Bad News

Approximately a year ago Maggie was diagnosed with Selective IgA Deficiency. I had no idea what that meant and was filled with fear. Rick and I had never heard of anything like this and so it was all new and very scarey to us. Our friends and family were supportive and tried their best to be there for all of us. So many people have tried to understand and help us out during some stressful times. As we learned more and Ricky was diagnosed I felt as if this wave swept over me and I drifted out to sea. It was if I was stuck on some pidd island all alone and extremely overwhelmed and afraid. I talked with one or two people who had some experiences with immune deficiencies but nothing or no one on a constant basis. The weight began to drown me and I wondered if I could manage or handle what God had placed on this journey.

One day I made a phone call to the Immune Deficiency Foundation and was hooked up with Becky. She was my pidd mentor and a fellow Mom of a child with pidd. We talked a few times and she gave me enormous support. The best gift she gave to me was inviting me to join a group on facebook called Down with PIDD - yeah you know me. That group has been a huge blessing in my life. It is filled with Moms who have children (old and young) with pidd and people who themselves have pidd. I have turned to them with questions, frustrations and joys. In each moment I have shared they have supported me and shared their experiences. The wild thing is that I have known these people only 4 months and only through a computer. I have never met any of them personally yet I feel as if some of them are as close to me as my closest friends who live minutes from me.

It is strange how a condition or experience can bring people together. And in this day and age it does it in unique ways such as facebook. Some of my friends live in the south, some on the west coast and a few nearby. Each one of these people have touched my life in so many ways. On my bad days the have reminded me that I am doing the best I can for my two little zebras. I have struggled with this journey. Since joining the group, the road has gotten much smoother and the bumpy spots have become easier to navigate.

So I have shared all the blessings the zebras have given to me and now to share the bad news. Tonight I got on the computer to find out one of most awesome Moms I have shared with has hit a severe bump in her journey. She has had a massive stroke and is hospitalized unable to speak. We are getting sketchy information from a couple of members but it doesn't sound good. Her son has been sick himself with his pidd and they have been struggling.

I feel sick to my stomach with this news. I am filled with grief and keep hoping that I will get some good news coming across the screen. Again, it just amazes how someone so far away has touched my life so deeply. I keep praying for her, her son and her family. May God hold them all close to his heart. I can't do much but I can keep praying.