This is my first update in 10 months.  For most of those 10 months Michaela’s health improved steadily and we all started to hope that future updates would be unnecessary.

In the middle of April she started having intestinal issues that were annoying but not initially alarming.  In the beginning of June, she started feeling nauseous and having a difficult time eating.  We were not sure initially that the two problems were related.  However, as the nausea & vomiting worsened and Michaela lost an alarming amount of weight we started to worry.

Our first trip to the ER ended with being sent back home after being hydrated intravenously and blood tests came back negative.  As Michaela’s condition continued to worsen, we went back to the ER just 3 days later.  At that time, they finally scanned her body and discovered an obstruction in her bowel. They started to pump the bile out of her stomach through an NG tube, hydrated her with IV fluids, and finally started feeding her through a picc line.  These efforts to stabilize her condition were successful and resulted in her gaining her strength back and with it her spirit.

At first their best guess was that the scar tissue from last year’s surgery was causing the obstruction and surgery was recommended.  However, we had a difficult time finding a surgeon willing to take it on due to the complexity of the situation.  When we finally found one to willing to perform the surgery, we were dealt another blow.  Further imaging and a biopsy revealed a tumor of the same kind she had last year.  The tumor is in a very tricky location with nerves involved and our doctors are recommending transfer to a teaching hospital.  Today, we are waiting on word from Wake Forest to see if they are willing to take her case.

I will start using this website to post updates again in order to efficiently update all the wonderful people who are praying, loving, and supporting her.