2013 in Review

            You know what they say, “no news is good news” and that certainly applies to Rainya’s recovery and the lack of updates during this past year.  Earlier this year Rainya had blood work and a CT scan.  Both tests provided lots of data into how well her body has continued to adapt and to be restored to normal.  Her CA-125(ovarian cancer marker) results were well into the low end of the normal range! Also, her recent CT scan was a negative study and another confirmation that she is traveling on the right road and that all of her hard work is paying off.  Woot Woot!

            Rainya has been getting adjusted by me and another Chiropractor on a regular basis to ensure her nervous system is functioning optimally.  J  Additionally, Rainya continues to be very disciplined and careful about what she consumes for nutrition.  She continues to have significant food intolerance's like gluten and dairy that seems to be post chemo side effects.  She continues to get tested to know what supplements her body will respond best to and she is diligent about taking them every day.  Also, Rainya has been picking up the pace and has been getting to the gym on a more regular basis.  Not an easy task being a stay at home mom with 4 kids under the age of 12 and a husband who is gone and unavailable so much of the time.  I am so very proud of her and all that she does to allow her body to heal itself.

            There have been so many lessons learned over the past 3 plus years!  None greater than how precious life is and how temporary it can be.  Due to this whole ordeal our family has been blessed in countless ways that have helped us be closer as a family.  Another powerful lesson we have learned time and time again is the principle of service.  Both of our families have been so emotionally and financially supportive through these past few years.  There is no question that we couldn't have gotten this far with out their love and generosity…  Frankly, it’s been very humbling and stirred some of the tenderest feelings of gratitude… 

Additionally, the events of these past three years have caused a great desire in me to create value, serve and lift the lives of others.  One way I can reach out to others is to  begin a new blog with articles intended to empower my patients and readers on how to achieve optimal health and joy in their lives.  I am entering my final year of Chiropractic school and am so thankful for the opportunity to help others through this incredible profession!  I thank each one of you again for reading our blog and for all the prayers, positive energy and kind wishes of concern.  And I can’t thank my friends and family enough for all your support and loving kindness shown my family and I.

I AM Going to Love You Through It!

Today I was inspired by a song that was sent by my Sister Beth.  I've listened to the song several times and it has left me deeply moved.  I feel like this song was written for me when I hear the words and lyrics...

I can honestly say this last year and half has been the hardest of my life.  So many times I've felt very humbled.  On the other hand, its been the most amazing period of time.  Through it all, my love has grown so much for my sweet wife and kids.  There is no way we could have gotten this far with out the love from so many family and friends, God and angels...

I hope you all enjoy and are touched by this music as I have been.  Thank you for sending this Beth!  I love you Sis.!  I dedicate this song to my amazing and inspiring wife, Rainya...  I love you with all my heart babe!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYNOXRifXKQ

Hurdles and Milestones

To all those who have been following this blog I apologize that the last couple of posts were accidentally deleted. :(  It’s challenging to recap all that was felt and said at that time, but we’ll do our best to  try to catch everyone up since the last post.

The final months of 2010 were tough.  Rainya's body was having a difficult time tolerating any of her chemo treatments, so the doctors had to experiment with different brands to find the right fit.  Other challenges included her inability to produce enough white blood cells to fight off infection. This problem was most evident when she had a significant infection caused by her chemo port that had been implanted in her side.  She was hospitalized for the infection yet her white blood cell count was significantly below the normal range rather than elevated as would be expected with one in her condition. Additionally, she had a major wound from surgery that was not healing properly, leaving a serious wound in her abdomen.  A special vacuum medical device and bandage were used in order to keep her wound healing.  Her wound finally began to heal over a two month period.  Today her wound looks great and the scar tissue sealed the wound up completely.

Neal and Cammie (Rainya's Parents)

 Through these challenging months Rainya’s parents came and lived with us.  They took such great care of our home and family. We will be eternally grateful for all the time and love and support they gave to us. Church members and neighbors even brought us dinners on a weekly basis for several months. Over a three month period Rainya was visited by her Sister Tirza and four of her brothers Shem, Quinn, Saul and Thor, which really lifted her spirits.  During Christmas, Rainya’s parents went back to Idaho for a couple of weeks and my mom and step dad came to visit and help. Rainya came down with a nasty flu which really set her back, but finally by Christmas day she started feeling better. It actually snowed on Christmas day and made it very magical.  As you can see the end of this year was hectic, but we learned a lot and realized how blessed we were as a family.

Rainya and her sister Tirza

Rainya's Brother Saul

Rainya and her two youngest brother's, Shem and Quinn

Rainya and her oldest brother Thor

Christmas day with the whole family

Mom (Cindy) and her husband Floyd

March 6 was the date of a huge milestone.  Rainya’s last day of chemo therapy.  Her oncologist recommended that she continue with one year of preventative chemo treatments, but there was an inner voice inside that said no more.  After carefully weighing all options, she chose to forego further chemo treatments and pursue the natural route moving forward.  This meant continuation of eating a strict whole food diet that contained lots of raw vegetables and sprouts.  Also, she had to wean herself off strong narcotics that her body had become accustomed too.  She had so much pain from her surgery, open wound and chemo therapy that she was on a daily routine of strong medication.  Trying to wean off took nearly one month and she experienced significant withdrawal symptoms during the process. When she started feeling better I took her to Myrtle Beach to celebrate. It was wonderful getting away for a few days just the two of us.

April rolled around and she was completely drug free and in a much better position to begin detoxifying her body from all the chemicals in her blood.  So, she and her mother did a 10 day detoxification program at the Living Foods Institute here in Atlanta.  She had some cleansing challenges, but in the end benefited greatly from the raw diet, wheat grass and vegetable juice and lots of fresh water.  Soon after that program she went to Arizona for 5 weeks to receive treatments at the Brimhall Wellness center located in Mesa.  Dr. Brimhall and other practitioners provided chiropractic care and several other complementary therapies to continue detoxifying.  Top priority was increasing her physical strength, immune system and spirituality. It was there that she found out that she is sensitive to gluten, so now she has gone completely gluten-free and feeling better because of it.

When she got back in early June she and her parents planned a trip to drive with her and our kids to Idaho.  It was there in the mountains of Idaho that she hoped to be in an environment of continued healing.  However, there were a few set backs as she became physically spent and her immune system suffered because of it.  Consequently, she had strep throat 4 times over a three month period and struggled to regain physical strength.  So, we flew her back to Georgia rather than having her drive back home at the end of August. Once she came back to Georgia she began to see Dr. Lee again in Woodstock.  He advised her to take certain herbs coupled with complementary care.  His treatments and advice worked beautifully and has resulted in no more strep throat!  We are so thankful for Dr. Lee and his many years of experience as a chiropractor and healer.

Idaho Mountain Cabin

Rainya’s parents drove back with our four children at the end of August in order for them to begin school.  Once they arrived, Rainya’s Mom stayed for another month to help our family integrate back into normal life.  Also, at this time Rainya had another CAT scan and marker test done that showed continued improvement and no signs of cancer!  Her biggest obstacles now are her immune system and hormone imbalance.  She’s seeing another Doctor (D r. Byers) to hopefully regain proper hormone levels, but it’s very tricky and going to take time.  Overall, she is doing well and thankful to be experiencing more of a normal life again.

Wow!  This has been such a challenging yet blessed and wonderful year all at the same time.  So many lessons have been learned about health and things that matter most.  Every birthday, holiday season or even a meal together is so much more appreciated by all of us.   We appreciate every family member and friendship more than ever.  We find ourselves much less likely to take anything for granted.  So grateful to God for how things are turning out for the best.  What appeared to be devastating at times has proved to be such a tremendous blessing.  I can honestly say I’m finally grateful for trials such as these.  It has helped teach us in so many ways…  On the other hand I hope and pray we never have to go through another year like this last one… :)

In the Attitude of Gratitude

Hey everyone!

Recently, we've been thinking a lot about gratitude and how important it is to be thankful for all that we have in our lives.  Being thankful for trials can be really hard to do, but over time we are learning how to do it. We have so many things for which to be thankful, so keeping that in mind, we are going to share a few things regarding Rainya's situation.

Rainya is currently receiving her 7th weekly treatment of chemo therapy and she is doing excellent.  Though the pain and challenges seem quite daunting at times, she remains steadfast and strong.  In fact, within the last week or so, beautiful color is beginning to be restored to her wonderful face.  We are so thankful that she is able to receive the best treatments that chemo has to offer.

Regarding her chiropractic therapy, she is now in a routine of going two or three times a week to see Dr. David Lee, Dr. Michael and/or Abby.  They use several techniques and protocols to empower her body to support her nervous and immune system.  We hope that this therapy will spill over more into her digestive system as well, as she has been severely challenged with proper function of her digestive tract.  Once this system is back to functioning, we are confident that she'll be able to enjoy more fresh veggetable juice and lots of raw foods.  In the mean time, she is doing the best she can and is eating a very healthy diet.  So grateful for all the food and supplements to provide good nutrition for her body!

Recently, we had the opportunity to watch general conference together and this weekend event has been a huge blessing to her spirit and soul.  A friend of mine, from school, watched our kids during Saturday's sessions allowing us to view and hear them.  We were spiritually fed and fortunate.  Truly these priesthood and auxiliary leaders are such a blessing to our life because of their strong faith in Jesus Christ...  So thankful for The Church of Jesus Christ and the great strength that comes to us from so many of it's members.  Additional, we are amazed and thankful that God is so aware of us and in the details of our lives.

We've also been so blessed and strengthened by the help of Rainya's parents, my parents, Tirza(Rainya's sister) and so many family members, friends from church, neighboring churches and Life University.  In fact, nearly two weeks ago, for example, my graduating class sponsored a fund raiser by raising funds through some very kind massage therapists.  The requested donation was one dollar per minute of service.  Over the space of just 6 hours in a three day period, our group raised 550 dollars to contribute to her therapies!  We were humbled and grateful for their kind contribution.  Also, a huge thank you to each of you that have brought meals, helped with baby sitting, driving to medical appointments in addition to all of your sweet comments and prayers.  We've felt and continue to feel your strength and our Lords...

Also, Rainya has continued to receive physical therapy twice a week at the hands and guidance of an excellent therapist.  Rainya's progression has been consistent and steady.  She can now walk roughly half a mile every day and she is doing light resistance training to strengthen her core muscles...  Very thankful for all the instruction and tips provided by her P.T.

Finally, we want to end by sharing a brief timeline of therapy she'll continue on.  After completion of her 9th weekly chemo treatment, she'll receive six 21 day treatments of chemo.  CT scans and blood tests will determine, for our Oncologist, what therapies to administer for the 6 chemo cycles.  The 21 day cycles will proceed as follows: Chemo is to be given on days 1,3 and 8.  At which time she'll then have a 2 week break to recover and then she'll begin the cycle again...

We love each of you very much and hope that you'll rejoice with us in all that we have to thankful for.   We request and hope that you'll continue to keep Rainya in your thoughts and prayers because they provide so much strength and help.  Here is a recent pic of our little one:

Welcome to Rainya's blog page and Background Story

Hey family and friends!  Welcome to our website created to notify and update each of you regarding Rainya's recovery story how she is striving to achieve optimal wellness!  I'll update this site on a regular basis to keep all of our family and friends up to date with how she is progressing.  We also wanted a convenient way to thank each of you for all your support and love!
We love each of you and encourage you to leave messages and offer prayers, as both help tremendously!!  :-)

Initially, Rainya was having a very difficult and painful pregnancy that we knew was abnormal.  After two months of struggling and stumping her Ob, she finally got in to see a neonatal specialist on August 18th.  At this point she was 36 weeks pregnant.  Within about 5 minutes of her ultrasound, she was ordered immediately to Northside Atlanta Hospital by ambulance.

At this point she could hardly breathe or move.  Turns out she had 4 liters of fluid that was drained from her left lung.  Additionally, 2 liters were drained from her abdominal cavity.

Within a short time during that day, we learned Rainya had a malignant 19 and 8.5 cm tumor as well as several that were smaller.  Finally, we all felt validated that something was terribly wrong, yet the news seemed so surreal and devastating.  A treatment team of many physicians determined that an emergency C section was to be performed and all tumors removed that were 1 cm or larger.  She had officially been diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer.

She spent a few days in ICU and then about 2 and half weeks in the oncology unit, where her lung and abdomen were drained another three times.  Our baby girl spent that entire time at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.  Both were released from the hospital September 4th.

So, that was the horrible news and how our world got turned upside down... From here on out we believe that things will only get better.  After several days of spending time with our little girl we determined that her name was to be Serena.  She has been such a calming and peaceful influence in spite of all the craziness, so her name seemed to fit perfectly.

Strangely, or perhaps not, Rainya and I have felt a peaceful feeling that can only be described as divine through this whole ordeal.  Somehow, we both know and have an assurance that all is going to work out for the good and be all right.

With that said, we want to sincerely thank all those who have been praying and watching over us by pouring out love to our family.  Many have wished us well, expressed love, and offered to help with anything we stand in  need.  The kind acts of service and words have been overwhelming and left us deeply moved and grateful!

We've also been tremendously blessed by a wonderful team of physicians headed by Dr. Matthew Burrell-Oncologist.  Day one he told us that the spiritual component to healing was the most important.  This has set the tone for a wonderful relationship with him and his expertise gained over 30 years of practice.  He's known internationally for his success in helping patients recover from ovarian cancer.  He has also encouraged us to use any complimentary medicine that seems appropriate.  So, we are seeing two chiropractors that have an amazing background in nutrition coupled with several modalities and protocols that support the body in healing.

Cindy White, my mom, spent the first two weeks with us and was a tremendous blessing and help.  Rainya's mom, Cammie, also came down and is still staying with us, as well as Neal, my father-in-law.  They've all treated us like royalty and been so kind and helpful.  We've had friends from our church and a baptist church help with meals, cleaning, and caring for our little ones.  I've had classmates reach out with gifts, cards, flowers and many offerings to baby sit and help in any way.  Again, so overwhelmed and grateful!!  We are also very aware that many are fasting and praying for our whole family.  These acts have provided tremendous spiritual strength and joy in the hearts of each one in our family...

Serena is doing fabulous and even gained 1 lb. during her first week with us here at home.  She is already weighing in over 8 lbs now!  She is beautiful and I'll get some pictures posted soon for all to enjoy.

Rainya is now nearing her fourth weekly chemo treatment.  She continues to be optimistic that she will heal completely, in due time.  We've chosen to not focus on any disease state or "statistics", but rather how to create the most favorable conditions for healing and optimal wellness by treating her whole body...

  

Serena Nicole born 8-19-10

Rainya and Serena

Jon and Serena