Blog Post #8 – I got behind on my 30 blog posts in 30 days – this weekend was a doozy. We are trying to get our house ready to list and we were busy packing and organizing and decluttering. So much stuff we have accumulated in the 13 years we have lived in this house.

During all the decluttering and because I’ve been so busy and yesterday, I was sick with a migraine, I thought I would share with you – something that my daughter wrote back in 2002 – when she was 16. It explains a little bit more of my Positive Journey and helps you understand a little more about me.

By: Kimberly

On Monday, February 4, 2002, very early in the morning, life as we knew it became suddenly disrupted. Mom woke up with a headache – a very bad one. Not uncommon, lots of people get headaches, but somehow this headache seemed different.

My Aunt, who was visiting from Arizona, had just arrived the Friday before. Mom had been having some health problems previously and my Aunt had come to help her. Mom was doing everything –  taking care of the house while my Dad was stationed overseas and homeschooling the three of us. We lived in Virginia at the time.

When mom woke up with a headache, my Aunt sensed the seriousness of the situation and promptly called Ask-A-Nurse to inform them of mom’s symptoms. After hearing headache, stiff neck and sensitivity to light, the nurse told my sister to call 911. I woke up at 4 am to flashing blue and red lights outside my bedroom window.

Knowing the expense of an ambulance ride my mom insisted that my Aunt brave the roads of Newport News, VA, even though she had never driven them before. So with me as navigator and my two brothers in the back to comfort Mom, we set out to go across town to Langley Air Force Base, the closest military hospital to us, which was about 30 minutes away.

Instead, we wound up at a civilian hospital – 10 minutes away, in 5 minutes. My Aunt drives crazy when she’s stressing out. This probably saved my moms life, although at the time we had not yet realized how much Moms life was being threatened by her raging headache.

Arriving at the hospital in the wee hours of the morning, 5:15 AM, the emergency room staff started to take Mom’s vitals, but of course had no clue as to what was wrong. They left her in a tiny triage room for what seemed to be hours, finally moving her to a bed in an exam room where they could perform tests, a CAT scan and a few lumbar punctures. (Mom is not quiet when she is in pain – either.)

According to my Aunt, Mom was not aware of what was going on around her. At about 8 PM in the evening they admitted my mom to the hospital where she went into a coma. People immediately started getting hold of my Dad who was stationed in the Sinai. Mom’s life was hanging in the balance and he needed to get home. The doctors had diagnosed her with pneumococcal meningitis.

What is meningitis? It is an infection of the lining around your brain, brain stem and spinal cord. The meninges becomes so inflamed, it creates tremendous pressure on the brain, causing in Mom a headache the size of ALASKA! It can also cause lasting and lingering effects, such as deafness, memory loss, the inability to walk and the loss of being able to write. In Mom’s case she had to learn to talk, walk, write and feed herself all over again. She was in the coma for 3 days.

When she woke up the doctors told her she was lucky to be alive. I realized that God had spared my mom. He showed me how amazing and kind He is. She came so close to dying and I am grateful she is still here.

My Dad made it home on Saturday, Februray 9th, 5 days after mom went into the hospital. This too was a miracle, no one was expecting Dad home that quick. He hadn’t even heard what was going on until Thursday when the Red Cross finally got hold of him.

The instant Dad walked through the hospital door, a look of relief flooded my Mom’s face. She began to rapidly improve and in 2 1/2 weeks was able to come home. My Aunt only had two more days left before she had to fly back to Arizona.

Even though it has now been a year and a half since Mom’s illness, she still fights lingering and possibly lasting effects. I have watched her go through physical and occupational therapy to help her regain balance and muscle strength. She fights with constant pain in her back and neck since the infection settled in her spine and gave her degenerative neck and back arthritis. She has some hearing loss and it is very hard for her to focus due to nerve damage in her eyes and ears. It has been fun for me – I got to teach her how to drive again.

I wish everyone could have their Mom as their role model. My mom is for me. She is my hero. She has worked hard to gain a lot of things that we take for granted – back. She knows what she wants and goes for it. Through God’s grace – she got her life back.  This to me is truly a miracle.

Me and my daughter getting ready to fly to California. I hate flying – especially take offs and landings. We have fun!!

I thank God everyday for sparing my life and letting me watch her and her brothers grow up to become successful adults. I am blessed – beyond measure – every single day and that is why I remain

Positively, Debbie.

I hope you enjoyed reading this. If you did – leave me a comment and let me know.