What if You Could Change the Life of a Child #payitforward

What if one day you woke up and your life had changed…in the blink of an eye? That is exactly what happened to the Weaver family. Chad and Melissa Weaver had welcomed their sweet baby boy into the world. This was their 2nd born child and they named him Owen. Life was great and then their baby got sick. It’s every parent’s worst nightmare to be told that your child is sick or being admitted to the hospital, but what was yet to come was even worse.

Owen was transported to Children’s Hospital and admitted to the ICU for 15 days—15 days! At this point Chad and Melissa could only pray that their baby would make it to see the next day. They were unsure of what the next day would hold. Owen began to improve, however the MRI showed severe brain damage, and the Weaver family then knew that they would not be taking home the same little boy they had entered the hospital with. He also had a lot of damage to his pituitary gland, which is what gave him diabetes insipidus (DI). The DI took a while to get under control, but as it did Chad and Melissa had to learn how to mix Owen’s solution so that they could give him an injection themselves to manage the DI.

This was just the beginning. They would soon find out that Owen had also lost control of his temp function. Because of this, he would have to be kept on a special mat in his cradle. The mat was like a water filled heating pad that was able to control Owen’s temp. At this point, these were the only complications the family was aware of. The others were to come later.

At 6 months of age Chad and Melissa noticed that Owen was not tracking things. He would never really look at objects and this concerned them. They were referred to an eye doctor at Children’s Hospital where it was confirmed that Owen was in fact blind. Once again, their hearts sank, however they picked up the pieces, dusted themselves off and moved on. They had their child and that was the most important thing.

Soon they would meet with a wonderful lady that would come to their home and teach them how to play and take care of a blind child. She was great and turned all of their fears around. Owen began physical, occupational and speech therapy at the age of 6 months and is still doing it today. He was developing and doing very well, he was starting to stand with support, speak a few words, and was able to self feed.

And then something happened, by the age of 2 Owen began having seizures. They said the seizures were an aftermath from the brain damage. He was diagnosed with Myoclonic Seizures. As months went on, the seizures got worse. He was having up to 300 seizures a day! These seizures took everything from Owen. Any of the development he had gained, was lost. When he was 3 1/2 the Neurologist decided to try a steroid treatment. They would admit him and do an extremely high level of steroid through an IV. If it worked right Owen’s brain would “restart” and could completely stop the seizures. By the grace of God, it worked!!! He has since only had occasional seizures, which is to be expected and is much better than 300 a day!

At the age of 4 they discovered that Owen hadn’t grown at all in the past year. This worried the doctors and the parents, so they ran some tests. It turns out, as part of Owen’s pituitary damage he had a growth hormone deficiency as well. He would need another shot of growth hormone once a day. They also learned that he has a cortisol deficiency, which means that his body does not make the cortisol hormone. Because of this he was given a medication called Cortef, which helps put Cortisol in the body. Cortisol hormone is what helps us deal with stress. Anytime Owen gets a fever or illness he needs a dose of this to help his body make up for that. When you or I get sick, our body automatically makes extra, where his does not. Owen’s parents also carry an injection of Cortef with them at all times just in case he is ever in a really stressful situation such as a car accident, broken bone, or any other situation that may cause extreme stress. Owen’s thyroid has to be continually checked because it could be the next thing in his pituitary gland to stop working.

Owen is now 5 years old. He is still gaining back what he lost from the seizures years ago, but he is slowly making progress. He can now roll, sit from laying flat on the ground and is beginning to feed himself again. While he talks a lot, there are no specific words that have yet been formed. He is best known for his happiness, even with all that he has been through, he is the happiest child you will meet.

Owen’s struggles are not over, he is often in and out of the hospital, but he has a loving family that is there for him. Unfortunately, Owen’s family does not have a vehicle that is wheelchair accessible and will allow their whole family of 6 to travel together. They have entered a contest to win a free wheelchair accessible van. This would be a dream come true for this family. Not only would they be able to ride together as a family, but Chad and Melissa will no longer have to load their child and his heavy wheelchair in and out of the vehicle every place they go. It’s the small things in life that we really take for granted.

*~*Now comes the part where you can help*~*

Each day you can go to the website where Chad and Melissa have an entry to win the van that will change their lives forever. Simply click the link below and vote!

 

http://www.mobilityawarenessmonth.com/entrant/owen-weaver-bluffton-oh/

 

 The family is very thankful to anyone who takes a minute to vote.