Another hill to climb

Darrell reported that the only real difficult part of the sleep study for Jackson was the prep work. Dozens of electrodes were attached all over Jackson's head and body, and each spot where they were attached had to be shaved of the top layer of skin first. It was a long and trying ordeal, and worst of all, the medical staff wouldn't allow Jackson to rock back and forth while they were doing it. Sheer torture.

I didn't know what to expect, and when I saw these pictures Darrell snapped with his phone, I was shocked.

Considering that Jackson won't normally tolerate a bandaid, is it anything less than a miracle that he endured all these constrictions, including a pulse monitor on his finger (which he absolutely hates), and slept peacefully through the night? Yes, the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon him.

For those of you who knew about it beforehand and prayed for Jackson, isn't it a special joy that God allowed us to share in what He was doing?

The next morning, Darrell learned that the technician who monitored the sleep study had advised that Jackson be taken immediately to the emergency room. Instead, the nurse contacted the ENT (ear, nose, and throat) doctor, who decided not to send him to the hospital and just see him at the scheduled appointment the following morning.

Jackson has never been a good sleeper, and now we know why:

• He has a severe case of complex sleep apnea, which is a combination of the two kinds of apnea: central (brain related) and obstructive (body related).
• If a child has just one incident of sleep apnea in an hour, treatment is required. In one hour, the technician observed Jackson having 16 central incidents and 80 obstructive incidents, a total of 96. (No wonder she wanted to send him to the ER.)
• This makes Jackson's already-stressed heart work harder and contributes to his high blood pressure.

Here are the treatment options:

• Removing his tonsils and adenoids won't help with the central, but will help a little bit with the obstructive, so that surgery will be scheduled.
• Jackson will also have to sleep—for the rest of his life—with a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device, consisting of a machine pumping oxygen into a mask strapped to his head. (Of all things for a boy who hates having anything on but comfy clothes!)
• If Jackson won't tolerate the mask, there's a permanent solution, but not a desirable one—a tracheostomy. This is different from a tracheotomy in that the hole in his throat would be permanent and be closed off with a cap during the day. (Please, dear God, not that.)

Praise the Lord that we're getting some answers. Although it's scary to find out just how precarious and fragile Jackson's condition is and has been all these years, it's comforting to know that God has been keeping his little heart beating against all odds.

We'll keep praying and expecting miracles, including that Jackson will accept his oxygen mask.

My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. (Psalm 62:5, KJV)