Jackinator

Spica Cast Survival Guide

 

Now available!  The Spica Cast Survival Guide: 
Real-Life Information about a Body Cast 
from someone who's Been There.

 

It's hard enough dealing with the prospect of caring for a child in a body cast without having to worry about clothing.  This useful guide gives step-by-step instructions on how to make easy (really) no-sew clothes:  Towel Trunks and Spica Shorts.  Also included are How to Stay Sane and Things we found Invaluable during this difficult time.

 

Enter coupon code JACKINATOR and receive a 20% discount!  Proceeds of this sale benefit the recovery of a Perthes Disease victim.

Bed Rest and...Bats?!?

Here's an interesting article I came across; I can't imagine 3 years in the hospital but it looks like that's what they used to do for Perthes Disease.

Courtesy of Pontefract and Castleford Express

Wartime hospital experience

  

TOWNVILLE man Terry Swift has submitted this picture of patients at the Marguerite Hepton Orthopaedic Hospital in Thorp Arch, near Leeds, taken about 1944.

Mr Swift, now 75, was a patient at the hospital for three years after being diagnosed with Perthes’ disease in his left hip when he was eight. The disease, which causes a limp and other symptoms, commonly affects children between the ages of four and eight, mostly boys.

Mr Swift said that during his stay he was given various treatments mostly consisting of bed rest and fresh air.

He added: “We were put out on a covered veranda on some winter nights and sometimes we woke up with snow on the end of the bed.”

As well as freezing nights the patients were also exposed to sunburn, visiting bats and bomber planes during wartime air raids.

The picture shows the youngsters on the veranda – Mr Swift is indicated with a cross.

He added: “As the years have gone by I’ve forgotton the lads’ names but they all came from surrounding 
districts.”

Perthes Pals

I just created a new site for those with Perthes Disease to connect with each other.  There's many support groups for the parents but not much out there for the ones going through it.  It's called Perthes Pals and I've had a great response during 'opening weekend' last week! 

Ten Thousand Pageviews!

The Jackinator blog just reached 10,000 pageviews today!  People from around the world have been to visit this site.  Here are some milestones and anniversary dates, too:

June 23rd
2 months since getting the body cast off  

 

 

June 30th
1 year ago was Jack's arthrogram and 1 year ago I started this blog (whoa!)

July 2nd
4 months since the femoral osteotomy
1 year ago that Jack started traction for 6 weeks

 

July 8th
18 months since we got the offical diagnosis of Perhes Disease.  Both kids were on crutches at the time; Amanda with a sprained ankle foot and that is how Jack ended up being xrayed by an orthopedic.  The second the orthopedic doctor looked at his xray, he said 'That's Perthes.'  We had never heard of it before then.

 

 

Jack has come a long way and still has a ways to go
but I think we're moving in the right direction. 

 

53 Days

but who's counting?  The passage of Time (or lack thereof) is much different than being out in the 'real' world; days just loom.  Ever see a show on sloths?  They're pretty speedy.  Here are some likes and dislikes during these 1,272 hours:

Jack's dislikes:
Body casts and everything about them
Out of reach itches

Things Jack didn't mind:
Being allowed to watch TV and play on his DS and PS2 pretty much whenever he wanted
Skyping with Isaac and his class
Near constant snacking

Mom's dislikes:
Sleep deprivation
Body casts
Out of reach itches that don't get tamed by Benadryl
The sense of accomplishing nothing

Things Mom didn't mind:
Staying in her PJs until lunch time
Playing with Jack's blog
Getting meals and flowers from friends
Seeing all the wonderful support Jack got from family, friends and school

Something Mom learned by Osmosis:
Most every episode of SpongeBob and I-Carly.  If you want to learn a new language, just have it on in the background for about 12 hours a day.  In less than 8 weeks, you'll be dreaming in that language.

Week 6

Here's the start of Week 6.  Next Friday the cast comes off.  Jack is getting to the very antsy stage, saying he just can't take it anymore.  BUT he can; it's the home stretch.  Typical week - skyping with his class, having a friend over, 'school' 3 afternoons and Nurse Lisa here 3 afternoons.  This weekend, Jack's grandparents are arriving from Florida so that will be a good distraction for him.

Weekend Skyping

Jack and Isaac skyped most of the morning.  One of the things they did was create amusement park rides.  Isaac's is the Bugeye and Jack's is the X-STREAM.  Jack also sketched a contraption to capture ghosts, called the Ghostinator 3000:

   

Party

Today, Cheryl Z. stopped by with a very generous gift certificate to Barnes and Noble and Jack's favorite snack, Chex Mix (thanks, Cheryl!!).  In the afternoon, Jack joined his class for their Easter party:

Quiet Day

Not much going on today.  Jack joined his class this afternoon on the webcam and I did some very local shopping for Easter.  I also scouted out some detours so that Nurse Lisa could get home. There's still quite a bit of water around and some intersections are closed.  Our mall (about 20 minutes away, in Warwick) really got hit hard.  Here's a good video, by Bruce Valliere:

School Closed due to Rain??

Yes, school was cancelled today because of rain.  It is pretty bad out, but come on, couldn't those busses plow through a few lakes and rivers that weren't here yesterday?  It's been pretty loud here this morning.  By 9 am, the phone was ringing off the hook, Jack was skyping with his friend Isaac (I've been now informed by 3rd graders that it's called 'skyping' not 'webcam-ing'), my cleaning service was vacuuming away (OK, that's not so bad :) and I've heard 'I'm bored' several times by someone NOT in a body cast.  When I told Amanda to find something to do, that 'something' was taking the webcam out of Jack's reach and pointing it at herself.  Amanda is now outside having a water fight with a friend.