Yesterday we finally were able to get Hunter in to see a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. I've asked his pediatrician for years about his weight, or lack of it, but was always told that I was little therefore my kid was too.
Last year I switched pediatricians and the first thing she said to Hunter when she walked in was, "Whoa- you are one skinny kid"- she saw it right away. The first thing she did was send us to see a dietician/nutritionist. All of that checked out, so the next step was the GI doc which took three months to get into. I knew in the back of my mind what the diagnosis would be, but seeing it in black and white took my breath away...
Failure to thrive.
He is 4'10 and weighs in at 67#. The doctor suspects that his stomach does not empty as fast as it should. A large breakfast for him can hold him over until the next morning. We saw for years that breakfast was his best meal of the day, but the rest of the day he barely touched anything to eat. When he was in public school he was on high doses of ADHD and anxiety meds- all which have weight loss as a side effect. For years we wrote off his low weight to that, but now that he's been home and off meds for almost two years we are still not seeing any weight gain.
He will be going in to have a nuclear gastric emptying test performed, followed by a endoscopy/colonscopy. Not only am I complete wreck at knowing there is something wrong with my son, it is further compounded by the fact that we were dropped from our medical insurance when the strike went into effect. Hunter being the good natured kid that he is said that maybe they'd find money coming out his wazoo. I love that boy.
When it rains it pours, right? But the sun has to peek out at some point...
