Surgery number 5 prep

    It was time to see her doctor anyway, but we had noticed Ari had been complaining about her back more recently. We also thought that the bump on her back was sticking out more and she was playing with it a lot. So, we made her an appointment to see Dr Ain. We got the x-rays done (and that was an ordeal by itself. There are only a few places anywhere near up that do this kind of x-ray AND accept our insurance. Well, the closest one (20 minutes from home) closed. Luckily I found one about that distance away that does these x-rays from 1-4 on most weekdays... Of course I had to take her out of school early to do this, but it needed to get done. If the insurance company was reasonable like our last one was, they would just let us get the x-ray right at the doctor's office on the day of the appointment, while we are waiting for our appointment).
   Well, the doctor decided he didn't like how her hooks looked on the x-ray and wanted up to get a CT scan and he would get the surgery scheduled. She needed the surgery anyone, but he wanted to know what he would be up against. After fighting with our health insurance and countless administrators at multiple doctors office, we eventually got the CT scan scheduled... Two weeks later... Thank God it wasn't an emergency.
   The CT scan showed the hooks had come loose. The Doctor's explanation was that the part of the spine the hooks were connected to should have grown more than they did. For some reason in Ari that part of her spine is growing at a much too slow pace. Since the bone didn't grow, the hooks no longer had a strong enough place to hold on two and eventually worked their way loose. Therefor another repair needs to be done. This means a much more invasive surgery. They are replacing the hooks with two screws placed into the side of her spine.
   The bump on Ari's back seems to get worse by the day and has gotten hard to look at. She really needs to get to surgery soon. It's going to take place on Oct 16 at 10:30. That meant we have to make sure she doesn't eat in the morning. Her surgery is usually at 8:30 but not this time. We have to be there at 8:30 this round. I'll keep everyone posted as to what's happening on the day of surgery here as usual. Until then everyone pray for Ari and the Doctors.