(Joanna & Kaylie-the youngest of the three)
Family & Friends,
Sorry we've taken so long to update:( Thank you all so much for praying! The surgery will start around noon on Friday (Joanna's is the second surgery of the day) and will likely last about 5-7 hours. The doctor said they go slow and don't look at the clock, that sounds like a good thing! Joanna will be woken up at certain times during the surgery to check to make sure they aren't hurting certain parts of the brain. The doctor advised us not to wait in the hospital, so we will likely wait at Craig & Chris's, and he will call as soon as they're done. That will probably be Friday evening. They will send part of the tumor to pathology right away, and 75% of the time they know right away what it is, and 25% of the time it can require more tests to determine what it is. The recovery just from this surgery is about 3-5 days. Maybe I'll try to summarize some specific prayer requests:
1. That it is the benign type of tumor
2. That they can get it all
3. That their is no damage to the brain during surgery
4. That she doesn't hemorrhage or stroke during surgery
5. That her brain adjusts properly to the newly created space
6. For quick recovery
7. That the abilities she's lost already would be regained after the surgery as her brain heals (this is not expected, but God can do miracles!)
*Yes, the tumor has taken a bit of a toll on her brain. Thankfully it has not affected her motor abilities yet but I'm sure it would only be a few more weeks and it would have. The main thing that has been hit is her memory and the area of being able to communicate clearly the idea she wants to get across. She has almost entirely lost the ability to read and process info that is written, struggling to understand and remember what words mean. Early on we attributed this struggle with her learning a second language, but now we know the real reason. The doctor said he would be happy if she retains her current state, but we know that God is capable of restoring her completely, so we ask for that!
8. That all of us would have the confidence and rest in the fact that God has our best in mind, even if things don't turn out the way we hope!
Thanks again so much for the prayers, emails, and calls! It has been huge to know that thousands of people all over the world are lifting us up before the Lord! He hears our prayers and He loves us! God is good, praise Him!
Curtis for Joanna
Check out there website for more pictures and family updates ->-> www.curtisandjoanna.blogspot.com/
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