JAN

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 4/22/2005 8:52:43 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

sld102@... writes:

Hi so happy to hear from you.How are you? I hope you are doing great.

He doesn't use the intestine.They use the stomach to replace " E " .He

drew a picture for me and it seems complicated but I know he is doing

whats best for me.I know it will be hard at first but I've got to focus

on the outcome.Take care and keep in touch.

Sherry from Ohio

Sherry,

It's good to talk to you again!

I will be thinking of you and praying for you next week.

It will be a hard recovery, it was for me. I think the hardest was the time

I had to spend in the hospital at the CC and then the one week I had to spend

in the stepdown unit. But the nurses and all the patient care staff will take

good care of you.

I am pretty good now, 8 months post op.

I can eat everything but much smaller(very small) portions. I can't eat

within a couple of hours of sleeping at night or I will have the worst acid

reflux and have to get up and throw up the acid. So I have gotten better about

behaving myself in regards to not eating at night.

I know that this surgery will help you have a better quality of life.

I will be thinking of you, and if you have any questions about recovery,

don't hesitate to email me personally. _JMB000001@..._

(mailto:JMB000001@...)

Hugs,

Jan from Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 4/25/2005 12:11:53 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

ableasdale@... writes:

Hi Jan,

I'm happy to hear that you still seem to be managing ok, 8 months

later. I guess by this point, you've learned what does and does not

work for you. Things are only going to get better for you!!

Take care Jan!

Thanks, .

I have not been back to see my GI since before my surgery last August, so I

made an appt to see my GI next Monday. I am having some bad acid reflux at

night and often wake up to acid taste in mouth, even with head of bed elevated.

Also, I've noticed that my singing voice, which sounded pretty good before

last August surgery for partial esophagectomy, is now sounding hoarse, cracked

and no high notes come out at all.

So, I am wondering if it's necessary to have a periodic endoscope to check

the remainder of my esoph for any cellular/tissue changes.

I can swallow anything, but just can't eat a lot at one time, and definitly

not at least three hours before going to sleep.

Thanks for your note!

Jan

[Guest guest]

JAN! I almost forgot about you! Forgive me!

How are you doing since your surgery? I was kinda drifting from the

group as you were coming back. Please, let me know how you're doing.

Hope to hear from you soon.

in NYC

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 4/25/2005 9:50:26 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

missydcd@... writes:

JAN! I almost forgot about you! Forgive me!

How are you doing since your surgery? I was kinda drifting from the

group as you were coming back. Please, let me know how you're doing.

Hope to hear from you soon.

in NYC

Hi, !

I am doing okay. It's been a hard road, having part of my esoph taken out

last August, and for the one big good thing of being able to swallow again, I

have the extremely bad trade off(?) of having NO protection against acid

reflux. I have no LES, I take Prevacid 30mg 2xa day, and many nights I wake up

from

my elevated head position with acid coming back up into my mouth. Yuck.

I still have feelings of depression about whether or not I did the right

thing with having the surgery. I hope everything goes well for Sherry, and Joan

also with their surgeries. It was for me, one of the hardest and most

traumatic experiences of my life to be far away from home, hospitalized for 4

weeks,

and on a feeding tube for another month.

Like I said, I can swallow pretty much everything, but my stomach had to be

used as part of my esophagus, so now it's very small, and I can only eat child

size portions of things, and then I can't drink any liquid at the same time.

I get very sick to my stomach if I eat or drink too much.

On the bright side of things, I won't gain much weight back and I again can

enjoy eating a little bit of what I dreamed of eating and watched everyone

else eat.

I am going back to see my GI next week, and I just have been wondering, with

all of the acid reflux that I continue to have,esp. at night, if I will need

to periodically have a endoscope to check what esophagus I have left for any

signs of Barretts or EC.

I wish I were giving you a better report, but I guess we all know that there

are no " magic " solutions to every health issue, and that are often trade

offs you have to accept .

You have to get yourself to a place where you are as good as you're going to

get and then say to yourself, " Okay, now this is the best it's going to be,

so deal with it " .

I hope you are doing well, .

I do keep reading the posts, esp those people that are going in for the

Hellers and those people who may need a esophagectomy because I have that

connection now.

Hugs to all,

Jan in Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 5/6/2005 1:32:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

jpearse@... writes:

Hi Jan;

It's so nice to see your name again ! How are you doing? It is my turn on

the 6th June and I am dreading the tubes - I am allergic to some of the

strapping and plasters so may end up with a red nose if they don't listen

and choose the wrong tape! The way you battled and managed has been such an

inspiration for me.

Hugs,

Joan

Oh Joan,

It's wonderful to hear from you, and I'm glad that I have battled through

these past 9 months to get to the point I'm at now, finally.

You will get there too, and I know you'll do just great.

I hope the hospital staff takes good care of you and listens to what you

tell them about bandages and tapes,etc.

Is'nt it good to think that this time next year, you'll be feeling 100%

better?

Rest up now, and also get things done before your hospitalization so that

once your back home, there won't be anything for you to catch up on!

Hugs,

Jan

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 8/31/2005 6:38:53 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, abdale@... writes:

Hi Jan B,

How have you been doing lately??? Do you have a next appointment set up yet?

Hugs,

,

I have a return appointment with my local GI( not doctor Rice from CC), and he seemed concerned a little about my small weight loss afer I had been gaining. It's wierd, my esophagus seems like food is not going down, and unlike the past months, I dont wake up with acid or bile relux, which was a major night time occurrence.

At this point, I go back to see my Local GI around middle of September. I hope that my GI feels confident enough to do a dilation on a patient who has lost 1/3 of her esophagus!

I hope that you are feeling better. As long as you have water, are you doing okay?

Jan

[Guest guest]

Hi Jan,

At least you

are heading in the right direction. AND, his holiday is “only” a

week – poor Biancka has to wait a MONTH before her desired surgeon is

back!! L Very soon you’ll have that

appointment and know what your next step is.

I’ll be

you’re looking forward to him going to school and that he is! It’s

a break for both of you!

Hugs,

From:

achalasia [mailto:achalasia ] On Behalf Of jan berry

Sent: September 1, 2005 11:57 AM

achalasia

Subject: Re: Jan

Hi ,

I got a letter from my surgeon this morning asking me to ring as soon

as possible as he wants to talk to me, so on the phone i goes just to be told

that hes on holiday for a week and could i ring back next week. You got

to laugh ( or i will cry ). Im not to bad still gulping the water and

struggling to swallow the pills.... Any way thanks for asking. Im trying to get

my son ready for school next week as he starts full time for the first time. Im

not sure which one of us is looking forward to it more him or me... lol

Take care

Jan

Brent &

Bleasdale <abdale@...>

wrote:

Hi Jan B,

How have you

been doing lately??? Do you have a next appointment set up yet?

Hugs,

From:

achalasia

[mailto:achalasia ]

On Behalf Of jan berry

Sent: August 31, 2005 8:41 AM

achalasia

Subject: Re: New to

group

Hi Ed,

I dont live in Germany,

but i just wanted to say welcome to the family. I live in North Devon in the Uk.

Ive had a Hellers Myotomy with a full wrap but waiting to go in again as things

havent improved for me yet. My op was on the 6th June this year

ka0zwv

<ka0zwv@...> wrote:

Hello all,

I am thankful I found this group. I was

diagnosed with achalasia in

1999. After three dialations I began to have

relief. I haven't had

major problems since my last dialation in

2001. I do have pain (major

pain) from time to time. There seems to be

no relation to the foods I

eat or stress. When I have these pains I

drink milk or anything cold

that I can get my hands on to help ease the pain,

sometimes it scares

me when I can't get the milk down. These

episodes don't happen too

often so I am thankful for that. I am able

to eat just about anything

I like but I always have to have water near

by. I drink about a liter

of water with every meal.

I now live in Germany.

Are there members on here from Germany

other

than me?

Ed

size=2 width=500 style='width:375.0pt'

align=left>

!

GROUPS LINKS

Visit your group

" achalasia "

on the web.

To unsubscribe

from this group, send an email to:

achalasia-unsubscribe

Your use of

is subject to the

Terms of Service.

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Carole,

I cant thank you enough for your perspective on this problem. I have his card out and will take it to work with me tomorrow to give his office a call and see if he can offer me any advice or help. My local GI is good, but for now, he doesn't seem too ready to offer to do a dilation. Perhaps with a person such as me, with a partial esophagectomy, most any doctor does not want to intervene. My local doctor indicated a willingness to consider a dilation, but told me to come back in 6 weeks, and also indicated that he'd try me on a medical regime first ( trying Zelnorm) to get motility of esophagus. But in my case, I tend to think "Let's cut to the chase and just do the darn dilation!".

Thanks so much Carole, for your advice in this, I think only someone who's been through the esophagectomy or close to it, can understand fully. I swallowed great most of the year until about a month ago, then it started going downhill.

Thanks again,

Jan from Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/13/2005 8:14:50 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, kgasior2@... writes:

Hi Jan,I agree with Carole ... PLEASE call Dr. Rice. If your local GI is not anxious to do this, it might be construed as a strong signal that you need better help.We are are concerned with you. Please call him .... or e-mail him! As soon as you can. Look how well Carole is doing. Please do not wait until it is an emergency.WE CAREKathie in Pittsburgh

Thanks, Kathie.

Your so kind to care. I know that when I stopped trying to eat bread again, and anything dry, it was just that I started to know, subconsciously, that food was starting not to feel like it was going down as well. But I want to be able to not worry about things sticking, especially after I went through so much to get to this point. I will call Dr. Rice's office and see what, if anything, he says.

Thanks again for prodding and pushing me to do what I know I need to do.

Jan from Northern KY

[Guest guest]

Dr. Rice is the one to talk to. He is terrific and will come up with

a plan to help. I am sure there isn't much he hasn't seen. He has

such a wealth of experience and knowledge and with all the effort he's

put into your case he will continue to give you the best possible

care. Your's is a complicated case and Dr. Rice knows it inside and

out (every pun intended). I know it is a pain to travel to Cleveland

but the quicker the problem is addressed the better. I was told not

to delay at all if I felt there was some difficulty swallowing. Give

him a call. He wants to help and will.

[Guest guest]

Dr. Rice is the one to talk to. He is terrific and will come up with

a plan to help. I am sure there isn't much he hasn't seen. He has

such a wealth of experience and knowledge and with all the effort he's

put into your case he will continue to give you the best possible

care. Your's is a complicated case and Dr. Rice knows it inside and

out (every pun intended). I know it is a pain to travel to Cleveland

but the quicker the problem is addressed the better. I was told not

to delay at all if I felt there was some difficulty swallowing. Give

him a call. He wants to help and will.

[Guest guest]

Jan, I am glad you've made the decision to call Dr. Rice. Like

you said, sometimes we know what we should do but we need

a little shove from others.

I agree with Kathie and Carole, you need and deserve the

best.

Hugs and prayers,

Maggie

Alabama

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2005 7:17:21 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, LunaIam2@... writes:

Jan, I am glad you've made the decision to call Dr. Rice. Like

you said, sometimes we know what we should do but we need

a little shove from others.

I agree with Kathie and Carole, you need and deserve the

best.

Hugs and prayers,

Maggie

Alabama

Hi Maggie,

Thanks you guys for being so nice. I called Dr. Rice's office at TCC and his secretary looked back at his notes from my January of this year dilation, and he did write that I may need repeat dilations if swallowing becomes difficult again. So I scheduled it for next Thursday morning. Good thing my college son is still home and can come with to drive me the 6 hr drive home afterwards. Otherwise, I'd have to spend the night alone up there and drive home the next day. This way I only have to stay one night in a hotel.

The thing is, it's wierd, kind of, how I was going along just fine, eating pretty much anything I wanted. I just had to eat much less, because of a smaller stomach.

But over the last couple months I couldn't choose to eat bread again, and I didn't even notice, it was so gradual.

I sure hope the dilation next week with Dr. Rice helps, and I feel kind of bad about skipping out on my local GI, but I told him I was starting to have these problems, and he only said that a dilation might be possible in the future. He wanted me to try medicines to help the peristalsis along instead of just doing a dilation.

So, I feel like I'm "cheating" on him by going back to Dr. Rice, but, a girl has to do what a girl has to do to swallow!

Thanks for listening and thanks for being my friend,

Jan in Northern KY

[Guest guest]

Hi Jan,

I honestly believe you made the right decision. Dr. Rice knows what

he is doing and will have all your records right there. You and I

both know this is on going. Unfortunately, you will probably have to

see Dr. Rice again. This way, he has ALL your records. I am really

glad that you made this decision. I would even bet your GI is glad

that you made this decision. It would have been a new territory for

him since the removal of part of your E is probably something he does

not do alot of either.

GOOD CHOICE!

My prayers are with you.

Kathie

>

> In a message dated 9/14/2005 7:17:21 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,

> LunaIam2@a... writes:

>

> Jan, I am glad you've made the decision to call Dr. Rice. Like

> you said, sometimes we know what we should do but we need

> a little shove from others.

>

> I agree with Kathie and Carole, you need and deserve the

> best.

>

> Hugs and prayers,

> Maggie

> Alabama

>

>

>

> Hi Maggie,

> Thanks you guys for being so nice. I called Dr. Rice's office at

TCC and his

> secretary looked back at his notes from my January of this year

dilation,

> and he did write that I may need repeat dilations if swallowing

becomes

> difficult again. So I scheduled it for next Thursday morning. Good

thing my college

> son is still home and can come with to drive me the 6 hr drive

home

> afterwards. Otherwise, I'd have to spend the night alone up there

and drive home the

> next day. This way I only have to stay one night in a hotel.

> The thing is, it's wierd, kind of, how I was going along just fine,

eating

> pretty much anything I wanted. I just had to eat much less, because

of a

> smaller stomach.

> But over the last couple months I couldn't choose to eat bread

again, and I

> didn't even notice, it was so gradual.

> I sure hope the dilation next week with Dr. Rice helps, and I feel

kind of

> bad about skipping out on my local GI, but I told him I was

starting to have

> these problems, and he only said that a dilation might be possible

in the

> future. He wanted me to try medicines to help the peristalsis along

instead of

> just doing a dilation.

> So, I feel like I'm " cheating " on him by going back to Dr. Rice,

but, a girl

> has to do what a girl has to do to swallow!

> Thanks for listening and thanks for being my friend,

> Jan in Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/14/2005 10:03:40 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, kgasior2@... writes:

Hi Jan,I honestly believe you made the right decision. Dr. Rice knows what he is doing and will have all your records right there. You and I both know this is on going. Unfortunately, you will probably have to see Dr. Rice again. This way, he has ALL your records. I am really glad that you made this decision. I would even bet your GI is glad that you made this decision. It would have been a new territory for him since the removal of part of your E is probably something he does not do alot of either.GOOD CHOICE!My prayers are with you.Kathie

Thanks for your support, Kathie. It is invaluable to me.

I guess I was just kidding myself to think this local GI would want to jump in and help me with this dilation. It still is hard to think of my own case as being a "difficult" one to manage, but I guess it is.

I just hope that seeing Dr. Rice will help.

Thanks Again!

Jan from Northern KY

[Guest guest]

You are in my thoughts and have only my best wishes for a good

outcome. I was told that I would not be completely healed or that my

system would not be totally recovered for about a year after the

surgery so I am trying to prepare myself for any eventuality including

repeated dilations. So the way I see it is your relationship with

your surgeon is still on-going, just more follow-up care after your

surgery.

[Guest guest]

Jan,

Don't feel that you're " cheating on " your local GI! He may feel

relieved that you are going back to the " experts " at TCC. I know my

husband's local GI has been really stumped with his condition. He was

the one who sent my husband to see a doc at Univ. of Michigan last

year because he feels my husband is his toughest case. He's a nice

guy and is not afraid to admit when a case is beyond his scope (sorry

for the pun). Even though he didn't directly recommend TCC, I think

he feels better that they are on the case, now.

I hope your dilation goes smoothly! My husband will go to TCC on

Tuesday (the 20th) for more Botox (first time at TCC). Dr. Achkar is

doing that. I guess dilation falls under Dr. Rice's jurisdiction,

right? We're lucky that TCC is only 3 hours from us (and I thought

THAT was far away)! I'm such a wimp, I was worried about driving back

to the Detroit area that day, when you have further to go! Good luck

with your travels AND your dilation!

in Michigan

> Hi Maggie,

> Thanks you guys for being so nice. I called Dr. Rice's office at TCC

and his

> secretary looked back at his notes from my January of this year

dilation,

> and he did write that I may need repeat dilations if swallowing

becomes

> difficult again. So I scheduled it for next Thursday morning. Good

thing my college

> son is still home and can come with to drive me the 6 hr drive home

> afterwards. Otherwise, I'd have to spend the night alone up there

and drive home the

> next day. This way I only have to stay one night in a hotel.

> The thing is, it's wierd, kind of, how I was going along just fine,

eating

> pretty much anything I wanted. I just had to eat much less, because

of a

> smaller stomach.

> But over the last couple months I couldn't choose to eat bread

again, and I

> didn't even notice, it was so gradual.

> I sure hope the dilation next week with Dr. Rice helps, and I feel

kind of

> bad about skipping out on my local GI, but I told him I was starting

to have

> these problems, and he only said that a dilation might be possible

in the

> future. He wanted me to try medicines to help the peristalsis along

instead of

> just doing a dilation.

> So, I feel like I'm " cheating " on him by going back to Dr. Rice,

but, a girl

> has to do what a girl has to do to swallow!

> Thanks for listening and thanks for being my friend,

> Jan in Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/15/2005 10:18:29 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, brendacoyle@... writes:

I hope your dilation goes smoothly! My husband will go to TCC onTuesday (the 20th) for more Botox (first time at TCC). Dr. Achkar isdoing that. I guess dilation falls under Dr. Rice's jurisdiction,right? We're lucky that TCC is only 3 hours from us (and I thoughtTHAT was far away)! I'm such a wimp, I was worried about driving backto the Detroit area that day, when you have further to go! Good luckwith your travels AND your dilation! in Michigan

,

Thanks for your encouragement. It's so kind of you.

Actually, I think that if your husband is seeing Dr. Achkar, that he will probably do the proceedure. In my case, Dr. Rice is doing the dilation, because he operated on me to do a partial esophagectomy, and I am starting to get the picture that if any dilations need to be done, that the ONLY doctor that will want or agree to do dilations on me will only be Dr. Rice. I am rather thick headed, and it has taken me some time to come to that realization. In a perfect world, someone locally would have been skilled enough to take over the reigns and do the dilation. But I am now doing so badly swallowing that I am forced to come to the conclusion that I am headed back to Cleveland Clinic, no matter what!

I guess I should just thank God that Dr. Rice is there and can help me rather than curse the fact that I must make the 6hr trip back up there. I am planning on driving up around 1:00p.m. Wednesday afternoon, having the procedure on Thursday morning, seeing Dr. Rice at 11:45 in his office, then my son is driving me back home that day. The next day, I decided I am taking a sick day just to rest up.

I'm afraid to ask, but am wondering just how many dilations will Dr. Rice do on me before he says, "that's it" your as good as your going to get?

Sorry to rant so long.

Jan from Northern KY

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/23/2005 12:18:09 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, abdale@... writes:

Hi Jan,

I have to ditto Kathie here – please contact TCC. They know you better than anyone else, and would absolutely be the best ones to do further dilations, as far away as they are.

Keep us posted! J

Love and Hugs,

Thanks, ,

I know you are right. I'm so hard headed at times.

Jan

[Guest guest]

Hi Jan,

I have to

ditto Kathie here – please contact TCC. They know you better than anyone

else, and would absolutely be the best ones to do further dilations, as far

away as they are.

Keep us

posted! J

Love and Hugs,

From:

achalasia [mailto:achalasia ] On Behalf Of zekenoahme

Sent: September 13, 2005 4:57 PM

achalasia

Subject: Jan

Hi Jan,

I agree with Carole ... PLEASE call Dr.

Rice. If your local GI is not

anxious to do this, it might be construed as a

strong signal that you

need better help.

We are are concerned with you. Please call

him .... or e-mail him! As

soon as you can. Look how well Carole is

doing. Please do not wait

until it is an emergency.

WE CARE

Kathie in Pittsburgh

> Carole,

> Thanks for the messages. I am glad you are

doing so well, and I hope

you continue to do well. I would write more,

but, I think I really may

need to call Dr. Rice's office at CC

and see what they say about

further dilations. I just was really hoping that

my local GI doc could

do any dilations, but even after a couple of

visits to him, he doesn't

seem to anxious to do it, and keeps

putting me off.

> Jan

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 9/25/2005 2:41:23 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, abdale@... writes:

Hi Jan,

Well, at least this dilation is over, right? Dr. Rice really sounds great, I think you really can trust what he is saying. I do not totally understand the US medical/insurance, but if your doc prescribes you meds, how can your insurance NOT cover them? Its not like you’re buying them for fun!! That is what insurance is for!! How is your swallowing doing since your dilation? Are you noticing any difference yet? I’ll be praying for your own personal aircraft if/by the time you need another dilation! J

Love and Hugs,

Hi ,

Since the dilation, the swallowing does seem to be better. But as for the medication I have a hard time knowing how to time the taking of it. He wants me to take questran powder morning and at night. Reglan 3times a day and at bedtime, prevacid 3 times a day. The problem is that questran powder should not be taken a hour within other medicines because it takes everything in your stomach and binds it together in your system. I have also been having severe bouts of diarrhea since the day after my dialation. I don't know if it's because the dilation opened up everything and my lactose intolerance is worse, or if it's the Reglan speeding everything through my partial esopagectomy digestive system?

I swear, I seem to have one problem solved only to find another one crop up!

Jan

[Guest guest]

Jan turns 33 today, healthy and looking to moving into an apartment of

her own in a couple of months.

If you want to send greetings, send them to:

SOGold@...

A couple of words about who you are will help.

I'll try to see that the computer is on and ready for her to pick up email.

Rick .. dad to miracle girl .. cured of leukemia by a bone marrow transplant

[Guest guest]

Hi Everyone,

I loved hearing about Jans performance and day

program. Meghan is ten now. I have long

struggled with the prioncipal at her school who

really isn't in to having children with

challenges at his school...well I was stunned to

hear last week that he was fired...he's been

there forever and was close to retirement..no one

knows what the issue was. I was truly shocked.

I had been thinking of transfering Meghan to

another school where she would be in a self

contained classroom and go out to typical classes

(as opposed to now where she is in a typical

class (where the teachers were not supported in

adapting the curriculum)...the teacher at the

other school is fantastic. When the old

principal heard this he practically stumbled over

himself in setting the wheels in motion to have

it happen PRONTO.....it was sad but a reality

that that was his attitude...now I don't know

where things stand....

....and of course...just when I am thinking of

taking her out I was contacted by a teacher who

was requesting that Meghan be in the

orchestra...he thought that she would do well on

the piano....that has never happened

before....like I said I don't know what the next

month will bring.

I hope everyone is well...

Mom to (age 12) and Meghan DS (age 10)

[Guest guest]

>

> Hi Everyone,

>

> I loved hearing about Jans performance and day

> program. Meghan is ten now. I have long

> struggled with the prioncipal at her school who

> really isn't in to having children with

> challenges at his school...well I was stunned

> to

> hear last week that he was fired...he's been

> there forever and was close to retirement..no

> one

> knows what the issue was. I was truly shocked.

>

> I had been thinking of transfering Meghan to

> another school where she would be in a self

> contained classroom and go out to typical

> classes

> (as opposed to now where she is in a typical

> class (where the teachers were not supported in

> adapting the curriculum)...the teacher at the

> other school is fantastic. When the old

> principal heard this he practically stumbled

> over

> himself in setting the wheels in motion to have

> it happen PRONTO.....it was sad but a reality

> that that was his attitude...now I don't know

> where things stand....

>

> ...and of course...just when I am thinking of

> taking her out I was contacted by a teacher who

> was requesting that Meghan be in the

> orchestra...he thought that she would do well

> on

> the piano....that has never happened

> before....like I said I don't know what the

> next

> month will bring.

>

> I hope everyone is well...

>

>

> Mom to (age 12) and Meghan DS (age 10)

>

[Guest guest]

What a wonderful thing to be contacted by a teacher to ask that she be included

in an activity! I think that is great, and I hope she does well. Now, if that

would just happen at our school.............................

Sharon H.

Mom to , (14, DS) and , (11)

South Carolina

" Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of

battle. "

re: Jan

Hi Everyone,

I loved hearing about Jans performance and day

program. Meghan is ten now. I have long

struggled with the prioncipal at her school who

really isn't in to having children with

challenges at his school...well I was stunned to

hear last week that he was fired...he's been

there forever and was close to retirement..no one

knows what the issue was. I was truly shocked.

I had been thinking of transfering Meghan to

another school where she would be in a self

contained classroom and go out to typical classes

(as opposed to now where she is in a typical

class (where the teachers were not supported in

adapting the curriculum)...the teacher at the

other school is fantastic. When the old

principal heard this he practically stumbled over

himself in setting the wheels in motion to have

it happen PRONTO.....it was sad but a reality

that that was his attitude...now I don't know

where things stand....

...and of course...just when I am thinking of

taking her out I was contacted by a teacher who

was requesting that Meghan be in the

orchestra...he thought that she would do well on

the piano....that has never happened

before....like I said I don't know what the next

month will bring.

I hope everyone is well...

Mom to (age 12) and Meghan DS (age 10)