Giardia

Jessica and Christopher went back to school last week, on August 13th. They are enjoying their classes and trying to get back into the routine of school. None of us can believe that the summer went by so quickly!! Matthew will be coaching Christopher's flag football team again and Jessica is training for volleyball. She was able to play in a summer league with the high schoolers from Summit-the only 8th grader asked to play with them. It was a great experience for her, especially since she LOVES volleyball!!

Joshua and Josiah are continuing to do well. We're still having some gastrointestinal issues that we're trying to get resolved. They completed their 3 day treatment of Alinia (for Giardia) on July 28th, but as of today, there's still no change in their diapers. I'm changing an average of 10 dirty diapers a day for each boy. So, their pediatrician has ordered a repeat of the stool samples for both of them and we are currently waiting for the results to come in. From all that I've learned online, alot of the Giardia from Ethiopia is resistant to treatment, mostly due to the fact that it's so common over there. When people have it over and over and over again, they become resistant to treatment. Our pediatrician prescribed the Alinia because it's a newer medication and only takes 3 days to complete, whereas the other treatment is very difficult in several ways. 1. It tastes HORRIBLE 2. It's very hard on their system (can cause severe abdominal pain, more diarrhea, etc) 3. many times the treatment is harder than the giardia itself, which I honestly can't imagine.

The other issue with testing for Giardia is that it's very difficult to catch. It's really random luck of the draw. It isn't passed with each diaper and that's where the luck comes in. I have friends who've adopted from Ethiopia and their children tested negative for Giardia multiple times over a 6 month period. But, they did have it and were treated with Flagyl (the nasty tasting stuff) and got better immediately.

I'm hoping that their pediatrician will be proactive and will treat them again, even if the stool samples are negative. If she doesn't, I'll be making an appointment at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston as they are one of the leading International Adoption Physician Networks in the country. I'd appreciate your prayers for healing so very much!