Rita and her daughter during treatment.
Sometimes it’s hard to realize how blessed we are in life. With all of life’s distractions, problems, challenges, and time restraints, it seems like life is just too much at times. Raising children is a full time job no matter what else you’re juggling – a full time career outside the home, a hectic schedule at home with kids all day, or something in-between.
Believe it or not, even when you become an “empty nester”, life continues to be crazy and hectic!
Reading a recent blog update from a friend jolted me back to reality this morning. While contemplating how to juggle the many things on my schedule for the day, this update was a dose of what life’s all about. It was a reminder that while many of us are going about our daily routines, there are many more who are coping with much more serious and challenging issues.
You may remember Rita as being one of our Rock Stars in August 2011. She is an extremely active mom – with a full-time job, raising two children, volunteering for a myriad of community projects, maintaining a very active role in her church, and more. But she deals with something most people have never heard of.
Her young teen-aged daughter has CRPS – a painful condition that requires unbelievable doses of medication, frequent treatments for temporary pain relief, and much more. This condition is so painful that it often hurts to even be touched, hugged, and loved by someone else – making it even more painful for the person with CRPS and in this case, for her mother and father too.
Imagine not being able to hug and comfort your child who is in pain. Imagine knowing that your child wants you to hug her, but that it hurts too much to touch. That’s just one of the horrible effects of CRPS for this family.
Now they are facing a new challenge as they spend time in Florida with Dr. Kirkpatrick, who is one of the world’s most renowned specialists treating CRPS — and undergoing a controversial Ketamine therapy. If you’re not familiar with ketamine, which most people aren’t, then click the link to learn more. You will find that it is a powerful drug that may hold the key to unlocking excruciating pain for many who suffer with CRPS — but it does not come without risks and concerns.
As I thought about this dear family and these Real Richmond Parents today, I remembered how much they need our prayers and support. I turn to our family of Richmond moms to help by asking you to offer them encouragement and support by leaving comments on their website to let them know that others are thinking about them. It’s a simple way to help this family continue on their journey by knowing that others care, and it doesn’t cost us a penny to offer this valuable source of hope and support for them.
If you have a minute and can leave them an encouraging word, please visit their website and let them know. Both Rita and her daughter love to read the comments they receive. And most of all, your words may just be the ones that bring a glimmer of sunshine to their day today.
Perhaps their journey will one day help others who suffer with this devastating condition of CRPS, and will help lead the way to find a better understanding of the disease and a potential cure. And your comments will definitely help lighten their load along their journey.
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