Therapy

Playing with the nurse.

Sitting with Mom holding his favorite therapy toy - stacking cups.

I am stretching Quinn's legs everyday and "exercising" them as much as possible. He is beginning to show some more tone in his leg and hip muscles and he is starting to use his trunk to attempt to sit. He still gets a majority of his balance when he sits from his arms, but it's an improvement! He is also able to tolerate some tummy time and he can spin around and use his arms to move forward a bit. We are so proud! He moved his legs a few times when he was on his tummy - all good news! We look forward to Quinn's 4 am feeding (the steroids make him a hungry hippo so we have gone back to early morning feedings) as this is when we see him close his legs and resist use moving them when we are changing his diaper. Lots of high-fives between us and the nurses then!

Visitors

Playing in the Exersaucer.

Look at that hand holding the cup!

Playing with Great-Aunt Peggy

Quinn and Grandma

We are limited to only 4 visitors a day including ourselves. My parents came and spent the day with Quinn on Saturday so Chris and I could go home and spend the day with Ben. It was so good to see Benjamin! I was able to get home before he woke up and he was attached to me for most of the day. Chris came home a little later and Ben ran to the door and gave him a huge hug. We went to Target, got Chris and Ben haircuts, and went to lunch at Denny's. Ben said Thank You to everyone that walked by! Ben and Mom took a nap while Dad, Uncle Joe, and cousins Jamie and Mackenzie watched the Gopher Basketball game. Uncle Joe watched Ben while Chris and I went back to the hospital. We are getting anxious to go home!

My cousins Becky and Kelly were with us the first night in the hospital and Uncle Joe and my cousin Beth came up on Friday. Grandma and Grandpa come up everyday. Today Grandma and Great-Aunt Peggy came to visit and play with Quinn. Quinn showed off some of his new "movements" - better trunk control and grasping ability. We also have had some encouraging leg movement!!! We are beyond thrilled, even the neurologist is happy about that. We still have a long, long road ahead of us and we have no idea what extent Quinn's recovery will be. We do know that he will not be in the group that has no recovery from TM and that's amazing!

"Puffin" feet

A side-effect of the steroid treatments is some puffiness in the limbs from retaining water. Quinn also cannot move his legs right now and the lack of movement causes the water to reside in the lower extremities. We try to keep Quinn's feet and legs elevated as much as possible, but its dificult with a little one. Overall he is making little improvements; more arm motion, better hand dexterity, and good head and neck control. We are trying to stay focused on the positives and we know we are so lucky just to have Quinn here with us. Many parents here at Children's are facing much more difficult situations. Thanks to everyone for all the thoughtful words, offers of help, and prayers. It is a tremendous comfort and we cannot express how much it means to us.

Sponge bath

So cooperative!

Don't forget to wash the soap off Mom!

We gave Quinn a sponge bath at the hospital. He did pretty good - I think he liked to warm water. He is very sensitive to touch at this time, especially on his legs. He doesn't like having his blood pressure taken and was pretty upset when they had to do a venous blood draw. The doctors say this is to be expected and they assure us he is not in much pain as his blood pressures and heart rate is normal. They are giving him Tylenol regularly and we do not want to have to give stronger pain meds as his breathing can be affected by the TM. Quinn is lucky that he is able to breath on his own, some patients with TM have to be on a vent because they cannot control their diaphragm to be able to breath.

Improvements!

Talking to his lion friend.

He loves his blanket and he is trying to grab it more and more.

Playing with Mom's nametag.

Quinn is beginning to have more motion and control in his hands and arms. The neurologist is very pleased by this! It was not expected and we are beyond excited! He still cannot quite grasp objects but he is reaching and trying. Good day!

Our first night/day at Children's

Dad and Quinn in our room at Children's

Our happy little guy!

Quinn's crib and the turtle balloon that is watching over him.

We were admitted to Children's Hospital in Minneapolis after Quinn was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis (TM). Our first night was spent getting Quinn settled into his room and trying to get some sleep. Quinn recieved his first steriod treatment and actually slept a few hours. Chris and I are able to stay in the room with him and my parents are at home with Ben. We know we will be here for at least 5 days for the steriod treatments and possibly longer depending on Quinn's progress and physical therapy. Chris and I didn't sleep much as the hospital nevers seems to be quiet and the "beds" aren't exactly comfortable. We are both anxious and scared. We are comforted by all the words of encouragement and prayers and this is what we are trying to think of as out minds wander to the future. Quinn will be evaluated daily by the team of physicians, neurologists, and nurses that are in charge of his care.

Quinn - The Diagnosis

Dad and Quinn in the Emergency Room

Quinn exploring his new IV

Grandma and a tired Quinn getting ready to go have an MRI

Our lives took an unexpected turn on Wednesday December 30, 2009 when Quinn was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis, an inflammatory condition that affects his spinal cord. He began presenting symptoms on Wednesday morning and we were instructed to take him to Children's Hospital in Minneapolis by our pediatrician. Quinn's limps were limp and he was unable to sit up, turn over, or stand. Quinn was evaluated in the Emergency Department and had blood work, a spinal tap, and a brain and spine MRI. We knew something wasn't right when the pediatric neurologist came to talk to us before Quinn was out of the MRI. He took us back to the imaging viewing room and together with the radiologist, they showed us the inflammation in Quinn's spinal cord. Tranverse Myelitis can result from 3 things: a tumor (this was ruled out in Quinn's case), a blood clot or blockage in the blood supply to the spinal cord (also ruled out), and post-infection inflammation (this is what caused Quinn's condition). The infection that caused the inflammation could be something a simple as the common cold virus or it may be an adverse reaction to the H1N1 booster shot Quinn recieved on December 22. We will never know what caused it as there is no test that can determine that. Quinn's spinal cord is affected from C2 - T6, which is a fairly large section of cord. Quinn is also the youngest patient by far that the neurologists have seen with TM, the youngest before him being about 10 years old. We were admitted to Children's that night to start a 5 day course of high-dose steroids with the hope that this will stop the spread of the inflammation. The treatments are not painful and only last for about 30-45 minutes. They are administered via IV and Quinn is usually sleeping when they give them to him. He does have an increased appetite and sleeps a little more than usual, but other than that he has no other significant side-effects. We are uncertain as to what the future holds for Quinn at this time. People with TM generally fall into one of three categories: no improvement, some improvement, complete recovery. Whatever happens, Quinn will always be loved and have all the support in the world from Chris and I and the rest of our family and friends.