Update

Ricky had a rather traumatic blood test last week. This included his annual labs followed by a 3 hour blood glucose tolerance test. That test involves blood being drawn periodically throughout the 3 hour wait after taking a big drink of disgusting glucose solution. A lot of pregnant women have had this test in 1 or 3 hour varieties.

Poor Ricky started to feel badly right before the half hour draw. He was fasting, so I don't know whether he was just hungry or what. We had to battle him for 10 minutes to get the 3rd draw, making it late. He was tired and hungry and physically fought. The fourth draw went off without a hitch. After the fifth and final one, he was dizzy and unsteady, stumbling around, and on the way out to the car he passed out cold on the pavement. It was scary. And the CF nurse, when I called her, said she hadn't heard of that sort of reaction before. She suggested he might be dehydrated and I did let him rest and give him fluids.

After waiting a few days this week for all of the blood test results to come back, this afternoon I heard back from the CF clinic. Sort of. Ricky's labs are all back, but the nurse is going to talk to the nutritionist about the vitamin levels and glucose tests before they get back to me. That doesn't sound good, does it? (The glucose part; we've had to add extra vitamins before -- that's no big deal.)

Also heard back from the gastroenterologist's office today. Ricky is supposed to have an abdominal ultrasound to rule out other stuff given his frequent abdominal pain. But CCS and Medi-Cal will not cover the GI doc anymore, for bizarre reasons known only to them. So the GI doc is going to call the pulmonologist to strategize. Ricky will probably end up being referred to a GI doc who's also at Stanford and getting that test. It's kinda sad, since the original GI doc has seen him ever since he was diagnosed at 3 weeks old. But we will deal.

Tomorrow (Friday) Ricky's having his annual bone density scan and full pulmonary function test. And we will hear back about the blood tests. What a week it has been!

evening update...

As we got to my mom's house this afternoon (I was dropping the boys off so I could go to work), Ricky said he felt dizzy and had a headache... The same thing that has been happening a lot lately. When we got inside I checked his blood sugar and found it to be only 72! My mom immediately gave him some Life Savers at my request. It is strange with this dizziness thing... Sometimes it is related to the blood sugar and sometimes not.

When I came later to pick the boys up, Ricky said he had still had a headache during the day, along with the chest tightness that he had this morning. I sure hope he is not getting sick. Especially since our insurance from Dave (the boys' stepdad and Misty's dad) ends on Tuesday. The boys are supposed to have Medi-Cal (state insurance) after that but who knows when it will be processed? I applied 9 days ago and so far not a word. I was assured "well it will be retroactive", which helps for hospitalizations but doesn't really help much for prescriptions, etc. The idea of being without insurance, ESPECIALLY with Ricky, scares me to death.

I guess I just have to trust that things will be okay.