It just doesn't make any sense at all ...

I should be home, with my husband and remaining children, making turkey and all the fixin's, instead of sitting here in a cold hospital room, next to my child's bedside, wondering what today will bring.

My daughter, aged 11, is lying in a hospital bed, in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), where she continues to fight for her very life.  Mina, who has special needs, has always been sickly, but this latest illness has knocked the stuffing out of her and she hangs on by a thin thread and that thread is threatening to unravel.

It all started two days ago.  It started out innocently enough; then things quickly got worse.  Later that day she was so sick we had no choice but to take her to the ER, where she was immediately whisked away and later admitted.  It turned out that Mina has an overwhelming case of sepsis coupled with strep; she is in a very bad way, according to the pediatrician in charge of her care.  

Right now, her vital signs are stable, but that's the way things have been going.  One minute, she's stable; the next, kerflooey!  Something goes awry, and her alarms sound, which sends the medical staff scurrying to her bedside.  The latest incident happened earlier this morning: she suffered a Code Blue when her heart and breathing stopped, but thankfully, the staff was able to revive her in a few minutes, which was a huge answer to prayer.

Doctors remain guarded about her prognosis.  They say she could survive, but right now she is in danger or dying.  Her vital organs aren't working as well as they should be and she is in a coma.  The sickness has gone to her brain and only time will tell if she will even pull through.

I have been keeping the family abreast of the latest information about Mina and friends from church (as well as the pastors) have been stopping by, praying with us; it is those prayers and the support of friends and family that have kept me going during this unbelievably trying time.  I know Darren has been taking good care of our other children and trying to make their holiday a happy one, even though it is anything BUT.

I just worry about what is going to happen to Amie, Dustyn, and Tanner if Mina were to die.  I know they would be devastated.  I pray nothing happens to Mina, but she has always been the frailest out of the children.

Mina has cerebral palsy and she cannot walk or talk.  She has always been in a wheelchair and has always been susceptible to any flu or cold bug that happens to wander her way.  It isn't uncommon for her to spend at least several days in the hospital during any given cold/flu year.  Mina didn't get the flu this time, but she did get strep and then developed an overwhelming infection in her blood stream, which has only made things much worse for her.

Well, I am going to try to get a little sleep before lunch time.  Just keep the prayers coming; our family truly needs a miracle this Thanksgiving Day!  I am thankful that Mina made it through her crisis earlier this morning, but she isn't out of the woods yet.  Time will be the factor as to whether Mina survives or not.

~Darla Hanson, Groves, Texas, via Houston, Texas, at Chidlren's Medical Center-Houston..

~To be continued.~