Diary of a Brain Tumor - A Series of Miracles.......

Have you seen the movie, "Miracles from Heaven"?  I went earlier this spring to see it with a dear friend of mine....and then a week later, I took Nani to see it.  (Looking back, I'd say that was probably a bit prophetic, wouldn't you?)
 
At the end, the mom talks about how miracles are all around us.....they are not just big or small, but they are in the every day moments.  And once things settled down, and I looked back, I could see all the signs.....a series of miracles that led us to where we are with Nani today.

* Not taking her into the ER earlier.  My initial thought, coming home from church, was to take her to the ER immediately.  My Marine suggested we wait a little bit, which ended up being a good thing.  Nani had started to feel better by early afternoon.  If we had taken her, she would have been feeling better and they may have just sent us home with meds which would have masked her pain.....the pain that signaled that the tumor burst and was building pressure.  We could have lost Nani that night, at home.

* The severe pain.  When Nani started experiencing severe pain, that was when the tumor burst and started to bleed.  It's hard to fathom being thankful for something that causes you to scream in pain, but this is what prompted us to get to the ER when we did.

* The doctor in the ER quickly switching her decision from giving a spinal tap to getting a CT scan.  We found out later that everything was all laid out for the spinal tap, but the doctor, at the last minute, had a gut feeling and ordered an immediate CT scan.  If we had gone on with the spinal tap, it would have cost us precious minutes....even seconds....in getting Nani to Children's Hospital.

* The storm.  All evening long, while we were in the ER, there was no rain, no storms.  Nothing.  Once they loaded her into the helicopter, we were hit with a terrible lightening storm.  This wasn't the pretty flashes of lightening in the clouds either.  We're talking cloud to ground lightening bolts, heavy rain and winds.  As someone who flies on helicopters, My Marine kept trying to tell me it would be ok.....but I knew.  He's told me many times that they don't fly in that kind of weather....period.  It's just too dangerous.  But as we got closer to the hospital, My Marine saw the strobe on the landing pad and knew they were there.  I am convinced that it was the Hands of God that got them there.  He wrapped His Hands around that helicopter and guided them there.....safely.

*Surviving the beginning of surgery.  Nani was not supposed to survive that surgery.  Period.  They did not expect a good outcome.  Not only did she survive the initial part of the surgery to relieve the pressure, but she remained stable.  Stable enough for them to go in and remove the majority of the tumor.  They would not need to go back in at another time and perform another surgery.

*Waking up and recovery.  When he came to see us after the surgery was over, Dr. Hankinson prepared us for the fact that Nani would not wake up until at least mid-week and that she might have some neurological deficits.  When finally went back to see her, they told us that she woke up in the CT scanner -- 30 MINUTES AFTER SURGERY!   She fully woke up, kicking & fighting, an hour later....both terrified and fighting mad.  Her medical team was amazed.  From that moment on, she achieved and surpassed recovery milestones days before she was supposed to.
 
*Support.  From the time this nightmare started, we were never alone.  From my Army sister, "V" driving in the middle of the night to pick up Nudgie at the ER, to my MOPS sister, "T" who brought me Starbucks at the crack of dawn, to the barista at that very Starbucks who still made the coffee for me when they weren't even open yet, to my other Army sister, "L" who came later that day with a bag of snacks.  To CH Dave who dropped everything to be at the hospital with us that morning....to making phone calls to notify, what seemed like the entire Colorado Army National Guard, what was happening.  To CH Dave's wife, "C" who also provided us with a bag of goodies.  To our Army family who immediately circled the wagons around us.  The list goes on and on and on........


Miracles don't have to be big, booming spectacles.  They can also come in subtle ways, like a friend's text or a cup of hot coffee or the nurse's smile when he says, "She's doing incredible" or the parking spot that opens up just in the right place.

You just need to look for them.  You may have miracles happening all around you every single day.....don't miss them!