally our child I don't know what our options are regarding insurance, so all she has right now is Medicaid.

So this has been a shit day for her.  Shaun took her to her appointment at Highland, and she came out crying because once again she wasn't helped.  Now, as of a few hours ago, she has lost an aunt and a brother all in the same day.  She seems to be in shock, which is totally understandable.  See the link below.

We've only had her for a couple of months, but I can tell you that she has been shuffled around and neglected for a lot of her life.  How she is as awesome as she is I'll never know.  But she needs help.  She has said as much, and we believe her.  I imagine that I'd have issues, too.  We are always here for her, of course, but having an objective 3rd party hear you out can really help.

So, do you  know of anywhere she can get ACTUAL counseling?  I know this is a long shot, but does anyone know of a real therapist out there who would accept Medicaid, or see her for a reduced fee?  We're scraping by on one income while I'm in school, but we'll find a way to pay if there is someone out there worth paying for.

https://abc3340.com/news/local/suspect-dead-officer-shot-in-shooting-during-homicide-investigation