Good News/Bad News

Today was a big day- good/bad for Madeline and us. First, this afternoon we had a parent-teacher conference with Madeline's teacher. We discussed Madeline's skills, how she is adjusting to school, behavior, etc. So was the conference the good news or the bad news???........Hmmmm....(this is me keeping you in suspense).......It was the good news. The teacher said Madeline is doing very well. That was great to hear.

As for the other news, I don't want to alarm you by saying "bad" news. Maybe I should say "surprising" news. Madeline had a follow up appointment today with her Ear Nose Throat (ENT) doctor to peek in on her ears. First I want to say that Madeline was an absolute angel at the doctor's appointment - especially since we were there TWO HOURS, mostly waiting. Anyway, for those of you that do not know, Madeline had tubes put in her ears in October '07. I didn't want to take a "wait & see" approach to Madeline's speech delays. My reasoning behind this is because speech is the foundation for reading and anything related to language arts. I wanted to give her the best opportunity to catch up before she became of school (kindergarten) age. Therefore shortly after coming home Madeline was evaluated for Early Intervention Services. Through this she was sent for hearing tests, ENT specialists, etc and it was determined that Madeline had fluid behind her eardrums. After trying to reduce the fluid with antibiotics and other measures it was determine that Madeline should have tubes put in her ears (sounds bad but they are the size of a piece of rice). These tubes eventually fall out on their own and you just go in every 6 months for follow ups - which brings us to today.

During today's follow-up visit, they gave Madeline a hearing test. It came in on the low end. The doctor decided to look at Madeline's tubes under the microscope (sort of like the thing that doctors usually look in your ears with but connected to big machine). For this Madeline was strapped down to a table. Luckily I was able to be there - Maddie once again did AWESOME! She had a surprised expression on her face when she realized she was stuck in that contraption but at least I was there to tell her it was okay. The tubes in both ears were basically fallen out (this is normal) and they were kind of wedged in the ear canals so the doctor dug them out (Madeline did great! She didn't even cry and the was hardly even a whimper. My brave little girl!!) . The issue, however, is twofold. (1) Madeline still has fluid behind her ears but more pressing is (2) she has a severely retracted eardrum on the right side. That basically means that the eardrum collapses and there isn't the space behind the eardrum that allows for the vibrations to be formed correctly for sounds. In time, if this isn't addressed it could cause deterioration of the inner ear bones.

So, what does this all mean? Madeline is going in on the 26th to have another set of tubes put in and have her adenoids taken out (yes, those effect the ears). Ugh!!! My eyes started tearing up when the doctor said this. In actuality, the surgical procedure is a very simple quick one (approx 20 minutes). Last time Madeline had the tubes in I was barely settled in the waiting room before they were buzzing me to say that she was out of surgery. Yet, just the thought of the procedure and the anesthesia is not making me a happy camper. My poor little goober! *Sigh*....I guess I need to just count my blessings and be happy that this simple procedure is all that we need. Anyway, please keep her in your prayers.