This is my lovely sister, Beth with her daughter Madison. Just over a month ago my family & I were enjoying home made ice cream after Sunday night church. Now we are spending much of our waking hours caring for Beth & praying for her. They suspect that she has Arnold-Chairi Type I. It's a condition where the lower tonsilular lobes of the cerebellum descend from the skull into the spinal space. It can pinch off the circulation of cerebral spinal fluid. Beth had a terrible episode of sickness 15 months ago that they diagnosed as a viral neuropathy. It's uncommon in a woman her age & who enjoys good health but the burning pain in her arms & legs could not be explained any other way at that point. She got better but has struggled off & on since then with terrible pain & numbness. They have explored fibromyalgia, lupus (prevalent in our family), and even Lyme's Disease. Last week our family doctor did some review of MRI results, etc. & discovered what he feels is an overlooked case of the Arnold-Chairi. In the meantime, Beth has suffered a terrible flare up of numbness, pain, & muscle weakness. She has lost some of her ability to swallow so she is barely eating soft foods. She was successfully referred to a well-known neurosurgeon in Indianapolis (one of my co-workers has has been his patient 3 times). That appointment is early Wednesday morning. It's been a tremendously long wait for this appointment (7 days down 2 to go!). Please pray for Beth. Pray for her peace of mind. Pray for the Lord's continued direction in testing & treatment. Pray for us as her family to be the right kind of support for her. Pray for her children (8 year old son & 5 year old daughter). There has been a network of tremendously loving people from our church who have really "circled the wagons" & we're so grateful. I personally am praying for a miracle. Each night before I go to sleep I ask our powerful God to erase the whole problem before Beth awakes the next morning. If He chooses to do it, I will praise Him; if He chooses not to do it, I will praise Him.
And so we wait on the Lord. He never disappoints.
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage,
and he shall strengthen thine heart:
wait, I say, on the LORD.
Psalm 27:14
