On August 18th, 2005 I gave birth to the strongest, funniest, silliest, best 8lb baby boy named Wyatt. It was a day that changed our lives forever. I had a normal pregnancy with no big concerns until we met him. Wyatt was born with bilateral club feet and started the fight of his life at 20 hours old. He had his first set of casts on and they would be changed once a week for the next year. At 6 months old most children would be crawling but Wyatt was having his first of many surgeries.
Flash forward to 2 years old, we got ready for Wyatt’s very first big surgery where his feet had stainless steel pins put into his bones to make them stay where they should with a long recovery time.
At 4 years old, yet again, another surgery on his feet all while dealing with speech and hearing problems. At the age of 6, Wyatt was diagnosed with a mental disability that makes him act and behave a lot younger than he is.
He May of 2016, he had one more surgery on his left foot that went horribly wrong. His foot turned narcotic. He lived in hospital from May- November, being put to sleep every two days for debridement because it was just too painful for him to take sedation.
He finally got discharged to go home on the condition we bring him back for more debridement every two days. Finally, Wyatt was happy but it was very short lived.
On August 18th, wyatt’s 11 birthday, he was sent back to hospital with a blood infection from his pic line. That blood infection caused another bone infection. After that, we spent the next 2 years fighting infection after infection in his foot because we could ever find him shoes that didn’t rub his foot raw.
Through all of this Wyatt was still a little boy riding his bike and having fun playing outside. He hardly ever complained about pain unless it was really bad.
On September 18th, I saw something in my baby that wasn’t right. I took him to hospital thinking here we go again yet another infection somewhere in him. But it was so much worse than that. I demanded a blood test and 2 days later Wyatt’s father and I heard the words no parent ever wants to hear, “Your son has cancer.”
Wyatt was diagnosed with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APML). Wyatt has had 4 central picc lines because of infections and breakage. With three bone marrow tests so far and more to come.
Wyatt’s type of Leuekamia is treated with all-trans retinoic acid (atra) 6 pills a day and Arsenic trioxide (yes arsenic). We travel to Macmaster Children’s Hospital everyday to receive treatment. Wyatt is in remission but we still battle infection in both his picc line and his foot on a regular basis.
The financial hardship we have had to endure since diagnosis has been huge. There are no words to describe how tough it can be.
Hope session by Freckle Face Photography