Willow Update

We got to see Willow today for the first time since her surgery, in between our first Christmas and our second Christmas. Our third will come tomorrow afternoon, just after visiting her again. Parental divorces definitely have their down sides, but a dearth of Christmases is not one of them.

After seeing Willow and talking to the doctor, we were simultaneously encouraged and discouraged. We weren't sure what to expect, and were surprised and dismayed to find that she still couldn't move any of her lower limbs. The doctor, however, informed us that this is completely as expected, and that it will take several days to see any return of function (or even motion). This eased our minds a bit, but it was still devastating to see her like that. She has a long scar running down the middle of her back, her entire back is shaved, and she looked incredibly pathetic dragging her butt (literally) out of her cage to see us. She's obviously stressed out by the whole situation (as are we) and was whimpering and crying for a few minutes when we arrived.

Having us there definitely seemed to help, though I think visiting too much might be just as bad, due to overexcitement and additional stimulation. She hadn't taken any solid foods yet, so one of the techs put a quarter-can of dog food in a bowl with a wooden tongue depressor (to use as a spoon). We were convinced she was a bit happier when she ate almost the entire bowl of food in a few minutes, at one point snapping the tongue depressor as she bit down enthusiastically.

As far as long-term recovery is concerned, we're still pretty much in the dark. Though her progress is normal so far, a wide range of outcomes are still possible, from partial death of the spinal cord and full rear paralysis to a full recovery, which may even include running/jumping like normal. Even with a good outcome, it may be eight weeks before her motor skills return. This uncertainty is awful, but we're trying to focus on each day as it comes. Even with human medicine, dealing with spinal cord injuries is a much less precise science than dealing with other disorders/conditions/complications that we've grown used to during the past six months. There's just no way to make an accurate prediction about anything. The one guarantee is that it will be an emotionally difficult process, as well as incredibly, ridiculously, outrageously expensive. Just the preliminary bill has already far surpassed our entire out-0f-pocket expenses for Andrew's five month stay in the NICU. This is why we wanted Andrew to be a veterinarian.

We're trying to enjoy our Christmas, and we're definitely looking forward to the new year. Christmas Eve wasn't the same without my Yia-Yia, our imagined Christmas with Andrew never materialized as expected, and both losses are felt especially hard during the holidays. Though we still don't know exactly what will happen with Willow, we are hoping our 2008 is significantly better than 2007.

I'll keep posting, though I might not get to it every day....Willow's recovery will be a slow process, so I don't think I'll have much daily news. One of these days I'll wrap up our Hawaii trip with some additional stories and pictures (swimming with dolphins!), but for now I'll just wish everyone a Merry Christmas and sign off. Merry Christmas!