Multiple Things

We have had a lot of good news lately that I want to share. Caden had an appointment with his pulmonologist on December 10. When she listened to him, she said his lungs sounded better and more clear than she had EVER heard them. She thought his lungs were growing and maturing. That is fantastic news for him. She said she doesn't want to see him again until the end of February and the only reason she wants to see him then is because she is going out on maternity leave in March and she wants to see him one more time before then.

Then, I was finally able to get Alta to approve a speech evaluation for Caden on December 18 at Bright Start Therapies. This is the clinic where he also receives PT and OT. They have a really wonderful program there with great results. His evaluation went well in terms of him being in a very good mood and cooperating quite well. The speech therapist said he definitely qualified for therapy (his expressino and comprehension are that of a 6-month-old) and said her report would make that recommendation. It would just be up to Alta to decide whether or not to approve it on an ongoing basis.

Also, on the 18th, Caden had an appointment with his cardiologist. Everything went so well and he was so happy with how Caden sounded and looked. He also said Caden sounded better than he had ever heard him. He thought his respiration rate would start slowing down soon if he continued on this trend. And, we don't have to go back for 6 months!!! I can't believe that! That is half of his life. I am so amazed at how well he is doing. What a blessing! And, the other thing I got from the cardiologist was a statement from him saying Caden could medically tolerate PT twice/week. That is all that Alta needed in order to approve that. So, beginning January 1, Caden will be receiving PT twice/week!!! Another victory won! I think Caden will begin to make huge strides in his gross motor development now!

On December 22, we had respite care reinstated for Caden. This is provided to us through UCP (United Cerebral Palsy) based on Caden's diagnosis. We receive 90 hours/quarter of childcare to be used however we choose. This is wonderful for us because it enables me to be able to get out of the house to run errands or do something with Kyler or go on a date with Greg while Caden is able to stay home and away from germs.

And, we are waiting to get our Medical number because as soon as that happens, we will receive nursing care for Caden, up to 40 hours/week. I'm not quite sure what I am going to do with that much time! But we will see how it all works out. The agency has been in touch with me and is starting to recruit nurses for us to interview as soon as we get that number. I'll keep you all posted on that progress.

Then, on December 23, Caden had an appointment with his GI specialist. We talked to her about several things, including speech therapy because she wanted to make sure he received it. I told her Caden had an evaluation the previous Friday and we were waiting to hear whether or not Alta would approve it. She said she believed he needed to receive it twice/week based on his oral issues. She has a member of her team work on this specific thing so she told me to work with her to get whatever paperwork was needed in order to make it happen. That is fantastic news! I would love to have him get speech therapy twice/week. I just needed to find out what Alta was going to provide or not.

Later that morning, I got a call from our service coordinator at Alta telling me speech therapy was approved beginning January 1! I was so excited! According to Bright Start, Caden will be the youngest client they have ever had. Up until now, they said their youngest client was 14 months when they started. So we are breaking new ground. I told the director there that I was more than happy to pave the way for other families with babies who need speech therapy at a very young age due to vocal cord damage, etc. So, once we start going once/week, I will start working on getting it approved for twice/week.

Overall I am really happy with where things are at right now. I had to be willing to fight and not give up. If I was willing to accept “no” from Alta, we would not be where we are today. Caden would not be receiving OT or speech therapy. Both things are very important for him so I am glad I was able to make it happen. I truly believe God's hands are in this and helping us get all the things for Caden that he needs! Even though we have had a lot of stress in this situation, things are finally falling into place. All in God's timing! Thank you all for your continued prayers.