Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Scrapbooking

I can't seem to get enough of scrapbooking at the moment. I just take advantage of every spare moment I have to do something, even if its just 10 minutes trimming paper. Here are some of my latest and favourite layouts.

Monday, March 27, 2006

Grommets

Well we've had Bailey's hearing test and yes he failed again. He was sent off to an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist as a matter of urgency. He is booked into hospital to have grommets inserted into his ears in a week and a half. A small incision will be made into his ear drums and tubes inserted into the hole. These tiny little tubes will stay in his ears for up to 18 months and will drain the fluid from his ears. Hopefully 1 set will be all that he needs. Hopefully his speach will develop once the grommets go in. He was booked into speech therapy but I decided to go back on the waiting list until I've seen what the grommets do. If in another 3 months his speech has not improved I will do the therapy. I don't know how I will go seeing him go under a general, it will probably make me cry. We are going to have to keep water out of his ears for the duration of the grommets being in his ears. This means plugs even when he is in the bath.

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Comedy Night Out

Hillsmeade Primary School is holding a Comedy Night fundraising event at Hillsmeade Primary School, The Promenade, Narre Warren South.

This is going to be a funfilled evening with lots of up and coming comedians giving us a sneak preview of their performances they will be performing in the Comedy Festival.

It will be held on 1st April starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are $15.00 and if you organise a table of 10 you will go into the draw to win tickets to the Comedy Festival.

So come along and help support our primary school to raise much need funds for the school.

Tickets can be purchased by contacting Samm Strickland-Wong on 0425 870 965. Payments to be made to Hillsmeade Primary School.

Graves Disease (Overactive Thyroid)

It was 21 months ago now that I was diagnosed with 'Graves Disease', which is an overactive thyroid caused by a growth on the thyroid called a 'goiter'.

Bailey was only 6 months old and I first put the symptons down to a young breastfeeding baby and a 3 year old. The symptons were excessive exhaustion, I would have to rest half way through making the bed and I would need a couple of nana naps throughout the day; I would always be hungry and continually eating but continue to lose weight. I remember eating 5 iced donuts for morning tea one day because I couldn't satisfy my hunger and I still lost weight. I ended up being 4 kilos underweight (this sympton I do miss); I was suffering heart palpatations even when resting; and I wouldn't feel the cold. I was walking around the house in a singlet in the middle of winter and I am someone who wears woolly jumpers and would sit on top of the heater. The sympton that alarmed me to my problem that had me book in to see the doctor was when I started getting uncontrollable shakes. It was then that I knew what I had, because this disease is considered heriditary and a number of my family members had been through the same thing. These were the symptons that were noticable to me, I was suffering a lot more symptons that I was not aware were caused by the thyroid, and it wasn't until I read through the list of symptons I truly realised what was happening. If left untreated you can end up going into what is called "Thyroid Storm", which can then put you into a coma that you may not come out of.

By the time Bailey was 8 months old I was put on medication called Propylthiouracil (PTU) for 18 months and was forced to give up breastfeeding. This devastated me because I was not ready to give up feeding but I couldn't risk making my baby sick. I started off on 5 tablets a day, which sent my thyroid underactive, it was eventually lowered to 1 per day but it went over active again. After 6 months we finally managed to stabilise it with 2 tablets a day and for the next 12 months I took my medication religously at the same times everyday (just through habit with my meals). I found out towards the end of my treatment that taking PTU at the same time daily gave a better chance for the medication to work efficiently. I was given a 40% chance of going into remission and now I have finally been off the medication for 3 months and I am pleased to say I am in remission. Thanks to the help of my trusted family doctor, Dr Sandhu of Southern Cross Medical Centre and Dr Nik Chossick, Thyroid Specialist. I always stayed positive that I was going to be in the 40%.