It's been a S**T Summer!

Sorry for the lack of post on this blog. As Lucy gets older I find it difficult to share so much about her. I do worry about who might see it, especially now that she's in Secondary School.
However, I started this blog to record her journey and I've deliberately left out any recent photos so I do want to continue writing here.

My reason for the title? We are currently on round 4 of dis-impaction. It's becoming second nature to us now. We are experts in poo! After each round Lucy is okay for a while and then she becomes constipated again, despite constantly having the Movecol. The incontinence nurse reckons it's because we still haven't cleared all the blockage yet, and seeing as she's been constipated for years it's bound to have built up. So, our only option is to keep doing the dis-impaction until the constipation is cleared.

At her last appointment we watched a video which explains things clearly.




We are determined to get this problem solved. I don't want her to continue into her teens with it anyway.

In other news, we are still waiting for the genetic testing results which were taken in May. They said it could take up to four months...well it's September now. I did get myself into a tiz worrying about them. It was written in her notes that the Dr was looking for certain genes which would give her a diagnosis of a rare condition. I read up about it and scared myself witless. Then I stopped looking it up and was determined to wait for the results. It was always at the back of my mind so I eventually looked it up again. I found that there is only one person with this condition in the UK, phew. Sad for that little boy but it means it's very very unlikely that Lucy has it. In fact I don't even know why the Dr would be testing for it. Yes, she has a couple of the signs, but not the majorly obvious ones.

It is possible that she has Marfan Syndrome though. Her arms are longer than her torso and she has long fingers and toes (so have I.) If it's not Marfan then it could be what she is already diagnosed with, Elher's Danlos Syndrome. However, her Dr has already ruled out the Hypermobility type because she doesn't tick enough boxes. A lot of the other types of EDS have symptoms that do not present themselves until later in life, usually teenage years. It is a difficult process getting an accurate diagnosis. So many of the conditions she could have come with heart problems. We were told last year that Lucy would be checked regularly for heart problems. She had all the testing last year, but nothing this year. I'm not sure how often she should be tested or if they are waiting for the genetics results.

We go to see Lucy's neurology consultant about her neck in October. She seems to be doing okay although she has had some pain at times. I do wonder if her 'repair job' will last a lifetime, or if it will need re-doing at some point. The good news is that she is having regular check ups.

Lucy's Autism is becoming more noticeable as she gets older. Some things are getting worse and some things better. Her communication skills are not too bad, it was around her age that her brother began having problems with communication, or maybe it was just the fact that it was becoming more noticeable. With high functioning autism it is hard to distinguish some of a child's autistic features until they become an age where their behaviour is different to their peers. Lucy's autism was diagnosed much earlier than her brothers (she was 6, he was 12) but then we have more experience of Autism and noticed the signs earlier. Also, with her brother, he may have been diagnosed sooner if I'd listened to the school and refused to accept that my first born had something wrong with him. (The school wanted me to refer him to a psychologist at 6yrs.)


Apart from the poo issues, it hasn't been a bad summer. We've had some good days out as well as a small holiday. Lucy is a pain when it comes to going out, she'll get really anxious and may run off and shut herself in her room crying because she doesn't want to go. But by staying calm and using plenty of re-assurance, we have managed to get her out and she's always had fun.