on the way home

my sister sent me a message earlier that nicole was looking for my daughter. she's already staying at a private cubicle after more than a week in the intensive care unit. so i waited 'til my day off last thursday, brought my daughter & 2 of my girl friends to nik.

everyone's attention was on my daughter. my niece couldn't get enough of her she kept on asking us so sit rayne beside her on her hospital bed. day by day my daughter's becoming this cute little menace that would bring random surprises to everyone. she already started to walk a week ago, although a bit late for being born premature.

nicole, with only half of her body functioning, asked for food every now & then. being deprived of anything to eat for more than 4 weeks, she munched on anything anybody brought in her room. during my stay, nicole kept asking about her puppy. to backtrack, my sis asked me to hunt for the perfect pup for nik. we've allotted the tightest budget for the dog, obviously due to the bloating hospital bills. the cheapest toy dog i could find was a dachshund. i eventually met with the breeder after our visit to nicole, settled payments & sent the new pup home. i got nik a mini-dachshund from a breeder who lives in our area. 'she's' got valid registrations w/c was supported by the papers provided by the seller including a document of the recent shots from the vet. she just turned 4 months. i've got a photo below. it's a little blurry so i'll post a better shot when i get the chance. we named her, w/c nik approved, dashee.

was at the hospital as well the next day w/ girl friend alex. nicole's therapists helped her learn how to sit up & stand again. nik failed to stand up, complaining of pain from different parts of her limbs.

she's scheduled to be sent home monday & we will be celebrating her return together w/ dad's birthday.

earlier that week, my girl friends & myself went to the annual UP fair done at the usual sunken garden spot in qc. i was supposed to follow them to a sorority reorientation held at the tiendesitas near libis. as soon as i was at the venue after work which was already past midnight, the conference was finished so we just took off & decided to go to UP. when we got there, the tickets were already sold out & i remembered my brother texting me earlier that he has plans to attend as well. so we exchanged messages & soon found out that he's at the backstage so me & my friends got easy VIP access. it was unusual this time coz in the past, i was the one who always had hassle-free access to backstages on several rock events. this time it was my brother who led me in for free. my brother's balikbayan friend BJ had recently joined as the main guitarist for the rock band 'slapshock'. we stayed until after mainstream rock bands 'kamikaze' & 'parokya ni edgar' did their show. we left UP together w/ the rest of the 'slapshock' members, my brother & his gf sam, my cousin mike & my 2 girl friends.

the worst is over

a few weeks back, the premature finding of a "moya moya" from my niece nicole was ruled out. her mri/mra findings came back positive though for multiple blood clots in several of her major heart & brain vessels. she had to undergo 'heparin treatment' through IV to dissolve these clots & prevent a more critical stroke that may cripple her completely or even end her young life. the family had to sign a waiver prior to the risky treatment for that 'chance' can cause internal hemorrhage to nik & may worsen her condition.

gladly enough, nik went through the treatment the whole week successfully with good test results. unfortunately, some of the clots near her brain could no longer be dissipated & will stay there for the rest of her life. she still has to take oral treatment to dissolve a few of those left to her heart. that, hopefully, will be just another 2 week stay at the hospital. she was taken out of the ICU just a few hours earlier, admitted to a private room.

the paralysis at the left side of her body is still apparent, so she's also undergoing therapy. we are all optimistic that she'll return home, maybe not 100% normal but alive & that is perfectly enough for all of us...thank you God...

spare my niece..pls..

erratum from my last post.

nicole's not yet stable. in fact, the worst has surfaced. after i wrote my last post, i went to the hospital to visit her. she was already able to digest soft foods so i bought her a macaroni soup from jollibee. she was catching chills every now & then from the day i visited so the other day they had to place her under intensive care.

they ran an ultrasound test of brain & found a possible evidence of "moya moya". it's a very rare disorder that affects children & adults. it's a japanese term defined as main blood vessel blockage to the brain. no wonder why nik has always complained of excruciating headaches & deteriorating eyesight. she just had new eyeglasses a few days after her birthday which she was not able to use yet.

today she was sent to the cardinal santos hospital in san juan to get an mri/mra to confirm diagnostics on her brain. the test confirmed a large acute infarction at the right basal of her brain. other than that, although i could not get accurate info from my mom who just got home today w/ ate anna from the hospital, a "moya moya" suspected to be at her neck is yet to be determined by another test this week.

the questions that have been hounding all of us is this: why does she have to go through the same deal of pain? she has gone through several tests & also under the knife when she was only 3 years old. w/ that ordeal, miraculously, she got healed from a muscle cancer. then this? again? what can save her? how can we save her? how can we spare her from all of this?

dealing with pain

nicole had 2 strokes for the past couple of weeks. & she is merely 10 years old. after she turned 10 last jan 21st, her visits & stays at the pcmc {philippine children's medical center} were never ending.

not only is she suffering from an enlarged heart, she would develop a 'cerebral infarct' without warning causing the stroke. the last event which caused panic & mourning to everyone was last saturday when she could no longer feel half of her body. she just got admitted a week before complaining of pain in her left legs which we learned in the hospital was a symptom of a stroke. she got home feeling better last friday & unanticipatedly got struck w/ the worst effect of a stroke only a day after. she only played computer that afternoon, which maybe wasn't good for her. she laid down her bed after a few hours then dad heard her crying. i was sleeping beside my daughter so i wasn't completely aware of what's happening. she wet her bed, due to the numbness she couldn't control it. my tita panicked as soon as she saw nik motionless w/ her eyes closed. she eventually opened her eyes & cried silently. that's when we realized why she's hurting. she can barely open her left eye. she looked so different we all cried in grief. dad & the rest rushed her to the hospital in a few minutes.

God must've never forgotten her for she's stable & better now. the stroke did not permanently damage her face, her body. she can now move normally but still weak. she can't eat yet. she still has pending neuro lab tests. my tita ebeth's scouting for some sponsors from the congress to support my niece's financial needs for her medication & tests.

i know kuya benjo, nik's dad who's in heaven now, will help his baby nik get better...