Life Update

It seems that I only blog when I feel I need to anymore. But it seems like the more logical thing than a super long Facebook post. As most of you know, we are pretty private people. We have had many hardships during the last 10 years of marriage but we recognize how incredibly blessed we are as well.

We've kept some parts of our lives private but I've felt I should share a couple of these things with you. We've shared parts of our current life situation with a handful of individuals and them knowing that our paths aren't going the way that we expected have asked questions. We're hoping this approach will help answer some of those lingering questions people have.

When Scott and I were engaged, we talked about our future family, and adoption/foster care was something we talked about and knew we'd do at some point. This was prior to knowing that it would be nearly impossible to get pregnant.

Back in April we decided it was time to start the process of getting licensed to be foster parents. We took 12 weeks of courses (3 hour classes each Tuesday), filled out countless pages of paperwork detailing our inner most feelings and every detail about family relationships, did hours of "homework" for our courses, were interviewed, had 5 loved ones fill out questionnaires about us, had a home study by the state, took extra classes on carseats and CPR, and after 4 months of lots of work we received our foster care license. Loving friends gave us bunk beds, a crib and changing table. We have a kids room all ready to go. We received our license in August and decided to hold off on opening our home because of some trips we had planned.

During all of this, Scott's health started to decline. For several years now he's struggled with not feeling well. He is constantly fatigued, has stomach issues, shortness of breath, feels like he's going to pass out and has chest pain on a daily basis. Things like his 35 minute commute to work would completely exhaust him. Over the past 3 years we've been to countless specialists trying to figure out if it was heart issues, a neurological problem, a sleeping disorder, stress, anxiety or food allergies. After lots of co-pays, paid deductibles, pokes and prods, and every test they could think of, Scott was told repeatedly that it was probably just stress and that physically he was fine.

In November, after some convincing from Scott's family, we decided it was time to utilize the amazing resource that we had here in Phoenix and go to the Mayo Clinic. In December we met with a cardiologist and Scott underwent several tests including a tilt table test that determines your risk of fainting based on posture. A test that can last up to 90 minutes lasted 7 minutes for Scott as he almost immediately passed out when tilted into an upright position. Not only is he likely to faint but his heart stops when he passes out. This test was a huge scare for both of us.

We went back to see Scott's doctor at the Mayo this month and he was diagnosed with a condition called POTS. You can google POTS if you want details but basically when he changes positions his blood pressure struggles to regulate. His heart rate is continually changing which causes severe chest pain. He is currently on medications and they've been very hard on him. It elevates his blood pressure, and some moments he feels well but most of the time he still feels really terrible. He's very sensitive to medications so he's prone to side effects. His cardiologist wants him to see a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic that specializes in POTS, so we are waiting on that to be scheduled. He is currently scheduled out to May but they are going to try and get him a sooner appointment.

So all in all, this has changed things for us. Scott sold his business back in August, mostly due to his health. We've put foster care on the back burner until Scott is feeling better.  Our first priority right now is him. We know that a lot of people have wondered about these things, particularly the fact that he's not at church lately. But mornings are the hardest time of day for him. This is when he experiences the worst pain, dizziness and fatigue. But we are hopeful that his body will regulate to these medications so that he can be fully functional again.

We want you to know that we appreciate all the love and concerns. We're accepting any prayers you want to send our way. :)