New Leg of the Journey

It's hard to believe that it's almost the middle of April. We are slowly seeing signs of spring here in Iowa, although the weather has been colder than normal for this time of year. It's been a long and at times challenging winter. We continue on the journey of seeking healing for Seth, a journey that has seemed to be moving at a snail's pace. We continue with many educational and medical interventions but the progress is very slow. Over the past few weeks God has opened the doors to a new treatment for Seth. On May 8th Seth and I will be leaving on a treatment adventure to North Carolina. After stopping and staying with two friends along the way we will arrive at the treatment center on Sunday, May 10th and start treatment on May 11th. Seth will be receiving hyperbaric oxygen therapy along with auditory integration therapy and a specialized physical therapy treatment.

Recent studies have shown promising outcomes for children with autism with the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy through increasing blood flow to areas of the brain, decreasing inflammation in the body, and aiding in detoxifying the body. We are hopeful this will be a treatment that will bring Seth further healing. I approach this new leg of the journey with mixed feelings. I have a hard time remembering my life before this journey began. We have already completed many legs of the journey as we have pursued various interventions including educational, nutritional, and a variety of biomedical therapies. I had hoped that a leg of this duration and length would not have been necessary. I had hoped that the previous legs of the journey would have brought greater healing to our precious boy. I had even said at one point that the last leg of our journey would be the end. But the progress that we'd hoped for has not been seen and so I push on to find new treatments that might help our boy.

I don't know where this journey will next lead us or when or if the journey will ever come to end. I only know that I don't feel at peace with ending the journey yet. Stay tuned for more posts about our preparations for the trip and updates on Seth's progress throughout the treatment session.