Sunshyne' Journey... The Story

Every mama prays that their babies will be healthy, strong, and never wants a child to be limited in anything they do. In my case, all my children has had a struggle, that was life changing yet special in their own way. Sunshyne's has been the hardest for me. When she was born back in February 2002, she was a healthy baby. Took her home to a big family of toddlers 1 bro and 1 sis twins that were 3 and a 2 year old sis... Sunshyne fit right in , thru her own way. We noticed that her right eye was giving her a problem it had a redness to it, and always seemed like it wasn't ever tearing up like normal eyes do. We took her in to a Opthomologist and they said her tear duct was closed and that they were having to schedule a surgery very quick . So we took her in had that treated. 2 weeks later she started having feeding issues, went into the dr they did some testing and she ended up with pyloric stenosis is and had emergency surgery. Her condition was really life threatening at the stage it was at. Very dehydrated and weak, they performed the surgery and she was on her way home back to us.. As time passed we had noticed that her right eye that she had had the recent surgery on was aligned more inward then the left. We kept a watch , not seeing it on a constant basis to be worried, we let her ped Dr take over and routine eye checks, by the age of three it was very concerning to me and her dad. She got sick over the Christmas holiday and ended up in the hospital with pneumonia. Being new to the area, we had a really nice Dr talk to us while she was in the hospital about who we could see in reference to her eye, the Dr had took note and made us aware that it was something that needed to be checked out. So with her wishes and our concerns raised in our hearts, we took her to a amazing Dr here in town who specialized with children. He started patching her and got her a script for her new glasses, Dx was Amblyopia, Strabismus, Far Sighted with Astigmatism. Sunny didn't handle to the patching well. Done all day everyday for the first three months, She was about to start Head Start and the concerns were that it would make it difficult for her to participate due to the lack of vision that was in the right eye. Over time we saw no progression for the vision to improve. Frustrated and still oblivious we still stuck with his plans. Through the months between her visits, Sunshyne's ophtmalologist was killed in a car accident. When we found out, not only in grief but the fact that we lost our hope that we could find someone that took her case so delicate, the first visit with the new Dr at this practice was not use to seeing someone with Sunshyne's problems. So i took it upon myself to make a change in not only the Ped that overlooked alot but to get with someone who could refer her to the closest we could find that knew of Amblyopia and how to treat her at this age, with the amount of damage that had happened, and the time that had past without more aggressive treatment. Now many years later, alot of prayers, and alot of research on Mommy's part, We have finally met an amazing team at the University of Duke Eye Center. She sees a Dr there that is a pediatric neuro ophthamologist. Fromt he first visit with her I for the first time was put at ease, my daughter is being treated like it should have been treated like it should have before she was 3 years old. We have put all of our trust and faith in this team, not only for their expertise but because they give it to us straight and make sure we are informed on all decisions. I feel like I have voice and feel like now I have a clue to what I need to be prepared for and what I need to do in my daughter's better half. She is in atropine therapy at this time, the Dr. allowed her to take part in a study that is for atropine treatment, however the Dr. is not pleased with the progression she should be making, So most likely the near future will hold less research and more aggressive therapy. Sunshyne 's condition at this time is she is legally blind with her right eye, she wears lenses , and also is doing patching with atropine daily very soon. Surgery within the year is approaching , the Dr. states there has to be a percentage of improvement before we are able to do the surgery and that once its done her alignment will help the eye regain some vision back . Sunshyne regaining anything in this stage is a blessing, and our prayers are filled daily with hope that she will be able to cover the left eye and see the world through that right and never once again frown. For all the mother and families that recognize this condition and live it everyday , I truly can relate to the pull it has on our hearts. This has made me want to be an advocate for Amblyopia, and let people know how truly important it is to have your children's vision screenings done yearly , and it never hurts to ask questions, and be screened for eye disorders such as these. We take it one day at a time, and pray that the world can see this differently through my Daughter's eyes.