Potty Training

My Emily is officially a big girl she goes on the potty all the time when she is awake. She is dry most mornings. My step-mom kept the babies while we went to the conference and she is the one that should get all the credit. We use a timer that we set for about 45 minutes. If she doesn't go then we set it for 10 minutes we do this over and over until she goes. The potty is out and accessible. I know it seems weird to put the potty in the living room but whatever works at first. Emily wore lots of little dresses so it would be easy and they left the bottoms off at first. I guess she was a little surprised when she pooped on the floor. Can you believe she had no idea that came from her. When she successfully uses the potty she gets to put stickers on a piece of paper hanging on the fridge. If she is unsuccessful she gets a sad face drawn on that piece of paper. She has been doing this for just a couple of weeks and she has mastered it. We don't even use the timer now she will just go and the potty is now out of the living room and in a more appropriate place.

Chase is next!

Tummy Trouble and JRA

Breanna was a great eater before being diagnosed with arthritis. It wasn't until she was 2 that she became this horrible fickle eater. I noticed she did not eat that much and asked the doctor. He said, "Don't worry she is just 2." Well as the time passed it progressively got worse and worse. Breanna is not a skinny girl but she really only eats one time a day (lunch). I noticed sores in her mouth and acid reflux issues at almost 3. An intern asked if we had been taking folic acid. No I didn't know we should of. I guess it is common knowledge if you take methotrexate you should take folic acid. How was I suppose to know. I do know now that I have to be a very proactive member of my daughters team. Don't just put all your trust in the fact that the doctors will have all the answers.
Now Breanna is 4. At the 2009 National JRA conference I became aware that a lot of children suffer from chronic stomach aches. I learned that the medication can sometimes be the cause other times it's a condition associated with the arthritis going after soft tissues and other times its a completely separate problem. Never the less I needed to get to the bottom of the problem.
I came home and made an appointment with my regular doctor and explained that she complains of her throat and stomach burning, yucky burbs, diarrhea, and just doesn't feel like eating. He checked her out and agreed that she needed to see a specialist. I complained for about 2 years with her rheumatologist and got no where he got me the referral that day. The GI clinic is a busy one the next available isn't for 2 months.
So now I am dealing with the fact that the ankles and knees are starting to swell. She is still taking the Methotrexate, but she refuses the NSAIDS. If I do give the NSAIDS she gets nausea. I think we are going to try the mobic. I will post more about it when I find out more.
I am up for sugestions or comments if anyone has anything for me.

More on the Juvenile Arthritis Conference

At the conference we were able to meet so many great people. The parent Networking session kinda kicked the whole thing off. It was nice to swap stories with other mothers going through the same things. We also attended a lot of great workshops. Some of the things I have learned to implement in our home: The medical Journal - keep every bit of health history in binders so that you have it at all times accessible. A plant based diet is healthier. Fruits and vegetable are natural anti-inflammatory. While meat fats are inflammatory. Also Albacore tuna has more of the Omega 3. Nordic Naturals sells a taffy type that does not up set the stomach. We also found that the V8 fusion is a delicious way to sneak in more fruits and veggies.

We also have realized that this has its effects on the entire family. I may only have one child with arthritis but they all have to deal with it. The time it takes at all the doctors, watching her suffer when she is sick or having trouble getting around, and the added stress it puts on me all takes away from the other children. I hope that we can all really learn to take it one day at a time and always love each other even though sometimes it's hard.

National JRA Conference

I had the wonderful privledge of going to the National JRA conference. Although it did not cure my daughter, it has made my us all feel a lot better about this disease we are battling. Yes it does affect all of us. Breanna is one of 4 children and it has its effects on all of us. We were able to show Bre that she is not alone by meeting other children with the disease. My oldest daughter found out she is not the only big sister dealing with the emotional roller coaster of growing up with a younger sibling with JRA. I had not realized but I too needed to know that I was not alone in this battle as a mom trying to balance my life and the curve ball of all the doctor appointments involved in raising a child with JRA.