Three years ago we got devastating news. Dane had a malformed carotid artery, technically he had two but his left carotid was mild. The right carotid artery on the other hand, was seriously compromised.

During his tonsil/adenoid/ear tube surgery his ENT discovered a bulge inside his throat, because of this the adenoids could not be removed. At the time, with our broken German and his broken English, we did not understand the exact diagnose. All we really understood was that it was 1) serious; and 2) Dane couldn’t eat dorito’s because he might rupture his artery and bleed out.

We lived in fear and uncertainty for the next 6 months. It took six months to find a vascular surgeon for Dane. His condition was rare, and we could not find a pediatric vascular surgeon in our area. Our insurance (the much-maligned, but this time amazing, Tricare) worked with the German medical community to get a team in place. Finally we went in for our specialist appointment.

It was terrible. We crowded into a small room with seven specialists, all super excited to meet Dane and see his condition. Even to us, completely untrained, Dane’s condition was easily visible on the ultrasound screen. Dane’s carotid artery was not straight. It was curved in a distinct “S”, the top curve kinked extra tight. His blood had trouble maneuvering through that curve especially (the lower curve, as well as the much smaller curve in his left carotid artery, has almost normal blood flow. The blood flow in his right carotid, the blood destined for his brain, was dangerously fast.

The specialists, all surgeons, were fascinated, and they explained all the ramifications. Bottomline unless Dane grew and his artery did not, or rather it straightened as his body grew, the prognosis was grim. We were give 12 years. I cannot explain the effect of those words. Those words are something no parent should ever need to hear. We were also give symptoms to look for in case the aneurysm blew, he had a stroke, or a seizure and what we could expect. We were also given hope. Hope that with time Dane would outgrow this potentially fatal condition. Then we were sent home.

We told our families, our friends, and then lived each day. There was no telling what each day would bring. And every day Dane lived as a normal, healthy, perfect, wild, beautiful little guy. Most days were fine. Some days he moved a certain way & I saw the bulge in his neck and I’d panic. I’d burst into tears, my heart would race and I’d pray so very, very hard and obsessively check his pupils for any change.

Every six months we went back. Our “staff” of seven whittled down to just Dane’s giant doctor & intern, both of whom were incredibly warm, gentle and fantastic with Dane. Every visit Dane’s blood flow improved, very slowly at first, and then at a steady rate. Last November his “S” curve disappeared. His artery was now only a big, wide, easy-to-handle “C”. We celebrated! We cheered! And we didn’t have to come back for a whole year. My insides relaxed just a little.

Yesterday was our annual appointment. Dane hopped right up on the table, and laid super still. No blinking, barely breathing, following directions perfectly. With the first scan of Dane’s left carotid, the doctor started smiling. The mild curve was completely gone. Dane’s left carotid is perfectly straight, his blood flow completely normal. I got a goofy grin on my face, and started to relax. I tensed up at the first readings of his right carotid. It still sounds different, it still looks different, but then his blood flow came on screen. Speed measurements in the normal range! Okay, maybe high normal but NORMAL!!!

The doctor, the intern & I all smiled out loud. I’m not sure how else to describe it, it wasn’t a laugh, but it was the worlds happiest smiling. The curve is still there, but we are on the right side of 90 degrees, the aneurysm is gone, and we are completely out of danger. I am still walking on cloud nine today.

IMG_1377