Ella slept peacefully last night. She seemed better this morning. No fever. So excited to think we got rid of whatever was ailing her and so quickly. Well, pre-mature excitement. This afternoon her other eye turned bad. She climbed in bed and slept for 2 hours before dinner. Sleep is good. It is the best time when your body can heal. I will give her another day or so on the oils.
Ella has lots of bruises on her legs. Typical when you are an active 4 year old. RR says it spooks him. Have to admit that I thought twice about it too. I guess that is normal when you are parents whom have already had a child who has battled cancer. You learn to never say never. She will be okay.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Ella's Fever
Ella woke up around 3am with a burning fever and gooby eye (looks like pink eye). She was very upset and I think hallucinating. Instead of automatically reaching for the tylenol to put out her fever I decided to try my oils.
Ella is my strong willed 4 year old on any given day, so adding 'feeling miserable' to the mix, doesn't make for a cooperative little girl. I knew the hardest part would be getting the oils on her. I also knew she wouldn't take any tylenol so I had to try.
She agreed to let me rub her back. I knew that I wanted to get Peppermint, Eucalyptus and Lemon on her to help cool her fever but also knew that the icy sensation might bug her. I had read that Basil, Rosemary, Melaleuca, Frankincense and Clove are other oils that can be used for fever. So I decided to start with some of these less icy ones first. She seemed to tolerate me applying them to her spine. Eventually I tried the more icy oils and she complained a bit so I used some coconut oil to help difuse them and she was fine. When she seemed more settled I was able to rub these oils on the bottom of her feet. Within 15 minutes or so her fever broke. She did awake a couple hours later with fever again so I lathered her up and once again she settled and fever cooled. I had also patted a tiny bit of Melalueca with coconut oil around her eye area being careful not to get it too close to the eye.
This morning after her bath I put more oils on the bottom of her feet adding Oregano to the mix. She seemed fine all day until late afternoon when I noticed her slowing down and by early evening her fever had returned and now she is complaining that her throat hurts. I lathered her feet up again and she allowed a wet cool towell to be placed on her head. I also got her to sip lemon water. I know she is fighting something.
She is now sleeping. Hopefully she has a more peaceful night.
Ella is my strong willed 4 year old on any given day, so adding 'feeling miserable' to the mix, doesn't make for a cooperative little girl. I knew the hardest part would be getting the oils on her. I also knew she wouldn't take any tylenol so I had to try.
She agreed to let me rub her back. I knew that I wanted to get Peppermint, Eucalyptus and Lemon on her to help cool her fever but also knew that the icy sensation might bug her. I had read that Basil, Rosemary, Melaleuca, Frankincense and Clove are other oils that can be used for fever. So I decided to start with some of these less icy ones first. She seemed to tolerate me applying them to her spine. Eventually I tried the more icy oils and she complained a bit so I used some coconut oil to help difuse them and she was fine. When she seemed more settled I was able to rub these oils on the bottom of her feet. Within 15 minutes or so her fever broke. She did awake a couple hours later with fever again so I lathered her up and once again she settled and fever cooled. I had also patted a tiny bit of Melalueca with coconut oil around her eye area being careful not to get it too close to the eye.
This morning after her bath I put more oils on the bottom of her feet adding Oregano to the mix. She seemed fine all day until late afternoon when I noticed her slowing down and by early evening her fever had returned and now she is complaining that her throat hurts. I lathered her feet up again and she allowed a wet cool towell to be placed on her head. I also got her to sip lemon water. I know she is fighting something.
She is now sleeping. Hopefully she has a more peaceful night.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Oils in Africa!
I have been home from Africa for about a week now. So grateful that I was able to bring our new son home with me. It was quite the experience. I need to take a week to blog about it. See my other blog: goodmorningsister.blogspot.com.
Before I left for Africa I had to get a bunch of vaccinations. Some were required and the rest highly recommended. Many expressed concerns that I was going to get some funky disease. I stocked up on my oils and felt safe. I put them in a clear ziplock bag and had no problem getting them through security at the airport.
I used my oils everyday while I was there. My dear friends benefited as well. We used On Guard as a disinfectant on our hands all day long. Peppermint was used to help with tickle coughs and to freshen breath. DigestZen was a favorite in helping irritable stomachs and bowels. Oregano, Lemon and Melaleuca was put in a capsule and digested to kill anything that might be a bug. Lavendar and Vetiver were used for calming. Terra Shield was used to repell the insects especially when we ventured to the dense jungle. Breathe and Eucalyptus were used to help Yaw and Kwasi with respiratory issues caused by air conditioned cars that they were unaccustomed to. Geranium, Frankincense, Myrhh, and Melalueca were used for new facial surprises. It was a very stressful trip with a lot to accomplish. One morning out of the blue my knee collapsed. I literally could not walk. From the knee cap down was useless. If I tried to put weight on it I would have excruciating pain and no support. A mighty prayer was offered by my friend Jex and then I slathered the knee area with Mryhh, Frankincense, Cypress, Helichrysum, and White Fir throughout the day. I ended up being able to limp around and by night was back to normal. Who knows what happened.
Moral of this story. Don't leave home without them.
Before I left for Africa I had to get a bunch of vaccinations. Some were required and the rest highly recommended. Many expressed concerns that I was going to get some funky disease. I stocked up on my oils and felt safe. I put them in a clear ziplock bag and had no problem getting them through security at the airport.
I used my oils everyday while I was there. My dear friends benefited as well. We used On Guard as a disinfectant on our hands all day long. Peppermint was used to help with tickle coughs and to freshen breath. DigestZen was a favorite in helping irritable stomachs and bowels. Oregano, Lemon and Melaleuca was put in a capsule and digested to kill anything that might be a bug. Lavendar and Vetiver were used for calming. Terra Shield was used to repell the insects especially when we ventured to the dense jungle. Breathe and Eucalyptus were used to help Yaw and Kwasi with respiratory issues caused by air conditioned cars that they were unaccustomed to. Geranium, Frankincense, Myrhh, and Melalueca were used for new facial surprises. It was a very stressful trip with a lot to accomplish. One morning out of the blue my knee collapsed. I literally could not walk. From the knee cap down was useless. If I tried to put weight on it I would have excruciating pain and no support. A mighty prayer was offered by my friend Jex and then I slathered the knee area with Mryhh, Frankincense, Cypress, Helichrysum, and White Fir throughout the day. I ended up being able to limp around and by night was back to normal. Who knows what happened.
Moral of this story. Don't leave home without them.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Just need to start
For a long time now I have wanted a place to be able to write and share the many thoughts and experiences I have swimming around in my head. My husband, Randy, created this blog spot for me. Now I don't know where to start. I keep putting it off because I think I need to begin with something amazing. I decided today that I just need to start. I know the thoughts will come if I do. While I am writing this I am wondering if Brigham is okay. I better go check on him... I am back. I am glad I went to check. He was outside in the back yard stuck on his trike. He had somehow got caught down low by the back wheels and couldn't move one way or the other to get free. He was calling out to me and just waiting patiently for me to come help him. How hard it must be to be 13 years old and so dependent on other people to help you through each day. He is losing more and more of the basic abilities he once had. I am reminded of the times that I had to fill out evaluation tests for Brig at school. It was difficult to mark page after page abilities that my son could not do. It was depressing and just another huge reminder of my sons situation. At the same time, I know I learned to appreciate all the simple things that most people just take for granted. In his first years of school Brigham was able to get out of the car and run into the school by himself. I remember specifically one day, when I was dropping him off, I was overcome with emotion as I watched him run into school. I was so grateful that he could run. I must have somehow known that day that it wouldn't last. I remember wondering if all these other mothers who were dropping off their children recognized their many simple blessings. Brigham doesn't run anymore however he still is fighting to walk. I know it is important to focus on the blessings of all the things he still can do. Today it is an honor for us to be able to do for him all the things that I am sure he wishes he could do for himself.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Challenges of Dying/Living Son
The blessings and challenges of helping my children live and learn as well as they can is at times overwhelming. I am starting this blog to capture and try to catch up on much that I have learned and to confess where I have stumbled. All of our children teach us. In our case, our son Brigham is our master teacher. At age 3 he was diagnosed with ALL (Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia) and three days later as he fought for his life he was diagnosed with something that left us feeling like the cancer was minor: MPS (Mucopolysaccharide Storage Disorder Type II - Hunters) We fought the cancer and "won" after three years and we are fighting the MPS and "losing" after 10 hard fought years. More detail on that to come. At any rate this blog is where I will share a little of our journey.
jr
jr
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