Val's Story
Val's Story
This is the story of my daughter Valarie, who battled with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, and won.
Long ago (about 10 years ago) I gave birth to TWINS !!! Oh how happy we were. We had 2 precious gifts from God. We named them Amber & Valarie. Unfortunately, before leaving the hospital, we discoverd that Valarie had a small hole in her heart. We set up an appointment to see a specialist. We saw the Cardiologist a total of 3 times, and thankfully by the third time the hole had closed on it's own. As a parent that was a scary time in our life, not knowing if your baby would have to have heart surgery or not. After that life went on as normally as anyone elses life.
On August 5, 1991 - the big day finally came!!! It was the girl's 1st birthday. We celebrated with cake and ice cream, and the whole family was there, of course, Amber & Valarie didn't know what the fuss was all about, but had fun just the same.
In September of 1991, I noticed that Valarie was always tired and not as energetic as her sister, so off to the doctor we went. She was diagnosed with anemia and prescribed vitamins. The vitamins helped for a short time. Soon after she became quite lethargic and listless. Another visit to the doctor, which told us that she had a virus. Two days later, I frantically called the doctor because my baby had a temp of 105. As I rushed to the Emergency Room fear crept up on me, I had no idea what to expect. All sorts of questions ran through my mind - is this normal? - what is wrong with her ? - why isn't she getting better? ect. ect... By the time we arrived at the hospital her temp had broke. The doctor examined her and had MORE blood work done, which revieled that her hemaglobin was now at 6 (it should have been at 10 or above). However, once again we were sent home with antibiotics. On Sept. 13, 1991 (2 days later) we went back to the ER. By this time Valarie was lethargic most of the time, was very pale, not eating or drinking properly, her facial features were sunken in, and she had small red spots all over. The nurse took one look at her and said "What are these?" as she pointed at the red spots. I explained that the doctor told us that they were insect bites that were infected. The doctor came in and saw her and did all the things they had done in days past. My baby looked like death warmed over. After a lengthy time spent in the ER we were sent to the city. I felt so lost when we got to Childrens Hospital, we were taken up to a room and a swarm of personnel surrounded the bed to do what was neccessary. On Sept. 16, 1991 I felt like my world had come to a complete stop. The final decision came in... she was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. We battled with chemotherapy, hair loss, running from sick people, and running to the doctor for every little thing. We made countless trips to the hospital for treatments, and Valarie was a little trooper through it all. She learned all the routines, she knew that the IV port needed cleaned off before it was accessed, and would do it for the nurses. We made a lot of new friends during our visits to the hospital. The nurses at the Childrens Hospital were so kind and knew what they were doing, they are a part of the reason I became a nurse. If ever I can help a family out the way they helped ours it would be my pleasure.
Well, it was a long and rough battle, but with the grace of God and with the knowledge of the doctors and the medicine she made it through. It has now been 6 years without treatment and all is well. We keep praying that there will not be a regression. If you or anyone you know is dealing with leukemia and you need someone to talk to I would love to hear from you. I hope that someday soon there will be a cure found, and all the pain and suffering will come to an end.
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