Priscilla Wall's Weblog

My first room seemed crowded to me, but I didn’t mind because there was a baby close by that I could watch. For me what could be better than that! I remember being right next to a big picture window looking out at the hallway. The first test they did was a spinal tap. It wasn’t bad, just a few pin pricks. And the results were conclusive, Polio! It was spreading. It looked as though by morning, I would be in an “Iron Lung”. (A big tube that you fit inside, except for your head.) A pump would put pressure on the lungs and ‘breath’ for you. That is what the Doctors told my parents. Expect to see me in an iron lung when they returned the next morning. But God had other plans. My mother tells me, “When Dad and I got home, we knelt and prayed, giving you to the Lord. We told Him, ‘No matter what happens to her, we will serve You’.” Mother said, she had peace for the first time since I had gotten sick. She had a good nights rest. When they returned the next morning, they were greeted by the doctors. My fever had broken. The polio stopped spreading, no iron lung. My Dad and Mom asked what time the fever broke, it was the exact time they had knelt in prayer committing me to the Lord. I spent the next three/four months in the hospital.

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They transported me from one hospital to another by ambulance. Mother road with me. I assume my dad drove down in their car. My ambulance ride was traumatic. It was an hour drive give or take, but it seemed so much longer. When they wanted to get through traffic, they would turn on their sirens. Not good! It made me feel like I needed to go to the bathroom. I kept telling my mom to make them turn off the sirens. Being an extremely modest child, it was totally humiliating for me. I didn’t think my ride was such an emergency that they needed the sirens. I did survive, but it was still very traumatic; it was like it sent me into a panic mode. For me, it was a very long, long, long ride. What relief when they finally arrived at Herman Keefer Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. That was going to be my “home” for several months.

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It has been a summer to remember. I had all but James for the month of June. Then In July, I had Amie, Christine, and AnnaBeth for two weeks while Noelle and James stayed with Mom and Dad up North. Then for the rest of the summer Jeremy and Julie rotated the kids so they could spend time with them. Having to stay in an extended stay motel room only allowed them to take one or two at a time. Looking for a place to rent was very discouraging for them, but God is good, they pickedup the kids yesterday and were taking them back to a house! Yes, a real house. You can read all about it on Julie's blog page at: http://julie.marzhillstudios.com We will miss them, but it was time for them and for us. I am not as young as I used to be and with my own post-polio issues, I was stretched. But I would do it again.

At the same time, my mother developed an infection in one of her toes. Being a diabetic, she could have lost her toe, but thanks be to God, we think that threat is over. We are still treating it and she sees the dr. again the end of September.

We did have a wonderful time on our vacation to Michigan. All our kids and g'kids were there for the reunion on my husband's side of the family. We took our camper and set it up at Dick's sister's house where the reunion was held. It was good to rest, and enjoy family. We hired a young lady to take care of mother, which allowed me to enjoy the time away knowing she was in capable hands. The second half of the trip was spend at my sister's lake house. We didn't get to see all my siblings, nieces, and nephew's, but we did get to meet my niece's new husband and enjoyed getting to know Robin. We had dinner with my youngest sister and her daughter and husband. We always enjoy visiting with Matt and Julie.

Anyway, that was my summer

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I was admitted to Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital. They put me in a ward with several children. I remember being right by the door. They took a lot of blood samples, day after day. They still didn’t have a clue what was wrong. Meanwhile, I was getting weaker and weaker. They would get me out of bed and stand me up, then say “walk to me”. I couldn’t do it. They wanted an x-ray, so down I go to that department. They stand me in front of an x-ray machine and tell me to stand still. I can’t, I just slid to the floor. They were clueless. They would bring my food on a tray and sit it on the bed table. I couldn’t sit up, I couldn’t reach my arm up or hold a spoon. Then when they came to get the tray, they would fuss at me because I didn’t eat. When my mom came to be with me, she brought something and helped me eat by feeding me. Finally, they told my mom, they didn’t know what was wrong with me, but they had ruled out polio. I was on my way to another hospital.

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