worried about the health of Wendy, the girlfriend from Tom
Saturday the fourth, like I already told, was such a happy birthday for me. We were all together and had a good time. Last Monday it changed. Wendy who is the girlfriend from my son Tom, got up in the morning and she had no more feeling in her feet, legs, bottoms and basin. She was in panic and called the doctor. She had to go immediately to the hospital because she had paralysis symptons. They put her in the scanner and saw an inflammation in the spinal marrow, but it could also be a tumour. Tuesday they drove her in an ambulance to the university hospital in Gent where they have a special scanner. In Gent they concluded that is was not a tumour. They suppose that she has Multiple Sclerose, but they are not sure. So they did a spinal cord puncture for certainty. Tuesday she must have another scan, this time from her brains. So Tuesday she will have the results of the puncture and of the scan from the brains. So dear friends, this is very terrible. We had a very stressing week. And our Tom is in all states. And Wendy is sad. We all hope that Tuesday the result is not alarming. I did some research about Multiple Sclerose. It is a chronic neurological disease by young adults. It is an autoimmune disease immuum the brains and spinal cord. The exact cause is still unclear. You all will understand that this Eastern is not an Eastern like another. Today we would have given my first barbecue for my mother, the boys and their girls, but I have done nothing. I feel empty.

Ouch, this is terrible news. Wendy must be very worried and frightened right now. I know I would panic, if I woke up one morning and did not feel my feet, legs, bottoms and basin. I hope the spinal marrow inflammation is due to something treatable and not to multiple sclerosis. I'll keep Wendy in my thoughts and prayers.

Marthe, I'm so sorry that Tom's girlfriend Wendy is ill and like Frances hope that it is something the Doctors have a solution for. I have a friend with MS and I know that they are coming out with new medications to help people with it. It is a disease that can flare up for a period of time and then disappear again in some people. Sometimes it is for a long period and others for a very short time. Many :hug to you and your family this Easter, especially to Tom and Wendy.

GG is right, Marthe. I have a friend too with MS, who works full time as a nurse. The symptoms come and go (with Louise, who's 27 and the mum of a one yr old boy, it is her eyes and legs.) She injects herself with Interferon and it works very well, on the whole. On the other hand, Wendy's trouble may be an abcess or some similar treatable cause. I'll keep my fingers crossed for that, Marthe. Big hugs to you all and I hope you have an answer soon. :hug

Thank you so much my dear IZ friends. I know that I find confort with you. We all hope that Wendy does not have MS. But if it is so, then Wendy and Tom must accept it, because there is a live with MS. Like Stevie told, Interferon has good results. But Wendy and Tom are both pessimists. They both had a already a relationship which ended in pain. But they have not been married and there are no children. They met through Internet dating and they had the same interests. They hit it off immediately. So Tom was so happy that he finally had found a nice girl. I was also happy because Tom had already had a depression. He is such a closed boy and I am always there for him to confort him and give him courage. But now he has no more courage. He has told me that he is born to be unhappy for the rest of his life. The only thing that always helped him when he was depressed, was Tom Boonen. It is his favorite and he looks at him. When Tom was 15 years old, he wanted to be a cyclist. His dream was to become a great rider. He had the talent but I was against. He was so young and he had to go directly to Italy on placement. So I took his childhood dream away and I regret it. Perhaps he would not have been so closed. This morning I called Wendy and she told me that she had pain in her legs but the pain did not hurt. It is as if her legs are no longer numb. She also told that last year she had had the same pain in her legs, but they thought it was fatigue. Strange ! So girls, we will wait until tomorrow. I thank for your prayers. Let us hope for the best. Here is a picture of Wendy Wendy and Tom Wendy and Hanne (the girlfriend of Geert, my youngest son)

She does look very nice and they look good together. Let us know how things turn out.

I hope she doesn't have this desease. God bless her.

Wendy is a lovely young woman and she and Tom make a very nice couple together. I can understand Wendy and Tom's pessimism. The uncertainty about what Wendy has to deal with surely doesn't help them. I hope doctors will be able to explain it to them that whatever Wendy will be diagnosed, her disease is not the end of their life and they can still be happy. Let us know how things turn out, Marthe.

Hello Marthe, I'm sure sorry to hear all of this about Wendy. Certainly hope the very best for her,and that the doctors can help her get better very soon. Please keep us updated on her condition,as we will keep all of you in our thoughts and prayers.

Sorry for missing out on this post Marthe. I so hope and pray that Wendy will be all right and that is nothing serious and that she has no MS. Send my love to Tom and her and say that we are thinking of them and that they should stay positive. I realized that staying positive can sometimes be hard but that is all we can do. Hugs!

Nicolette, Ship and Selma I also thank you for your kind words. I have told Wendy and Tom, all your messages. They are so happy that there are such nice people in the world and it gives them hope. Thank you all that we are in your thoughts and prayers. Selma, I thank your for your hopeful words and have told them to stay positive. You certainly knows what that means, with all what you have been through. Also stay positive. For the moment we are still waiting for the results. Wendy thinks that she has MS because there are symptoms that she has had the last months like balance disorders, face problems, and one time, painful cramps in the legs. But she paid no attention to these complaints. But who would ? Tom is very quiet, he is so closed. How can I help him ? He has such sad eyes. I certainly let you all know how things turn out.

It may help Tom to have a gentle reminder that it is Wendy that this is happening to and not himself. This may seem harsh, but the knowledge that she needs him to be positive and supportive may bring him out of himself. :hug to all of you.