We Shall Overcome: Seeing Is Believing!

“He's your bodyguard, shielding every bone; not even a finger gets broken.” - Psalm 34:20

When Mia woke up this morning, I noticed during our routine stretches and joint massages that her left knee was looking pretty good! So, I had her lay flat on the floor and I examined her knee further to see how close the back of her knee was to the floor. It was VERY close...maybe just a few degrees to go! Not to mention you could really see the definition in her kneecap. A few months ago, her knee was the size of a tennis ball. So, that is HUGE!

So, when we got to physical therapy this morning, Mia ran up and down the ramps and got some good stretches in out of her left leg. Again, several months ago, Mia was not running at all so this is major progress. Then Mary had her sit on the floor and do some puzzles while she stretched out Mia's leg. She applied moist heat (a heating pad wrapped in a damp towel) for about 20 mins. and then she did some presses on Mia's knee to see how close she was to "normal." We were both so amazed - Mia is at 0 degrees!! Of course, it was with the assistance of the hot towel, but she was at 0 nonetheless! Praise God!

There is still some fluid on her joints and some work to be done on her knee. She has developed bad habits because of the JRA. When she squats down to grab something, all of the weight is on her right leg. When she goes up the stairs she protects her left knee by using her right leg first to climb up and her left leg first when she goes down. But, this is all stuff her therapists can work on with her. We are VERY thankful to God for the progress she has made. There are kids with JRA who can't even open their mouths all the way because the arthritis is affecting their jaw and some kids can't even turn their heads. And most of these kids are on steroids. We have a lot to be thankful for!

Below are a few pictures I took today of her knees and toes. She still has some fluid on the left knee and several of her toes are still swollen. However, we STILL know that her joints and bones will function with NO disease and that her immune system will be CALM and NORMAL!