Prayer requests

Pray for Anne…

July 2011’s prayer requests:

  1. For the fruit of the Spirit to be manifested in Anne’s life…  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness & self control;
  2. For the parts of Anne’s brain that control her left foot and left hand to heal;
  3. For Anne to continue to come alive cognitively. She is amazing. God is so good.
  4. That Anne would continue to learn how to read, write and walk.
  5. Lastly, please thank God for being very close to Anne and giving her the comfort and peace she needs to persevere in her recovery.

July’s prayer requests are the same as June’s… Anne is showing improvement in her ability to write, which is encouraging. She especially needs prayer for the fruit of the Spirit as her awareness of her disabilities continues to emerge. Thank you!

Pray for Anne…

June 2011’s prayer requests:

  1. For the fruit of the Spirit to be manifested in Anne’s life…  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness & self control;
  2. For the parts of Anne’s brain that control her left foot and left hand to heal;
  3. For Anne to continue to come alive cognitively. She is amazing. God is so good.
  4. That Anne would continue to learn how to read, write and walk.
  5. Lastly, please thank God for being very close to Anne and giving her the comfort and peace she needs to persevere in her recovery.

Summer begins

Summer vacation is here!  I’m excited to have Anne at home, and I’m anxious to have Anne at home :-) It reminds me of how I felt when Anne graduated from the Day Rehab program last October. I was tempted to feel anxious about bringing Anne home for good – but I had a sense that God was working on Anne’s behalf in ways I couldn’t see… yet! After one week at home, God brought both a Speech Pathologist and a Physical Therapist across our path. God continues to use those women in Anne’s life. So I’m excited to see what He has in store for this summer…

Especially, because I think Anne’s on the brink of something big. On the surface, it appears as if she’s regressed… She’s more orally fixated, more fidgety; her impulsivity seems to be off the charts. But in the past, what looked like regression was really something new awakening in Anne’s brain, and it just took her time to sort it all out. I’m hoping this is the beginning of another amazing work of God in Anne!

I also pray that I have the wisdom to balance rest and therapy. I’ve found that Anne makes large strides in her recovery after periods of rest.

So please pray for our time at home. It’s tough for me to balance all of my household responsibilities with caring for Anne at home AND spending time with all three children. It’s a bit overwhelming for me frankly… So, pray for energy and patience for all of us Jacksons this summer!  Also, please pray for Anne’s continued healing… less impulsivity, improved cognitive abilities – and for her feet. Her poor feet, especially her left foot… I wrote a whole entry about Anne’s feet last fall, and her left foot is still as weak as ever. I pray earnestly for God to heal the part of her brain that controls her feet.

Thank you for staying close to our family in prayer this summer!

Pray for Anne…

May 2011’s prayer requests:

  1. That Anne would push through her fears and hypersensitivity to have the courage to retrain her body to move (walk, reach, stand, scoot, stand, twist…)
  2. For Anne to continue to come alive cognitively. She is amazing. God is so good.
  3. That Anne would continue to learn how to read, write and walk.
  4. Lastly, please thank God for being very close to Anne and giving her the comfort and peace she needs to persevere in her recovery.

God has moved mightily to answer ALL of April’s prayer requests. Anne is adjusting to her seizure med, seems less tired, has stopped stuttering and is filled with a sweet love for Jesus! She started reading; she wrote the letter “A” and she took two steps with her cane by herself! Thank you for praying!!

Hypersensitivity

I’ve noticed that Anne seems to be growing up again. In other words, she’s going through some of the same developmental stages and milestones that she did before the accident. Because of this, I’ve been bracing myself for the phase she’s entering now…

During an 18-24 month period (before the accident) when Anne was 4-5, she went through a hypersensitivity phase. One example – she refused to wear socks because they bothered her toes. That was just her toes… Her entire body and emotional being was hypersensitive. She was extrememly volatile (only at home – of course :-) During those months, we both cried way too much. I often said that Anne “kept me on my knees” because I ran out of patience with her too many times. We had lots of reconciliation opportunites…

So now I get a second chance with Anne. A few nights ago, we were outside, and the wind started blowing her hair. Most people would think, “Ah, what a nice breeze.” But not Anne. She starts screaming (in public), “I want to go inside. I WANT TO GO INSIDE. MAKE THE WIND STOP MAMA!” Oh boy. What fun ;-)

But there’s lots of upside to all of this. First, she’s growing just like she did before the accident… that’s good. Also, she’s more aware of her body. I think when she gets through this phase (and she had overcome her hypersensitivity in the months preceding the accident), she will have more strength and courage to get better. And lastly, I get a chance to love her better this time around. God is in the redemption business, and I need lots of redeeming!

So please pray:

  1. That Anne moves through this phase relatively quickly. Selfishly, I hope she is less sensitive when we go to the beach this summer. Currently, she would have zero tolerance for the sound of the ocean or the feel of the sand or the wind in her hair.
  2. As Anne becomes more aware of her body, that she would have the courage to learn how to move her body in ways that promote more independence (like walking and standing and reaching, etc.)
  3. And finally, for me to love Anne well during this phase. I’m thankful that God has given me another opportunity to parent Anne through her hypersensitivity.

I’ll end with two bits of great news! First, Anne was able to take two steps by herself using only a cane for support. She screamed in fear the whole time, but she did it! And second, she wrote the letter “A” today with her school OT! She is doing so well!!!!

Gratefully, kathryn

Pray for Anne…

April 2011’s prayer requests:

  1. Anne’s current seizure medication is preventing her seizures, but she seems extra tired. Please pray that either the side effects of this med will wane, or that we would find the right seizure med, or that God would heal her seizures!
  2. Please pray for Anne’s stamina to improve – that she would regain her joy and enthusiasm.
  3. Please continue to pray that Anne would eventually learn how to read, write and walk.
  4. Lastly, please pray that God would be very close to Anne and give her the comfort and peace she needs to persevere in her recovery.

Thank you!

Seizures & Stuttering

Anne is still having seizures. She actually had a video EEG a few weeks ago. She had a seizure during that time, which was great from a diagnostic perspective. She is having mild clonic-atonic seizures which originate from  her left temporal lobe and both frontal lobes.  They are considered mild because she remains conscious and lucid throughout the seizure. She is on her 2nd medication.  The first did nothing but make her tired – it had no affect on her seizures.  Most of the time, her seizures are mild and don’t last very long – but every now and then, she’ll have an intense one that lasts too long for comfort. 

On a different front, Anne has started stuttering.  It gets worse as she gets tired.  We’re hoping this is just one of those “one step backwards” before she takes a few steps forward :-) 

So please pray:

  1. that we find the best medication to prevent the seizures from doing additional damage to her brain, and
  2. that her stuttering would disappear.

Thank you!  -kathryn

One year ago…

3-13-10

…Anne was practicing cheerleading moves in our living room. We had battled through food sensitivity issues, anger and behavior issues and hyper-sensitivity issues. Everyone outside our family could not believe that Anne was anything but the quiet, perfect little angel she showed to the outside world. But Anne had turned the corner on all of her “issues.” She was becoming that perfect little angel at home too. She would obey with a good attitude. She loved to help me with all of the household chores – especially cleaning and cooking. She was intelligent, artistic and sensitive – and a bit bossy. But hey, nobody’s perfect :-)

Now, I am dealing with all of those old issues. Her seizure medication is making her tired and irritable. She gets so angry when she doesn’t get her way – especially at me. She bites, hits, pulls my hair and likes to call me “stupid mommy” for the sole reason that we don’t allow the “s” word in our house. She is making progress, but it’s oh so slow. At night, my mind races through strategy after strategy to help Anne. Be it nutrition, or therapy goals or reading strategies, I have tons of ideas, but not enough time to implement them. It all leads me to feel overwhelmed and discouraged.

And God just seems hidden. It’s scriptural for God to be hidden sometimes. He’s hidden through most of Job. And when He reveals himself, Job is left shaken and repentant. Even though He’s hidden, that doesn’t mean He’s absent or aloof. I choose to believe that He has a plan for Anne and our family. We might be in a dark part of the journey, but it won’t be dark forever. He’ll give us light, just when we need it the most. In the interim, we must wait and take each step by faith. Faith in God’s good character. Faith in God’s sovereign hand. Faith in God’s tender mercies. Faith in His love for each one of us, and for Anne.

The days leading up to 4/13 will be difficult for me. One side of me hates that day. I hate what it’s done to Anne and our family. But the other side of me knows that God intends good to come out of it. God’s word demonstrates repetitively how He brings good out of the broken. I pray He does that for Anne  …and for me.

Please pray:

  1. That we will find the right medication to control Anne’s seizures – without negative side effects;
  2. That we would not feel overwhelmed or discouraged and find comfort in God despite our circumstances, and
  3. That God would help Anne to make progress in her walking, reading & writing.

Thank you! -kathryn

Pray for Anne…

March 2011’s prayer requests:

  1. For Anne to know Jesus and for her life to bring Him glory;
  2. Anne’s seizures are getting worse. Please pray they would improve, and
  3. For Anne’s continued cognitive progress – for her improved language, attention and decreased impulsivity.

A deposit… of things to come

I was just outside playing basketball against Canon and Kate. I was guarding Canon, and Canon yells, “Down low, Kate – go low.” Canon and I turn around to see Kate kneeling down “low” to the ground. We both burst out laughing. For you basketball newbies, “Go low” means go toward the goal and be ready for the ball. We were playing while Eric was inside putting Anne to bed. (And now Eric is playing basketball with Canon while I stay inside with Anne…)

This is just one example of how the dynamics have changed within our family. Because Anne gets so tired in the evenings AND because of her disability… Canon and Kate are together alot.

In the beginning, this was difficult because Canon projected his grief onto Kate. There was lots of bickering. Now that Canon understands the true source of his grief, he has prayed for his relationship with Kate to improve – (which is AMAZING. My jaw almost hit the floor when I heard him praying for that!)

The other day Canon said, “God has changed my heart towards Kate. I really like playing with her now.” It’s true. They have so much fun together!

Even though their relationship is wonderful, and brings me much joy… lately I’ve been more aware of Anne’s absence in their play – which has made me sad.

Last night, Anne had an extra boost of energy, so she was able to stay up later with Canon and Kate. Instead of two kids playing, it was three. They were all wrestling and tickling each other on the living room floor. There were lots of squeals and laughter.

As I watched the THREE of them playing, I felt especially aware that this was God’s gift to me – a deposit, if you will – of things to come.

It is so hard to accept this new life God has given us. I’m tired of feeling sad. I just want to submit and accept and move on. I still feel like God’s hand is pressing me down into grief – like I have more work to do – more wrestling. It WILL end, and God will help us to submit and rest – all in His timing.

We covet your prayers…

  1.  for comfort and rest for Anne – that she would know God’s love for her
  2. for perseverance for Anne – and for all of us :-)
  3. that we could find joy in her current recovery and trust God for her future (instead of worrying about it).
  4. And for God to continue His healing work in Anne!

THANK YOU! -kathryn