The Results

*SIGH* 

So... the results are good, very good, the best possible in fact.  This is great news!  

Now I will tell you that I was not very happy about this when I first got the news from the doctor.  I have spent the last 6 months of my life worried, anxious, and baffled  about my Porter Ray to the point that we had him go through a surgery to try and get answers to why he has been so miserable and sick.   The answer to those questions are answers a doctor would know what was going on with a typical kid right away.  Porter has been holding his bowel movements, until he makes himself miserable and very sick.  Can you imagine controlling your bowels for over a week until your body responds in a negative way?  The very thought of it makes me uncomfortable.  Go ahead, take a moment and laugh. :-)  My mom did when I called her and said, "Everything in my life comes back to poop and pee!" That's an exaggerated statement but there's a lot of truth in it.  If Porter were able to communicate that it hurts for him to go potty we never would have been consulting with a specialist to try and figure out what was wrong with him.  As things are right now Porter isn't able to tell us that it hurts and so we went down this path. If Porter didn't have Down Syndrome we wouldn't have been so worried.  I initially felt like the whole thing had been a waste of time and money.  Our doctor, however, reassured me by explaining that my concerns were valid he was as convinced as I was that something wasn't functioning properly in Porter's body. Based on the facts the people with Down Syndrome are at a high risk for many, many GI problems and so we kept looking.  The positive side of putting Porter through this procedure is that there were 16 biopsies done and lots of images taken that were assessed and analyzed. 

 I no longer need spend anytime wondering if he has allergies or enzyme deficiencies --
 HE DOESN'T. 

 I no longer need spend time worrying that his body is not absorbing or responding to his diet well--
IT IS!  

I NO LONGER HAVE TO WORRY! 

 HALLELUJAH!

 (I'll have to adjust to that, right there ^^^ because I have been worried about these things for... years!) 

We have some difficult work ahead of us as we try to ease Porter's mental anxiety and physical pain around going to the bathroom, but the doctor helped me come up with a plan and I can work with that.  I also now know if A and B happen then put a teaspoon of MiraLAX in his juice and I'll get my happy, compliant and playful Porter back.  

Information is POWERFUL and I'm grateful for it.