X-rays speak a thousand words.

I remember the exact moment I saw Delaney's first x-ray. It is devastating to see it there in black and white. To see what is happening inside our babies tiny body. Thank goodness Michael was with me because once they put that x-ray up on the board I couldn't hear anything the doctor said. I just stood there, tears streaming down my face, staring at that horrible image. The other parents of children with PIS all say the same thing...that first x-ray is engraved on our minds and remains a prick in our hearts forever.








X-rays are kind of like our life line through this. We wait anxiously for each x-ray. It's thrilling and scary at the same time, waiting to see how much progress has been made. We have been lucky and our journey has been significantly shorter than most. And while we still have a long road ahead with bracing and more x-rays, the worst is over, Delaney's spine responded to the casting and she will be cured.

I ordered copies of her last x-ray (April 22th, 2nd casting), we recently received them in the mail and I would like to show her progress. The x-ray at the top is a copy of her first x-ray, at that time they had her at 45 degree curve. (after taken properly at Shriner's, she was actually at 23 degree curve). The picture below on the left is an x-ray of her OUT of her 1st cast before they applied the second one. Her COBB angle was down from 23 degrees to 14 degrees. What a difference!! The picture on the right is an x-ray of her IN the 2nd cast. They got her spine down to ZERO! Just look at that beautiful straight spine!! They consider anything below 10 degrees cured..as most people have some curve to their spine...so they believe this 2nd cast is the final!! Can't wait to see her new x-ray next week and see what her new curve will be. Compared to that first heart wrenching x-ray...that one on the left looks pretty good to me:) Wish us luck next week...pray for wonderful results!!

National Scoliosis Month!

Infantile Scoliosis affects children under the age of 3. If you have a child under 3 or know someone who does, I strongly encourage you to inform them of this disease. It's not something the pediatrician routinely looks for at their well visits. It is not something parents readily know about. Before I had the girls, I read every book I could get my hands on about babies...I read about their milestones, their growth rate, diaper rash, dressing them for cold, childhood illnesses, what happens at their doctors appts, etc. Not ONCE did I ever read the word Scoliosis. Not once did the pediatrician look at my girls spines. Yet all it takes is a glance or a quick feel down the spine for a doctor to see something is wrong. As a parent, you have no idea this problem lurks around the corner, no one warns you about this disease. When we first noticed Delaney's back looked funny, we thought it was because she was learning to sit up. We thought she just had more muscle on that side. We were wrong. So in honor of National Scoliosis Month, tell everyone you know to check their kids spines. And then check them again EVERY month. This is a very progressive disease, and if caught early can be CURED!