#151 - CG

This one is a tear jerker for me if I think about it too much.  It is a patient of mine that is the same age as my middle son.  He is a beautiful boy who loves his pets, his mom, John Deere, and the Saints in no particular order.  His mom brought him to my office when he was about 4 or 5 because she said he could not jump.  He had a normal delivery and early childhood, and had learned to crawl and walk on target.  Mom reported that whenever he tried to jump, he tripped.  I evaluated him and found that she was right.  He could not jump and he had a lot of difficulty going up and down stairs.  So we began therapy.  The doctors from Children's Hospital who referred him to me ran a bazillion tests on him and could not come up with a diagnosis.  Just weakness in his ankles and he could not jump.  Not really that big of a deal at the time, but we thought we could work on it and he would be fine.  Fast forward 8 years...and I mean fast.  Fast regression of all of his motor skills.  This young man (funny story - He always says, "Ms. Monique, I am a man, right?  I always answer him, "You are not a man until you have a drivers license and a job."  He always replies, "But, I am a young man, right?")  But I digress...  This young man has gone from not being able to jump to now being in a motorized wheelchair that he can only propel by using his neck and head to move forwards and backwards.  Even this is too hard for him most days, so his mom drives the chair for him.  His spirit, sense of humor, and love are still strong, even though his body is not.  His doctors still don't really know what is wrong with him.  They have tested him for muscular dystrophy - negative, cerebral palsy - negative, genetic malformation - negative...Nothing shows up. 

Let me spend a minute talking about his mom.  She is a single mother.  #151 has contact with his dad, but he lives out of town and is not involved in his daily care.  She lived with her parents while she finished school.  She is now a teacher and lives in a home near family.  She weighs all of about 100#, but is able to move #151 in and out of the tub, car, bed, etc.  How she does it, I have no idea.  In therapy, we lift him using two people for safety.  I have no idea how she gets this wet kid out of a wet tub.  She, of course, is worried about him every second of every day, but she does her best to make sure he has as normal a life as possible.  Several years ago, Troop C, granted #151 with the Make-A-Wish foundation.  His wish was to meet the Saints.  They took him to a game, on the field, took pictures, autographs...the whole 9 yards.  He is such a fan, he even has a dog named Michael Lewis.  He will be quick to tell you that Michael Lewis did win the SuperBowl because even if he is not playing now, he is helping coach...teaching Reggie Bush how to run back kicks.  (Side note - Make-A-Wish is a wonderful program and if you ever want to support a cause...it's a great one).  He has hampsters named Ross and Rachel from his mom's favorite TV show and he has a couple of snakes.  I could go on and on...I love this kid.

I don't know what the future holds for #151 and his mom, but I know that I will do whatever I can to help out.  Just as a side note for those of you who do not think this country needs healthcare reform.  His single mother, who supports them on a school teacher's pay, makes too much money to qualify for state services.  She carries private insurance for him through the school board, but they limit his therapy to 20 visits per year.  This child needs much more than that.  At our clinic, he gets it.  How many other kids out there are not getting it?  Scary!

It is hard for me to put into words the empathy I feel for this mom and #151.  It hits really close to home when I can compare what my kids do and what this child can do.  It makes me much more grateful and much less aggrevated at our daily routine.  Some funny things that he says that endears him to me:

1.  He never meets a stranger.  He has won over the hearts of many other patients in my gym when he learns their names and strikes up a conversation.
2.  He says that when he grows up, he wants to be a bald headed cop
3.  He always asks Santa every year to bring him Easter eggs.
4.  He knows all of the words to almost every country song written and you know I love him because I let him sing them to me.
5.  He called our OT, "the activity lady" and is quick to tell me she is much more fun than me.

Every now and then you meet someone who touches your life.  #151 is that for me.  He make me humble and grateful.