Donations

I've tried to include a Paypal donation button at the bottom of each entry, but there is a coding conflict with Blogger. I have difficulty asking for help, and hesistated in placing an advertisement for assistance on my blogs about Jameson. Although Kevin carries health insurance on our sons, our portion of the doctor, hospital and assorted medical bills will be astronomical. Being out of work, I am  - like many people - counting every penny. My trips to Children's Hospital cost around $15 a day in gas from my home in the far northwest suburbs of St. Charles County to downtown St. Louis.

Not knowing what the future holds for Jameson, we could be in for a long, expensive road of rehabilitation We might also be in need of costly equipment, medication or home health care professionals.

The majority of donations received will go towards Jameson's mounting medical bills and related expenses. I will also be donating a portion of all proceeds to the Transverse Myelitis Association.

I know this is a tough economic time for most of us. Please don't feel obligated or pressured in any way to contribute. Many people have offered to help - or have asked how they can help. This is a way not only to help Jameson personally, but to help find a cure for this disabling condition. Any amount - no matter how small - will be greatly appreciated. You can enter a donation through Paypal, to the following email address: LindaLarimore@gmail.com

Thank you!

Progress

Jameson continues to show amazing daily progress. His first step forward came at the hospital in California, when his catheter was removed. He was able to urinate on his own, and sense when he had to go. Little by little, Jameson began to regain feeling in his toes, then his feet. He first moved his right leg, then his left.

Doctors were encouraged by his progress, and confident in their claims that Jameson would make a full recovery. He wore "boots" to help his feet keep their shape as he regained feeling:

Listening to his baby brother laughing on the phone, proved to be a dose of good medicine:

Kevin remained in California with Jameson until Friday, August 6th, when they were given the clearance to return to St. Louis. Although doctors felt he would be safe flying commerically, they preferred that Jameson be flown via MedFlight jet. Luckily, insurance approved the flight, and plans were made to bring my little boy home - or at least, to a hospital closer to it.

Physical therapists continued to work with him to improve the strength in his legs. Soon Jameson was able to bend his legs and pivot his feet as he could before becoming ill. He was still unable to stand unassisted.

I have nothing but good things to say about the staff at Providence Tarzana Hospital, where Jameson was taken and treated. He received VIP treatment and was made to feel safe and loved.

Shortly after 4:00pm Pacific Time, Jameson boarded a private jet, bound for an awaiting ambulance in St. Louis. He would have to immediately be admitted to Children's Hospital downtown, for an indefinite length of time. I was so happy that my son would soon be 38 miles from home, versus 2,000.

I will forever be grateful to my brother and sister-in-law for the care and love they showed Jameson while he was in their care. Their attentiveness to his symptoms quite possibly saved his life, or at the very least, saved him from further paralysis. I love you guys.

Attitude is Everything

Jameson's attitude has been an inspiration to everyone around him. He amazes the medical staff and his family and friends with his strength and determination. To him, this is a minor glitch on the road to bigger things. We know there could come a time when he could become discouraged. The adults involved - his father, my husband, brother and I are in agreement; We aren't going to go into too much detail with Jameson about his prognosis. For now, we feel it's important to keep his outlook positive. If he becomes resentful, angry or bitter, it might prohibit a full recovery.

Aside from the initial fear Jameson showed, he has never been anything but compliant, courageous and brave.

As Jameson makes progress towards recovery, he continues to be a normal kid, interested in normal things. The day he started getting feeling back in his feet, I called him. "How are you today, buddy?" I asked, optimistically. My heart stopped when he said, "Not so good mom.... "

All my worst fears were revisited, as I braced myself the news. I was stunned and relieved to hear, "The Cardinals traded Ryan Ludwick! How could they do that? I can't believe blah blah blah.... oh and, I can move my right foot now."

Jameson sees these accomplishments as trivial behind something as colossal as the trading of a beloved sports figure. We see it as monumental, and shed tears over a twitching toe...

Transverse Myelitis

My brother called me and we talked about the doctor's theory that Jameson suffers from Transverse Myelitis. He went through something similar with his own daughter - my niece, Julia. He knows the terror of being faced with the possibility of losing a child. He gave me some good advice, and it's advice I've taken. He was disappointed that the doctor turned me to the internet to learn more of Jameson's condition. His advice to me was to stay off the internet. Most informational websites offer worst case scenarios, and textbook rhetoric. My son's diagnosis was assumed, simply because there was no test that conclusively confirmed it. More serious things were ruled out, but the strong possibility of TM remained.

The next few days are a blur. I spent the majority of the weekend numb, unable or unwilling to accept that not only could my son be paralyzed the rest of his life, but that I could lose him. I didn't know much about this illness and what I did know, terrified me. Nothing made sense to me. Going on with day to day obligations was difficult. I forgot how to do laundry. I stared at the sink full of dirty dishes, perplexed by them. Sunday, I realized I hadn't eaten since Thursday night.

Sleep eluded me. As I lay awake, I fought the visions that entered my imagination. When I closed my eyes, I saw my once active, athletic son crumbling to the floor as he tried to stand. I envisioned him in a wheelchair. I imagined having to make the call that, despite the doctors' best efforts... we'd lost him. It was far less frightening to just stay awake, than it was to try to sleep and see all the "what ifs" life had in store for my beautiful boy.

My heart raced and I was short of breath, as I sat waiting for the phone to ring. I remained glued to my computer, awaiting updates from my brother or ex-husband. When the phone did ring, I nearly died of  heart failure, fearing that this was "the call".

At the peak of this illness, Jameson had no feeling or movement in either of his legs. He was unable to urinate or have bowel movements, and couldn't sense when he needed to go. During his first MRI, the technician noticed that his bladder was full. He was asked, "Do you need to go to the bathroom?" Jameson answered no and mentioned that he hadn't gone since the night before - more than 24 hours prior. It was then that he was catheterized. The release of urine alleviated the stomach pain Jameson had been having. He was able to go, but still wasn't sensing when he was going.

The paralysis traveled up Jameson's spine, preventing him from sitting up on his own without slumping from side to side. His thoracic cavity was weakened, preventing him from coughing. Eating became a hazard for him. If he were to choke, he wouldn't be able to cough or gag to expel the food.

I continued to prepare myself for the worst. I cried easily and often. I said prayers and requested prayers from others. I'd never been a big "believer", but this was my son, and if there was a chance prayers would save him.... then pray I will.

Notes and comments of support flooded my inbox and Facebook wall. People I never so much as passed in the hallways of my high school, were asking their churches to pray for Jameson. People I only know from online made offers so generous, I get a lump in my throat just thinking about them. Local people offered to watch the boys so I could fly to Los Angeles to be with Jameson. I was discovering who my true friends were.

Jameson's Illness

Jameson was excited to be going to Los Angeles! He would be traveling alone for the first time. I was terrified at the thought of him flying alone. Little did I know, it would be the least of my worries concerning this trip.

I hugged Jameson goodbye on Saturday, July 24th, 2010, and his father took him to the airport. He boarded his flight and wasn't the least bit scared. He called me when he arrived in Los Angeles. My brother, Trevor and his wife, Dana, showed him a fantastic time in California. They went swimming, to the beach, Universal Studios, two baseball games and Hurricane Harbor.

Jameson called me everyday, and my brother and sister-in-law sent pictures of his activities. He was having a good time, and I knew he was in good hands. He was due to fly home on July 31st, and I couldn't wait to see him again!

I called Jameson on the morning of July 30th, around 7:00am pacific time. He told me what a good time he'd had at the water park the day before. He was excited to be going to Malibu that day. He was sad his trip was drawing to a close, but happy that he would soon be home. I told me he missed me.

Less than two hours later, Trevor called me to tell me that Jameson was having severe abdominal pains. Thinking he was constipated, Trevor and Dana treated it as such. I got on the phone with Jameson, who by this time was hysterical. I tried to talk him through it, but there was no calming him down. That's when he told me...

"Mom! I can't move my legs!"

My brother, sister-in-law and I were all convinced that Jameson's symptoms were psychosomatic. He tends to be overdramatic, so we thought that - for whatever reason - Jameson was trying to pull something over on us. Why else would he be suffering from both a stomach ache and paralysis in the legs?

Dana got Jameson to take a nap, hoping he would awaken feeling fine again. Several hours later, she called to tell me that his symptoms hadn't improved and they were taking Jameson to the emergency room. I cried, afraid of what might be going on. He was capable of faking a stomach ache, but to fake not being able to move his legs was an act beyond him.

The next twelve hours were some of the scariest of my life. Kevin made arrangements to go to Jameson, planning to bring him home. I planned to stay here with the other boys, believing they would be home the following day. I vaguely remember speaking with a pediatric neurologist at 1:00am. I recall him spelling the terms that would soon become household words...

T-R-A-N-S-V-E-R-S-E  M-Y-E-L-I-T-I-S

After I hung up the phone with the doctor, I hesitantly typed those words into a Google search. I wish I hadn't. I scanned the first website that came up in the search. I saw terms like "permanent paralysis", "infection on spinal cord" and "potentially fatal"....

I hoped there was a mistake, but the symptoms were undeniable. They were Jameson's, to a "T"....

Jameson's Childhood

Jameson was, and continues to be, an extraordinary child. Never have I met anyone so intelligent. He loved flash cards and playing cards of all sorts. He enjoyed large collections of small items, so he could count them and line them in strategic order. He had a fascination and knack for numbers from an early age.

He was always a picky eater and hesitated to try anything new. He loved McDonald's french fries when he was a toddler, and referred to them as "bries". Whenever we would pass a McDonald's, he would point to the golden arches and say, "I deed bries!" (I need fries)

Jameson loved game shows and playing poker. He would get on the computer and enter poker rooms on my gaming sites. He would play against - and beat - adults!

Jameson was reading by age three. Upon entering kindergarten, he was reading on a third grade level. Surprisingly, however, Jameson doesn't like to read. He loves numbers and stats and facts of all kinds.

He always did exceptionally well in school. He never got a grade lower than a B. His memory is impeccable for anything he's ever learned. He can add numbers in his head.

When he was eight, Jameson took an interest in sports. He loved all of it - football, basketball, hockey, soccer, auto racing... but he especially loved baseball. At the age of ten, he started playing little league. Until his illness, he had dreams of a career in professional sports.

Meet Jameson

This is the story about my second born son, Jameson Christian Michael McCurdy. When Jameson was 11 years old, he was diagnosed with a rare neurological condition, called Transverse Myelitis. In this blog, I'll journal Jameson's journey through this frightening illness.

My name is Linda, and Jameson's father is named Kevin. We are now divorced, and I'm remarried to Doug. Kevin and I have three sons together and Doug and I have another son.

Jameson was conceived on December 28, 1997. My pregnancy with him was relatively normal, and the least eventful of the five I've had. Jameson was named shortly after conception. I knew all along he was a boy, so I didn't bother to have a girl name ready! The middle name "Christian" was chosen to honor of friend of Jameson's father. "Michael" is my dad's name. We hadn't planned on giving him two middle names, but we weren't willing to give up either name. Jameson is a name I had heard many years ago, and loved. So it was: Jameson Christian Michael.

On September 9, 1998, I went to see Dr. Williams, my obstetrician, for my 38 week pre-natal check up. Jameson wasn't due for nine more days, and the doctor felt confident after an exam, that I wouldn't be going into labor anytime soon. Four hours later, I had my first contraction.

I called Kevin and told him to come home. I then called my friend Sarah to come and stay with our two and a half year old, Evan. Because of a local school bus driver strike, the traffic to the hospital was unimaginable. We finally arrived - an hour and half after leaving home.

Jameson came very quickly. The attending nurse broke my water, and baby came right out. He was absolutely beautiful. He was dark complected, tiny and had a headful of dark hair. He cried loudly. I fell head over heels in love him.

Jameson Christian Michael, born September 9, 1998 - 7:06pm - 6 pounds, 7 ounces - 20 1/4 inches long