It was about this time two years ago when I noticed that Annabelle had petechiae all over her back. We were on vacation in Virginia, and I remember calling my mom to ask if it was possible that it could be caused by the sun (knowing deep down that it wasn't).
A few days after we got home she started bruising really badly. They were pretty much everywhere, and I had a feeling something wasn't right. I remember laying in bed and crying, thinking that it was The Worst.
The next morning, she fell going up the stairs, and within an hour she had a bruise so deep and purple that it prompted me to call our pediatrician immediately. Luckily, our pedi is cool and sent us in for stat bloodwork without hesitation.
Annabelle was not quite happy about that pick, but she was quite a trooper. My mom was going to get the results of the bloodwork and give me a ring on my cell. I took Annabelle to visit my grandmother and when I came out, my mother was waiting in the parking lot. She said that the lab wouldn't give her the results, and I needed to vomit. I dialed our pediatrician's office, and they said to come in immediately (even though it was a Friday afternoon). I was completely unable to drive to the doctor's office, and I had to call Chris to tell him to meet us there. My mom drove, and I cried, and I called my friend Ben and left him a very crazy message about my world ending.
At some point Chris arrived. I don't remember how horrible he looked, but I do know that he did vomit, and then got stuck in traffic, and that Annabelle is his special person.
It seems like it took forFUCKINGever for the doctor to come in the room, and when she did, she was like "it's okay, it's okay, it's okay". She explained that while Annabelle's platelets were crazy low, but all of her other blood counts were normal. So she didn't have The Worst, but it's not exactly optimal to walk around with a platelet count of 15,000. The doctor made us an Monday appointment at the Tomorrow Fund Clinic, which is a pediatric hematology/oncology clinic at our local children's hospital.
We left the office feeling relieved but incredibly wiped and still relatively freaked out. Chris ran to his car to get the gift he got for Annabelle- a pink Care Bear who Annabelle immediately named "Cuddle Bear".
The next few weeks were full of stress and indecision and bloodwork and appointments. I spent that whole weekend freaking out about intracranial hemmorhage, and Annabelle did her best to give me an anxiety attack. She was two, and very much unwilling to wear the helmet I had strapped to her head.
CuddleBear came with us to every appointment and sat with Annabelle for all of her bloodwork. CuddleBear started sleeping with Annabelle every night, and pretty much became family member #6. Even now, two years later, Cuddle bear is still Annabelle's constant companion. Sleep does not happen without Cuddle. Sleep is interrupted if Cuddle is misplaced. If our house was on fire, I would get the children out- then Cuddle would be next, even before our photos.
The last time I needed to go for bloodwork, Annabelle grabbed Cuddle on our way out. She thought there was a chance I might need Cuddle to sit on my lap.
Annabelle made a full recovery, although I don't think Chris or I did. She had
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, which resolved on its own after a few months. It was at least mid-July before her platelets were up to 50,000, and by October she was back in the 200k range. Although the
Tomorrow Fund Clinic is an amazing place, I am so glad we don't have to go there on a regular basis.
