September 29, 2010

If you have been following along with barb's journey from the beginning, you will recall that before anything happened she had a gastric tube put in to her stomach in order to receive nutrition.  Thank the Lord it was there because for about ten weeks that is the only way she was able to "eat".

Now she has reached a milestone in that she has not required the tube for two weeks - she has been eating solid foods.  So here is the question I will pose to you:

You have this plastic tube sticking out of your stomach - through the skin, just below the rib cage.  a little unnerving, wouldn't you say?  Now think about this - they have to remove it.  Do they put you out to do that?  The answer...no.  It's a quick trip to the doctor.  the doctor pulls the tube out - they throw some bandages over the wound, and you are done.  How much anxiety would this cause you?

For mom, controlling her anxiety levels has been a challenge but one that she has successfully done all summer.  Each time a new procedure is introduced the anxiety level goes up - what do you expect, how long will it take, how will this change my life, will it hurt, how long to heal...the list goes on.

So I would request your prayers for mom's anxiety levels.  There is enough right now while she goes through the prophylactic cranial radiation - radiation of the brain - but now we throw this right in the middle, "Hey, why don't you stop by and we'll yank out the tube"...Doesn't sound like much fun, right?  

My prayer today is this:  Lord, send your Holy Spirit to calm the beating of mom's heart, and the racing of her mind, and bring her a tremendous peace - that peace which does, indeed, pass ALL of our understanding.  Continue to grant her the courage and strength to face each new obstacle with the determination and spirit she had when this process began.  Amen.