Update to Familial Hemiplegic Migraine (FHM)

Well, I had my blood drawn yesterday to check if I have Familial Hemiplegic Migraines. We had to wait until our basement was completed and Christmas bills were paid to see if we had the money to pay the $600 to pay for this expense. Now, we have to wait 6 more weeks to find out the results. Part of hopes I have this disease, so then I have the answer I have been looking for, for nearly 20 years, but part of hopes not, because this disease scares me to death. I do not want to have the fear of having a stroke at an early age either. Also, I don't want to have passed this onto my children. I guess I will wait and see what the results show in 6 weeks.

In the meantime, I have seen a decrease in the amount of my migraines. From November to December, I only had 8 migraines and December to January, I had 11, which is good for a holiday month. I don't know why I had 8 in November and 11 in December. I contribute it to the magnetic mattress pad I sleep on, drinking Winder milk everyday, and all the medication I take on a daily basis. Anything that helps me from having 12-18 migraines a month, is well worth it. I will let you know more when I know more.

Familial Hemiplegic Migraine (FHM)

Interesting title. Yes, that's what I thought too, when I went to my Neurologist appointment on Wednesday. I figure it was going to be a normal appointment. I was going to tell him. I am still having 12-18 migraines a month, (13 last month) and that the medicine he has me on is just making me gain weight which I do NOT like at all. Well, that wasn't the case at all. He asked me about the severity of my migraines. Just like in the past, I mentioned when I have a severe migraine, my right arm becomes weak during the migraine and then lasts for days on end. This made him start typing rapidly on his computer. He's not much of a people person, which drives me crazy, but he is a great doctor. Anyway, let me tell you what happened prior to this appointment. Warning, it may be a long post.

Well, I have been warned NOT to fast, due to migraine health issue, but as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have the opportunity to do so on the first Sunday of each month. Well, our family decided to fast for a family in our neighborhood, who is not of our faith and invite them to a fireside on November
18th about a Humanitarian project our ward is doing at our ward Christmas party on December 1st. The fireside will talk about the Humanitarian efforts the church does and what our ward will be doing at the ward Christmas party and how it will help many people. Well, just so you know, we did invite this family on November 11th to the fireside and the ward Christmas party, so I guess we will see if they will attend both events. Anyway, in my personal prayer, I ask my Father-in-Heaven that none of us would suffer any side effects from fasting, ie migraines. Well, I was the only that did. I ended up being in bed for 2 days with a severe migraine and then my right arm was so weak for nearly 4 days following that I could hardly use it. I even tried taking Advil in high amounts and nothing would relieve the pain. My mother suggested trying heat. So, I used a heating pad when I could and that helped eased the pain somewhat. When I went to the doctor almost a week after the migraine had ended my arm was still a little weak and he could tell when he had tested me.

Now, he is having me have a repeated MRI on Tuesday. This one will include my head, neck and spine. I am NOT looking forward this as I am EXTREMELY claustrophobic. It's a good thing he gave me a prescription for Xanax. Also, I had my blood drawn that same day. They only took 23, (yes, 23) viles of blood to do a coagulation profile. Basically to see if my blood clots. Also, he is sending me to a Cardiologist, because he wants to put me on a heart medicine, but he wants to make sure I don't have an AV Block. I don't even know what that means. The last thing he wants me to do is get genetic testing done to see if I have Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. It is only a $3000 test that my insurance will NOT cover, but rest assured I talked to the company and if I paid 20% up front ($600) they would go up to bat for me with my insurance company. So, if any of you have an extra $600 laying around, I could put it to great use. :)

All of you who are reading this are saying, what is the Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Well, I will try my best to explain it to you, but if I don't do it justice, you are welcome to google it. FHM is a rare form of Migraine disease. People who have FHM usually have an aura prior to their migraine which can last days or weeks and they have paralysis on one side of their body. (Hemplegia) When this onset comes on, it can simulate a stroke. People with this disease also have severe difficulty with sound and light with their migraines. The one thing I absolutely didn't like learning about this disease is that I couldn't take my Maxalt anymore. That was the one medicine I could count on to help me feel better in a few hours after a migraine hit. If I do have this disease, they better find some other migraine drug that is strong enough to knock my headaches away, so that I can live a somewhat normal life, because the current one I am on now will not cut it and I will revert back to Maxalt and I know that could eventually shorten my life. The reason they say that Maxalt isn't allowed with patients who are FHM, is because Maxalt constricts the vessels and in turn could cause a stroke. Also, people with FHM, should wear a medical alert bracelet, which I am not one who likes to wear bracelets.

So, after all this is said and done for this week, I had a wise friend say to me. That I needed to suffer that 2 day migraine and then weak arm for 6 days, so that my doctor could finally figure out what was wrong with me. She also said that it took my faith in fasting for others needs that the Lord was willing to answer one of my prayers. I have been praying for 19 years to be relieved or to find some type of an answer to my migraines. I have only been seeing this Neurologist since May and I have been telling him every month about my arm, so I don't know why it was THIS month he finally listened, but he did. I guess we will see what all the test results will say and if I do have FHM.

I guess if I don't have FHM it is only one more area that I have explored with my life journey of migraines. Anyway, I will continue to endure till the end.

10 Things I liked about my vacation!

1. Spending time with my family!
2. Relaxation!
3. Disneyland w/ no wait lines. The longest line, Jordyn and I waited in, was for Aurora and that was an hour long, but it was worth the smile on Jordyn's face. We got some beautiful photos of her and Aurora. As for rides, the longest one was for Raiders and that was 20 minutes, but the rest of the rides were minutes. Disneyland was lots of fun. I am glad that we did 3 days and broke up the days with other activities in between. It was well worth it. California Adventure was fun too. The two most exciting rides were Soarin over California and Hollywood Tower Hotel.
4.Huntington Beach! We only went to the beach two days, because our 3rd day planned, it decided to turn cold and rainy that day. Oh, well! We still had lots of fun soaking up the California sun, looking for sea shells, making sand castles, reading and playing in the ocean.
5.Seeing Aunt Lois and doing Genealogy work. She even let me bring home two of her binders, so I can copy/scan the information and then send them back to her ASAP.
7.Soaking in the hot tub at the hotel, while kids swam in the pool.
8. No housework/cooking to do for a week! I did have to make my own breakfast each day and prepare sandwiches for lunch each day, which was okay. Also, I spent a few hours doing laundry one day. Nothing compared to ordinary life back at home.
9. David all to myself and not competing with his work. Also, not having his Blackberry waking me up in the middle of the night!
10.Smiles on everyones faces! There were many times we got each other's nerves, but when we all got along and had a great time and were laughing and smiling that's when it was all worth it!

Goliath

One year ago today, I lost a dear friend. It was my dog Goliath. We had to put him down due to cancer. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do and I pray that I won't have to do that again for a long time. We were very fortunate to have Goliath a part of our lives for 11 years. Dave and I got him 5 months after we were married, so we had him our entire married life and our entire children's lives. I know all of us had a difficult time with losing Goliath, but I know it hit me the hardest. He was my dog. From the very first day we brought him home on July 3, 1995, he marked his territory on me. That's right! On the way home, he was sitting on my lap, and with him being a little nervous, he decided to pee on my white pants. From that moment on, he was my dog. He also, helped me through a miscarriage. No one else could help me through it. Goliath came into my life at the perfect time, when I needed someone to love, cuddle, take care of, feed and potty train. He was my comforter during such a difficult time in my life. Yes, I had my incredible husband there to help me, but he didn't understand and I also had others who had empathy for me, but they couldn't make me feel better for some reason. It was Goliath who made me feel better. They say "Dogs are man's best friend." Well, Goliath was truly a one of a kind friend, but more than that, he was family. After he was gone, that first night was very difficult for me, because Goliath was always with me whenenver I had a migraine or wasn't feeling well and I would hear his little snorts, just to let me know he was there, but I didn't hear them. Well, I got down on my knees for my nightly prayers and asked my loving Heavenly Father to let me know if Goliath was alright and if was in his care, because I missed him so much and my heart was breaking tonight for him. After I got into bed that night, I was lying very quietly and I could hear Goliath's little snorts coming from underneath my bed. They were very faint, but they were real. I laid there and listened and then got up and looked under my bed, but didn't see anything. I then said another prayer and asked my Father in Heaven if what I just heard was Goliath's snorts and the Holy Ghost bore truth to me that it was and that Goliath was alright and he was been taken care of until we could be together again. My husband shared with me from Gospel Doctrine that animals can not sin, so therefore they would already go to the Celestrial kingdom. When he shared this with me, I knew it to be true as I already had the truth borne to me the night I heard Goliath's snorts and the Holy Ghost bore truth to me that he was alright. I miss Goliath each and everyday and there isn't a day I don't think about him. We now have 2 puppies named Rhythm and Blues and each of them have similiarities of Goliath, but they will never replace him. They help fill the void of losing Goliath, but they also bring so much joy in our home too!

Hello Again!

Hello World!

Can you believe that I decided to blog again? A lot has happened in my world since I last blogged. In fact, I don't even know why I decided to post. It took me a few minutes to remember how to do it, but it came back to me.

Tonight Dave and I went to the temple to do sealings with 5 other couples from our ward. We have been doing that almost every month now for this year. It has been a great date night for us, but also one way to help my ancestors. The sealer asked me if I felt anything for my 2nd great grandma's sister when I was acting as her proxy. I was sad, when I replied no, but Brother Hyde (a fellow ward member) said that he did. I hope that Mary Dunn (my 2nd great grandma's sister) accepted the sealing that I just did for her. It really thrills me when I hear fellow ward members come up to me and say, "hey I just some of your ancestors work the other day." I am so grateful for my wonderful ward who is committed to doing temple work and also doing my names at the same time. It brings me so much joy that my family names are being done, because I know I couldn't possibly do them all by myself.

Well, I guess another reason, I decided to blog again was to just express what's going on every now and again. I don't know if I will keep it up and I don't know if anyone will read it, but that it is okay, because it could just be just for me.

Update

Well, I am still here. Sometimes I don't feel like I am here, because I have suffered 11 migraines this month already and have injured my back so bad, that I can barely move. In fact, I finally had to receive medical attention yesterday for it, because I could hardly move and I felt the pain in my back was causing the migraines. I feel somewhat better today. Still in pain, but able to somewhat function today.

I am going to copy Beck's idea of just giving an update of what has been happening in mine and my family's life this past month, since it has been over month since I last blog. I apologize ahead of time if this may be a long blog.

1. On December 14th, our family finished reading The Book of Mormon. We started reading it on December 27, 2004, so it took us almost an entire year to read it through. For Christmas 2004, our gift to the Savior was to read the Book of Mormon everyday. Well, we only missed one day and we still finished it within one year. Now our family is reading from the Doctrine and Covenants and hope to have that completed by the middle of the summer. Also, I am very excited to scrapbook this experience of reading the Book of Mormon. I have all the supplies to do the pages. I just need to feel well enough to do them.

2. On December 19th, my youngest turned 8 years old. I can't believe my baby is that old! We went out to dinner with the grandparents to Applebee's and then they came over for cake and icecream and then Jordyn opened her presents. Jordyn was quite suprised by this because she thought her grandparents were coming over for dinner, but instead we went out to dinner. She was excited and embarrassed when they sung Happy Birthday to her at the restaurant. This was first time she had been sung to at a restaurant. It made her day! For her birthday, it seemed that her parents and grandparents were on the same wavelength, because she ended up getting purple clothing and Polly Pockets. She didn't mind. She loved all of her gifts!

3. On December 22nd, my kids had a Christmas piano recital, which Jeremy played "The Little Drummer Boy" and Jordyn played "Up on the Housetop." They had been working on their pieces for 2 months and had them memorized after 2 weeks, so it wasn't surprising that they did a wonderful job when it came time to perform at their recital.

4. Christmas was great! One of these years, I will get the Christmas gift I have always wanted. To stay home and not have to go anywhere! It seems we have to drag our children out to their grandparents house when all they want to do is stay home and play with their new toys. When I was growing up, my grandparents came to my house to see what I got for Christmas, so I could stay home in my new pajamas and play with my new toys. I just wish that one year my kids could experience that!

5. On December 31st, my beautiful daughter Jordyn was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She had been waiting for this day all year long and couldn't believe it finally arrived. She looked absolutely beautiful in the dress that my mother-in-law made for her and once she received the Holy Ghost, you could tell that the spirt of Christ radiated throughout her entire countenance. After the baptism, we had a luncheon at our house, which I hope everyone enjoyed. It was nice to see everyone to come out and support Jordyn on her special day.

6. On January 6th, my intelligent son, Jeremy was in the school Geography Bee. To be in the Geography Bee, you had to be in 4th to 6th grade and had to take a test. The top two students from each class were chosen. In Jeremy's class, he tied with another student, so he had to take another test and he ended scoring higher on the test. So, during Christmas break, we had the opportunity to review Geography facts with him. I believe I learned more that week than I did in all my years of schooling. Anyway on the day of the Bee, there were a total of 32 students. They did 7 rounds of questions and anyone who answered more than 4 questions correctly went to the final round. Well, Jeremy answered 5 correctly, so he went to the final round. In the final round there were 9 students and then eventually there were 4 which Jeremy was one of them. Jeremy ended up coming in 4th place. I thought was pretty amazing, because when he got to the final round, he was the only 4th grader left and to be up against 5th and 6th graders, he did pretty awesome. The 1st and 2nd place winners were 6th graders and the 3rd place winner was a 5th grader. It broke my heart to see him so sad and disappointed, but made me so proud to be his mom because he is such a fine student and great example to all. I know that if he makes it to the Bee next year, he will only get further. Way to go Jeremy!

6. On January 14th, we FINALLY bought a new computer. We have been wanting to do this for sooooooo long, but haven't had the opportunity to do so, until now. I just love it and I know I will love it more when all my files from my old computer will be transfered to the new one, so I can do my Family History work and Scrapbooking. Also, I will love it more when my computer desk isn't so cluttered with two computers on it. I hate clutter!

7. On January 18th, I was asked to be the Activity Day Leader for the 9 & 10 year olds in our ward. This now makes 3 callings I have in the ward. How many do they think a person who suffers from migraines can hold? They did warn me that weren't going to release me from the other callings. What was I thinking when I accepted another calling? I know what I was thinking. My patriarchial blessing states to accept all callings that are asked of you and also I thought this would be a great opportunity to learn about the program that my daughter is now involved in. I also was thinking that when Jeremy was going in Cub Scouts and they put me in as a Den Leader, I learned all about the program and this helped me to help him to achieve and continue to achieve the necessary steps in Cub Scouting. So, now I get to learn what it is like to be an Activity Day Leader, so I can help my daughter to grow and achieve the necessary steps to earn her Faith in God award. Maybe Heavenly Father wants me to learn to like Primary to. We'll see about that!

Well, that's what is going on with me and my family. I hope all is well with everyone. I will try and do better at blogging, now that I have a computer that will allow me do so in a timely manner. Also, I am trying to have faith that through the priesthood blessing I received last night that I will start to feel better so I can start to function as normal as I possibly can.

Family Home Evening Service Project

Last night for Family Home Evening, our family did a service project. On Sunday, we told the kids that we were doing a service project for Family Home Evening on Monday and on Sunday and up to last night, all we heard about is that they didn't want to do it. Just so you understand their hesitation to do a service project, the last one we did as a family was picking up garbage at the Stake Center. Of course, we didn't let them know that it was going to be a fun night and that they would feel good inside afterwards.

So, when 6:00 PM arrived last night, we informed them that we were going to Shopko to purchase gifts and then take them over to Deseret Industries to put in the Bishop's room. The last 2 Christmases, the West Jordan, DI has been accepting new unwrapped items that is put in a Bishop room. They ask people who wish to donate to buy something of their own age. We told the kids that they could spend up to $15 a piece, which they thought was so much. So, Jordyn chose a Doodle Bear that she really wants for either her birthday or Christmas. Jeremy picked out a large Batman figurine that he thought was cool. Dave and I didn't choose something that we would like, but instead chose something that a teenager might like, so we purchased 2 portable CD Players. They had mentioned in church that they were lacking teenage gifts, so we decided to go that route. The kids loved shopping for others and were very excited to go to the DI and put the items in the Bishop's room. Well, the DI closes early on Mondays, so we will be delivering our gifts today after school. Even though they were disappointed they couldn't finish the service project in one evening, they are looking forward to completing it today.

Just so you understand how one benefits from the Bishop's room, is that one goes to their Bishop and let's him know they can't afford Christmas for their children, so he feels out a voucher for them and they take it to the DI's Bishop room and pick out gifts for their children that people in the area have donated. It's another great program that the church and DI has set up to take care of those in need.

Well, I believe our chilren came out of this experience much better people, because they thought of others and witnessed the true meaning of Christmas. I pray that my children will always be thoughtful and remember others in their time of need.