My anxiety is excited and my excitement is anxious as I sit in our den on a quiet Monday morning. Grace is at pre-school, the gas logs are on because I am always cold. I am drinking hot tea. Thirty-one days ago I would have been wishing it was afternoon instead of morning and Pinot Noir instead of Bengal Spice. But, my life is different now. The list of things "to do" in preparation for my surgeries is growing but oddly enough the phone rings every so often and it's someone about something and I get to check one more thing off my list. I love a list.
Since last week, it seems as though everything is coming together... after all this time. My father often quotes an old friend saying, "Sometimes ya just gots ta wait on The Lord...." It seems as though The Lord is ready for me to move forward. We finally have surgery scheduled to stop the progression of my "symptoms" of Chiari Malformation, Tethered Cord, and Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS). My first surgery will be on a Tuesday to detach the Tethered Cord. Three days later on Friday I will have Chiari decompression surgery or Sub-occipital Craniectomy with fusion to C-2 using my ribs #7 & #8 which will be harvested during the surgery. The recovery will be lengthy but well worth it.
The support of my dear, sweet husband, daughter, family and friends has been amazing. You all give me so much courage and I cannot tell you how much I love you all! Thank you for being so understanding and compassionate. The Lord has put new people in my life that have become instrumental in helping me make informed Godly decisions and He has rekindled old friendships that have reminded me who I really am or was.
I'm not one to ask for help but in this situation I'll take all the help I can get ;) When I get scared I think about my favorite Bible verse Psalms 23 and I find peace.
If you are interested in learning about Arnold Chiari Malformation, Tethered Cord, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, or other related conditions please visit www.csfinfo.org
Thanks for reading!
Blessings to all - Leigh Anne
