About Courtney…

So many of you have been asking about Courtney, so I thought I would post the story here…

Friday, we were at a birthday party for a friend.  Courtney was sprinting around and playing as hard as she could.  All of a sudden, she came to me, white as a sheet, and wobbling back and forth, saying, “Mom, I don’t feel so good.”  She looked AWFUL.

I brought her home, and gave her Tylenol and some food (she has been diagnosed with pretty bad hypoglycemia, and needs small snacks every 2-3 hours).

By that night, her fever was up to 102.5.  The next day, her fever had gotten up to 105.  She was lying on my bed, shaking to the point that she was practically convulsing.  She was literally white as a sheet, and she had huge black circles around her eyes. Have you ever seen anyone with liver disease?  That’s what she looked like.  We started alternating Tylenol and Motrin every 3 hours.

Sunday, she had not improved.

I took her to the Doctor on Tuesday, and they discovered that the UTI she had a MONTH ago was still lingering!  They gave her medicine for it that she was suppose to take for 10 days.

Today, she woke up with a very, very slight fever.  I had an orthopedic appointment  and she felt like getting out, so we went.  The appointment lasted too long, and Court said she was hungry.  We went next door to the Doctor’s office to Whole Foods to get a little lunch.  Half way through the store, Courtney turned totally white again, got the huge black circles under her eyes, and her knees started buckling.  I practically had to carry her out.  Needless to say, I was completely terrified.

I got her home, gave her lots of food for her low blood sugar, and gave her the medicine she was supposed to have for her UTI.  She instantly threw it up.  She was super hot, and shaking so hard, she was bouncing off the bed, literally.

I called the Doctor, and they said to bring her in immediately.

Upon returning from the Doctor, they had decided that Courtney had that UTI a month ago, and it didn't fully get cured with the anti-biotic they gave her.  They are thinking the infection refluxed back into her kidneys!!  They said this can be very dangerous if not caught- you certainly don't want to damage the kidneys!!!  They said a normal anti-biotic wasn't enough at this point, so they gave her 2 high-dosage shots of anti-biotic in her legs.  They are very painful ones, because the medicine is thick, and must be released through the needle very slowly, so they had to mix the medicine with Lidocaine.  I had to carry her out on piggy back, because her legs were totally numb from the Lidocaine and wouldn't work.  Believe it or not, 2 hours after the shots, they were STILL numb.  She had to go back for the exact same two shots again the next day.  Both times, she was a trooper and never even cried, but she was concentrating hard on her slow breathing techniques throughout the process.  She amazed the Doctors, because they expected her to freak out.

As of today (Friday), Court’s fever is down to 100.  Today’s the first day in a week that her fever hasn’t hit 105.  Thank GOD!

What this does probably mean, however, is that the infection apparently responded to high levels of antibiotics, and probably WAS in fact in her kidneys.  This worries the doctors, and they have referred us to a Urologist.  They will likely inject dye into her kidneys and watch the function.  If the tube leaving the kidney is too short, they will surgically adjust it so that the reflux won’t happen again.  Her Urology appointment is scheduled for this coming Tuesday the 28th.  We appreciate your prayers SO MUCH.

I’ve certainly lost lots of sleep, and been very depressed watching what she has gone through, but this little girl is a WHOLE lot stronger than I ever gave her credit for.