Hi it's Carmen! Since I don't always get to say everything I want on the show, here's where I can finish my thoughts without Sean and Skip butting in!
OPERATION TYSON'S TOYS
by Carmen Brown,posted Nov 2 2011 1:31PM
First of all, I want to say thank you for all your prayers and thoughts to everybody who knew about little man’s trip to the hospital. I know a lot of you don’t know, so I’ll fill you in. As you know I was not here Monday and Tuesday. Saturday morning little man broke out in a really bad rash and his joints were starting to swell…like his knees and elbows. It looked horrific. Never had I seen anything like it. So we took him to a local Prime Care and they immediately told us to go to Brenner’s Children Hospital. Brenner’s was great, they had us in a room literally with in 10 minutes of walking in. Little man kept getting worse as time went on and he must have seen 6 or 7 doctors while we were in the ER. The most disturbing part about it was that nobody knew what was wrong. We reviewed everything he had to eat, where he had been, what he had to drink, anything we could think of. He had been outside that morning playing, so we were looking all over his body for any bug bites…anything. So around 8:30 that night, one of the doctors admitted him into a room to observe the situation and his health. They did give him a dose of steroids to see if it would help. It did a little bit, but Sunday he got even worse. His legs, knees, elbows, feet and ears were turning all kinds of different colors and he kept on swelling. I have to tell you he has the spirit of a fighter. He still wanted to get down off the bed and play with his toys and read his books. He was hooked up to a machine, so he could not really go too far. The good news is that it did not seem to bother him when he stood up or moved around. I could not believe that part. Looking at him you would think he was in excruciating pain. They gave him another dose of steroids and it seemed to help. So he stayed another night and I have never felt so helpless in my life. There is something to be said about when your child is sick and the doctors are looking at you going ‘I don’t know’. You want to get mad or break down, but I realized they were doing everything they could to make him better. As a mother, I had to keep that fighting spirit as well and believe in the power of God. Around the clock care with very little sleep. By Monday he looked like a different child. It was still hard to look at him and not cry, but his spirits were so positive and he got a trip around the hallway in their little red wagon. You would have thought he won the lottery! He is doing better and getting better by the day. Thank you to everybody who helped my family and had us in your thoughts and prayers. Part of me has changed since this weekend. When I found myself looking at my child with no answers and helpless everything that I thought was important before went out the window. Every little thing that I let get under my skin melted away. It put life in perspective. One of the biggest lessons I learned is how most parents take their child’s good health for granted including myself. I will NEVER take that for granted anymore. There are parents who struggle everyday with sick children, burn patients, and the list goes on and on. I salute those moms and dads. You are strong and beautiful individuals that know what a real fight is and go to battle everyday. At the radio station we represent and sponsor children with challenges and disabilities year round. Even though I can not compare little man’s condition to many of the children I have seen at camps, it still gave me horrible feeling in my stomach like ‘is everything going to be alright?’ I have never prayed so hard in my life. I literally broke down and tears and begged for a miracle on Sunday. I could not imagine it getting much worse and if it did what would happen. There is only so much a small child can handle…but as children always do, they amaze me. They are so resilient. So beautiful. I had the chance to meet a couple of amazing kids while we were there. Little man went through the halls and introduced himself to everybody. That child will be on a stage one day! You would be amazed how much a little red wagon means to a child that has been stuck in a room hooked up to machines. They also have a playroom for the kids to do all kinds of activities. Little man was lucky enough to only have to stay a couple of days, but for all the children who basically live there, in and out for whatever health reasons, the playroom and that little red wagon mean the world. So, by being inspired and touched by so many people over this past week…and not to mention a great team of doctors and nurses, I am doing special for little man’s birthday this year. Instead of getting a house full of toys (trust me, he will get plenty from his Grandparents)…I am having Operation Tyson’s Toys. This is where I am asking everybody to get an unwrapped, new toy for his Birthday, which is July 1st. We will then deliver all the toys to Brenner’s Children Hospital. Together we can really make a difference. I encourage everybody to drop off a toy to the radio station, no matter how small or how big…it is a contribution of a lifetime. I will start collecting toys in June so stay tuned for more information. Thank you for taking time to read this and may every parent fighting a battle, god bless you.
