Monday, February 27, 2012

Kyla

We are worried about Kyla. I know i've mentioned before that she has some issues and I haven't gotten into details and only a few people know about them because I don't want to make a big deal out of it but we are pretty concerned about her.

Kyla has some bowl issues that have been going on for a long time. I guess pretty much since she was a baby. She has a hard time having bowl movements. About a year and a half ago our pediatrician put her on some laxative powder twice a day to help her because she was so constipated and said she sees this all the time and not too worry about it. She also got some blood tests done and an x-ray because I pushed for it and they came back normal. She is still on the powder and if she misses she gets really constipated and it really affects her. I really don't like the fact that she has to be on a laxative twice a day for this long. The doctor said it can take a while (up to a year) before she won't need it anymore and I could slow down her doses after her body gets used to it and her bowls start to work on their own again. But, I can't slow them down, she goes right back to being constipated. Last Christmas was really hard, she was not herself and it was really hard seeing her like that. I took her to the doctor again and she said she was fine just to keep giving it to her and even increase it for a while.

I had a check up for Laken last month and asked the pediatrician about Kyla because nothing has really changed and she said she is just stubborn and won't go and brushed it off and that we have to make her sit there until she goes. She actually goes fine when she has her powder and has no problem so it didn't really make sense. But i'm not the best sometimes at giving it to her and it messes her up when we miss etc. I have always had in the back of my mind that something else is going on, I just have had this feeling something isn't right. Kyla has always been a small girl. She weighed about 43lbs at the beginning of the school year. I took her to the doctor today to get referred to a specialist and he weighed her and she is only 37lbs. She is really under weight. That's a lot of weight to lose for a 5 year old. It breaks my heart and it's really hard to think about, all I want to do is cry. She is tiny, if I hold her arm, all I feel is bone. None of her pants fit her because she has no waist. It's really hard to think about it.

I can see when she isn't doing good. I can see it in her face and her eyes. She gets purple under eye circles and her face looks sick and loses it's color, she almost looks grey and she is worn out. She doesn't have that happy bright face she normally has. She is always hungry and could eat all day and eats seconds of every meal so I know she is getting nutrients and food in her. She definitely doesn't have enough bowl movements a day to keep up with what she eats. Most of the time she is ok and acts normal when she is on her powder regularly so I kind of forget about it and just hope it'll work out on its own. But if I miss a day of medicine or anything like that it messes her up all over again and we have to start fresh. So I try and get her back on track and hope it'll pass and eventually get normal. But it hasn't and that's why I went to our doctor and made him refer us to a specialist. I didn't even ask what he thought I just told him what I wanted. This was our family doctor this time, who she has seen a few times about it, as well as our pediatrician. Neither of them seem too concerned and I think that's why i've put it off so long, but I don't care anymore because I want to do everything I can to help her. I'm also going to have my mother in law look into getting her in down south because the Doctor today told me it's at least a 6 month waiting list. So i'm going to see what we can do to get her in sooner somewhere.

I don't want her to be sick anymore or have any problems. I want her to be her normal self and not have to worry about going to the bathroom and going from one extreme to the other within days. I hate it. I'm praying we can find out what's wrong with her because it's been too long and I don't want her to be on this laxative anymore. I want her to be healthy.
I love this girl and it's the hardest thing seeing your child struggling with their health. I'm praying it will all work itself out and we can figure out what is going on. I want her to be able to live her life and not worry about taking her "medicine" everyday.






Goodness I love that face. Let's hope we will finally get some answers!
Here's to staying positive!

18 comments:

Lisa and Ryan said...

sounds like we are both worried for our babies right now...hang in there mindy! hope and pray everything is okay with Kyla!!

Unknown said...

poor little girl! i feel so sad for her. i'll be praying for you guys!

Unknown said...

poor little girl! i feel so sad for her. i'll be praying for you guys!

The Harker Family said...

Oh Mindy that just broke my heart! Poor, poor, poor little girl! First of all, you did the RIGHT thing by following your instincts and insisting that she see a specialist. A lot of docs shrug things off when it really is a big deal. When Camden was 2 years old he had had over 30 ear infections. I went to 2 doctors who just said "Oh as he gets older it will go away". Finally I went to see Dr. Byam (who was in our ward) and he referred us right away to a specialist (bless his heart). When we got there the specialist said it was the worst case of ear infections he had ever seen in his practice and we booked surgery right away. He ended up having 7 surgeries for tubes to be put and re-put back into his ears, and then one surgery to repair a burst ear drum. Now he is perfectly fine and his ears are totally healthy and his hearing unaffected! Had I listened to those other dumb doctors who kept tellling me to wait it out, Camden may today have such severely damaged ear drums that his hearing would be affected. So good for you to insist on seeing a specialist. Second thing is to try probiotic drops. The ones that are the best are called "Bio Gaia Probiotic Baby Drops" (it says baby but the doc said it's for both babies and children and it evens says so on the bottle). They also do come in a chewable tablet form, but i personally think the drops work better. Kyla may have a digestive problem, and so these drops would help. The cheapest place to get them is Costco. They are only $22.99 there and over $30 everywhere else. They must be kept in the fridge. They last about 3 weeks, but is REALLY worth it. When Caesalen was born she had bowel movements every single day no problem! Then when she was 3 months old all of a sudden she was only going once a week.She was in so much pain, was gassy, and was so cranky. So I saw the pediatrician and he recommended this. I cannot tell you how AMAZED and RELIEVED I was. It took a couple of days (2 to 3) to start working, but then all of a sudden it worked! She was having bowel movments EVERY single day, and even multiple times a day. I told an adult friend about this who also experiences constipation and she tried it and was totally amazed because it worked for her too! So try that. It can't hurt to try it. Here is the website. Best of luck with your little sweet pea!

http://www.biogaia.com/consumer/biogaia-probiotic-products/biogaia-protectis-drops

AKutarna said...

Poor girl! I hope you guys figure everything out - and soon! P.s. I was reading the last comment and you can also get bio gaia drops at Wal-Mart for a little cheaper. They do work wonders! You have to ask the pharmacist for them because they are behind the counter but you don't need a prescription.

Janas Bananas said...

Halle had that problem but she out grew it around 3. I would be worried too, it is hard watching our children suffer and you can't do anything about it. Good luck with the doctors and hopefully they will have some answers for you.

Mark and Hilary said...

oh man! I hope you get some answers soon. Having sick/uncomfortable kids is the worst - for them & for you! Good luck with everything!

kelsey said...

I'm glad you took things into your own hands. When it's our babies, no one knows like we do when something is wrong! I hope everything works out SOON and you can find an appointment in less than six months (I forget how long things take up there, sheesh).

She is such a cutie.

palegreensocks said...

Oh my, Mindy, my bestfriend's daughter had or was going through a similar thing. The doc couldn't figure out for the longest time why she was always constipated, maybe it was her diet, etc. They decided to put her on a glutten diet and had an indication that she might have celiac disease. I think that's what it's called. It's been a while. So Tatum, the daughter, she was on the diet for a few weeks and it helped. I guess constipation is not a super common symptom 'cause if you look it up, it says that diarrhea is also symptom of it, what the heck right? But the doc assumed and had her tested anyways and he was right.

Hope Kyla gets better and starts getting normal down there soon. I'm sure it stinks being in laxatives your entire life if docs can't figure out what's going on. Goodluck.

Francis Family said...

Thanks so much for everyone's kind words and advice. I am taking things into my own hands and hopefully get answers sooner!
:)

Alison said...

Awww, that is so stressful when you are worried about your kids like that. Reid has had bowel issues as well for quite some time and we haven't been able to figure it out either. Leela is only 39lbs but she is way shorter than Kyla so that is pretty small. I hope you get some answers from the specialist soon!

Stair Chair Lift said...

Wow what a post i am so impressed here all pics are very amazing.
Thanks for posting...




Stair Chair Lift

Stair Chair Lift said...

Wow what a post i am so impressed here can you more share here i will back to you soon as soon possible and also i have some information for you just click here
Stair Chair Lift. I think you will inspire here.
Thanks for sharing with us....




Stair Chair Lift

Jeff and Brit said...

Awe poor Kyla! I just want to give her a hug right now! Keep praying and it'll all work out! Love ya sis!

Mark and Rachael said...

Hey min, so sad to hear about Kyla. She definately shouldn't be losing weight like that. I have a lady who is now a great friend of mine who has a degree in herbology. I go to her about EVERYTHING and EVERYTHING she has told me has worked. It might be worth giving her a call. If you want her number message me on fb. I can pretty much guarantee she will have something that will help her body right itself on it's own. Good luck!

The Bagley Family said...

Personally I would ask for the Celiac test...it is a simple blood test to let you know.
My son has the same problems, he is also autistic and it is common for these kids to have digestive issues. With peter we have gone through wheat intolerances, severe constipation to the complete to diarrhea...it is never ending. But do what you feel is right!

Shelley said...

I don't know how I ended up on your blog but my kids have gone through phases of this. Does she have any other symptoms? My kids hit 10 mo and started to get constipated or pellet poop, excema, and sometimes yeast infections. My son actually dropped weight. The doctors all said they were just normal but I knew something was wrong. I switched them to soy milk and everything cleared up including excema. My two oldest had an intolerance to regular cow milk and they both grew out of it by age 2. During that point if they had a glass of milk the constipation would come right back. Small amounts of cheese were fine. I would suggest playing around with her diet. She may not be allergic but she may have an intolerance to something. If it's not something common like milk I would try gluten free diet.

Sarah McDonald said...

Just read this.. we need to talk! Coming form a mom with a 32 lbs 6 year old lol Call me

);