Once we got there, Dr. Lisa did all of her normal checkup things she does to her, which included her weigh-in. Once on the scale..immediately a smile came to my face; Bella weighed in at just over 3 pounds again!! She hadn't gained any weight since her last appointment, but she hadn't lost any either, which is good considering the low dose of medicine she was now on. This not only meant that the medicine was working, but also meant that she is maintaining her weight on her own again (hopefully).
From there Dr. Lisa did the normal checkup and mainly asked questions about how she has been doing/acting, and whether or not she has been getting sick. I let her know she has been in good shape since our last visit and hasn't had any real setbacks besides the side effects of her medicine. With that...Dr. Lisa told Bella she didn't need to be on medicine anymore!! Yay!!!
She once again informed me about the possibility that she may slip back into it and depend on the medicines for the rest of her life, as most animals with this disease do, but she has faith that Bella is strong enough to keep this at bay. She told us we needed to keep her on her VERY strict diet (forever) and if there are any signs of relapse that she needs to be seen right away. Also, she is to keep getting her glycerin treatments for the medicines side effects. Of course, this all seems so minor compared to what we have been doing for the last several months, so no problems there!
When we were getting ready to leave I remembered to show Dr. Lisa a bump inside Bella's belly that has been popping out a lot. Last time we were there I tried to show her and it wasn't popping out, so she accredited it to undigested food in her belly that was kind of showing up through her now thin skin. This time, however, it was popping out and I got the chance to show her exactly what I meant. Well, of course with every good thing comes a bad, and Dr. Lisa told me Bella has a hernia. :( I swear to you, she just can't catch a break. She poked and squeezed around it a bit and then said she wasn't overly concerned about it right now as there is nothing we can do about it anyway. (Bella is still too weak and fragile to have any surgeries at this point) She said to keep and eye on it and we will look at it again next time she is out there.
So even with the bad news of the hernia, I am more than happy that Bella is no longer on her medicine, doesn't have to get any shots, and can finally lead a "normal" life again. This has certainly been a long road to recovery, one that began in August, but she is definitely there.
So a BIG THANKS to everyone who has kept Bella in their prayers and wished her "get wells." And a special big thanks to Jena and Jason for Bella's first card and flower delivery; I am certain that is what jump started her on this long road to recovery :) Thanks again to everyone.
**after a rough day at the office :)
For the pevious posts on Bella:
I will be thinking of your baby girl!! I know how hard it is to know there's something wrong with them and not be able to do anything!! I will be praying for her that she continues to get better and get strong enough to get her hernia fixed!! Love you both!!
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