Step by Step

I am so excited today.

and this time it has nothing to do with any celebrity-fan crazy me!

Finally after months of searching, making calls here and there, meeting up with the people responsible and then just sat waiting... waiting..

and finally today, the three of them showed up at my doorstep at 9am in the morning, bearing the SimonYap clan good news.

Jaden will soon begin his long awaited home-based ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis) therapy classes.

Why home based and not centre-based for me? Well, after doing my research, I realized for my boy's sake, its better for him to start from home where he has the comfort of waking up, eating and not having to quickly bathe, spend the time on the road to the centre which will make him tired again and then he will throw a tantrum and not learn anything.. and money goes to waste.

I rather he be comfortable and learn from where he feels confident and safe and that I can do my stuff at the same time at home, while still be a part of his therapy lessons.

This ABA therapy does not come cheap but Hubby is doing his best to provide to give Jaden the best treatment / recovery process he can afford.

For now, we will only be starting at about 18 hours a week, which I will be the 3rd filled in therapists working with him (strictly) for about 4 hours (2 hours a day -2 days only) as the other two therapists will come from Tue-Fri. One in the morning and the other in the afternoon.

and when the boy starts to progress, we will then see how we can add on the hours, because ideally the hours to work with children with ASD would be 30 hours weekly. At the moment, we will start slow, introducing him to the two therapists, allowing him to accept them and trust them enough to play and work with him.

Words cannot describe my excitement at the moment because this means one step forward and well, i am keeping my mind open and positive that the household of SimonYap will soon see some progress and more progress, together with the help of his biomeds.

Speaking of that, it means now I have to clear whatever that is not needed in the second room to make way for his therapy room. We have already bought quite a few materials for the therapists to work with him.

I feel really grateful to those who had helped me get to this day. The forum, the parents, the two supervisors whom I met up.. they have been really helpful and patient with all my questions -starting from where and how should I begin to get my son on the road to recovery...not to mention my bestfriends who chipped in in their own way.

Thank you so much!

Miss A

Delay

I know I am supposed to blog about the Super Junior Super Show III concert that I attended in Singapore but somehow I am not inspired to quickly blog about it just yet..

and as for my bestfriend's wedding... well, I am feeling so medicated up and suffocated with all the few depressing days of Chinese New Year and then the surgery that left me feeeling allllllll tired-like all the time at the moment.. so well, I guess I will be taking some time off blogging..

Sorry.. =(

But no worries, I will surely blog about those two! So watch out for photos, Ms Ho! although I think I took more video this time round..

Breast Lump removal

I am not sure how long I had this lump. It felt just perfectly normal to me, like it was supposed to be there> I don't even remember how it got there but should be sometime after I started breastfeeding or stop breastfeeding.

However, it got to my attention when it started hurting me from inside out until I could feel the hard lump or the nerve making an appearance on the top side of the breast.

After two three months of enduring the pain, I could not take it any longer, worrying each time what it was that hurts me so and so I decided to let the professional take over.

It was time to head over to the doctor and asked for their professional diagnosis.

First, I headed over to my gynae because I did not really know where to start and since I had to do my annual pap smear test, might just as well and he referred me to his colleague, who specialises in lumps, Dr Kwan.

Dr Kwan then checked me thoroughly with the presence of a female nurse. He then sent me for an ultrasound scan of the breast to find out if it was a lump or two and how big it was inside me.

Turned out to be about3.8cm big in me and he gave me two options. To take a needle poke test or surgery to remove the whole thing and sent it for testing. Dr Kwan was actually very informative and patient with someone like me, such a bimbo when it comes to understanding scientific terms and all sorts, so don't ask me if it is malignant, benign or cystic. I still don't know the difference between malignant and benign till now!

I opted for surgery as that would mean removal of the whole thing.. TAKE IT OUT OF ME!!! and also I hate needles!

My doctor was nice enough to let me choose the date I wanted for surgery and I chose the day he begins work back after Chinese New Year. Well, also so I can attend Gwen's wedding without any wound dressing to worry about.

I drove to the hospital alone, which was just ten minutes away from my place. I got myself admitted into Tropicana Medical Centre with the admission letter my doctor wrote for me.

The service was superb! Top notch! Nurses were a cheerful bunch! My doctor came round about 9am to draw on me where he would cut me up. I felt like a pig going onto the slaughter table. =)

The anaesthesia doctor and the staff in the Operating Theatre too, were a cheerful bunch and well, I didn't even know how they knocked me out. All I knew was the lady calling my name, and everything was over.

My doctor was a caring one. He came round at least twice to check on me that day. There goes my money too! LOL just kidding but I really appreciate the service given by TMC's doctors and staff.

Well, one thing lead to another. When I was put under GA, my heartbeat went a little cuckoo for awhile and gave them all a scare but it was fine throughout the surgery and when they were about to end the surgery, my heartbeat did a little jiggy again. So Dr Kwan informed me when he came by and asked if he could refered me to the heart specialist to look into the matter, just to be safe... just in case this is the tip of the iceberg case.

The heart specialist, Dr Haizal came by about 830pm and told me about everything I need to know and asked them to send me for an ECG scan and Echogram the next morning because my earlier ECG scan still did a jiggy. It showed a T-Wave and boy, they were all surprised that I was only 27 and not 72.

They then decide to attach a holter to me to monitor my heartbeat for the next 24 hours just to make sure that there is nothing to really worry about my heart status. My echogram however, did show a beautful four room.. don't ask me what room but I remember I did learn about it in my biology class. I just didn't really pay attention.. but the only thing is that the echogram showed a very minor leakage when the valve is closing. Hhrrummpph!

BUT they did mention that that was nothing really big to worry about. Pretty common sometimes and Dr Haizal just have to test my IQ by asking how many beats does a heart beat in a day. *sigh* I feel so bimbotic! LOL

Anyway, I got discharged the next day after surgery as I seemed all fine, no fever and no more vomitting. Talk about vomitting, I think I started vomitting right after they wheeled me back to my ward room. All the water, milo, some porridge and last, the anti-vomit medicine they gave me.. that felt really so bitter that even the sweet pandan jelly didn't help at all.

Luckily for me, I had two kind visitors who provided me food and drinks. Joy, who came earlier to visit me and brought me vitagen and ribena! Yay! Something that really helped me got by my night, clearing all the bitter taste at the back of my throat and XiuYi who came over with McD even when it was already 11pm and she stayed in DJ.

I was really grateful for what both of them did for me. Don't ask me about my husband because he was busy taking care of Jaden and God forbid, I forbid him to bring Jaden to hospital ground just in case the boy catches any unwanted bacteria and get sick himself. So, it was rather unkind when one friend of mine commented that my husband should come no matter what.

My husband has the responsibility to keep the boy healthy while I am recuperating in the hospital and I don't need the boy to fall sick and add on to my discomfort. Well, I guess that was the last call I will ever make to that friend of mine because well, I learnt that the saying about true friendship, those you can count on and those you can't is really true.

YuMay did stop by in the morning before she went for work and well, helped me out when I was ready to be discharge. *sigh* God bless these three girlfriends of mine!

I had to go back the next day to remove my holter and to see Dr Kwan again, so he can check on my wound and also help clean and change the wound dressing to a water-resistant one so I could bathe in ease.

Next appointment, next week - and this time, both with Dr Haizal and Dr Kwan.

I really would like to sing high praises about TMC and their services. I can't say it enough. Of course, the price paid did not come cheap but well, they were worth the money paid with smiling, ever eager staff trying to make any discomfort I had better!

Chinese New Year 2011

... this year just was not something what I expected.

I, sort of, instead of looking forward to this one festive season which I loved so much because it means 'family meetings, laughter and family gossips together' just was not there.

Every year, ever since I got married, I missed my northern Perlis tradition of the Loo family getting together, us, cousins on one table while the elderly on the other eating away the scrumptious meal the wives of the Loo's family put together.

Then we will either settle into playing fireworks or grouping upstairs to have a mini gambling sessions comprising of RM0.20 onwards.

The scramble in the morning to get ready in time to go to our grand-aunty's house to meet up with the rest of the family, and then back to the youngest uncle's house for lunch and the eldest uncle trying to sing us deaf!

The house visits of my mom's side -first uncle/aunty to the last aunty in the Tan clan. The food served on the table, ever so inviting.. *sigh* the laughter, the pressuring questions for the young ones going into college, or those who are not married yet or those who have not have children, seeing them squirm looking at each other for help to escape the grilling of the elderly. Twas' was fun!

If only I learnt to appreciate all those years while I could.. now, married into the Yap clan, its a totally different whole new aspect to me. Its as if, this festive season is just another weekend -just a longer weekend than usual.. There is no such closeness compared to my side of the family and I really hope Jaden won't grow up in such an environment. It sucks not to have such close bond.

I may not be sharing the same blood but I am loved and cared for much more than those that claimed blood runs thicker than water.

Somehow, I feel very lonely this Chinese New Year. It doesn't help with the gloomy weather and the lack of festive cheer, or maybe its because we grew up and these things just does not give an impact compared to when we were kids?

If Chinese New Year is going to be like this from now onwards, I have better make plans for all my future Chinese New Year to come. Why consider to celebrate with people who don't really give two hoots about family? My resolution for 2012 Chinese New Year is to bring Jaden home with me to Penang / Perlis to celebrate with my side of the family instead.

Call me rude, call me ungrateful, but its just not nice celebrating this one happy festive season in KL. It sucks big time!