Well, it's been quite a year already, full of unexpected trips, medical needs and new challenges.
If you've seen our Instagram or facebook, you might be wondering, "Where are the Goodwins?" and "What is happening with the Goodwins?" and "Why are the Goodwins in South Africa??"
We came into the year knowing that Jeremy needed surgery on his shoulder. He's needed his bicep tendon repaired since January 2018. We'd planned to have his surgery in June 2020 but as with all things covid, that was canceled and we remained in Senegal for all of 2020.
Through 2020, Jenilee had experienced some health issues and the girls had a few things that we knew needed to be checked out more fully.
At the end of Christmas break, it became apparent that a medical trip needed to happen sooner rather than later.
What we didn't know was how needed this trip would be.
With the help of leadership, our doctors in South Africa and our missionary colleagues, we were able to quickly put together a date for Jeremy's surgery as well as schedule other needed appointments.
Within two days of arriving in South Africa, Jeremy had a successful shoulder surgery and thankfully, he's well on his way to full recovery. Jeremy's also been diagnosed with fused/degenerative discs in his neck. He's seeing a spine specialist and physical therapist to help with pain management moving forward.
The week after Jeremy's surgery, Jenilee had an appointment with her neurologist for a routine MS check up. She had an MRI and then saw the doctor who told us, very unexpectedly, that Jenilee had a new lesion on her brain stem. It was serious and needed immediate treatment. Jenilee was also needing a few other tests so a plan was made for a 3 day hospital stay to do the needed tests as well as treat the MS flare up with high-dose IV steroids. The extra tests have shown possible Crohn's Disease. Jenilee started a new medicine that will treat both MS and Crohn's. She's also being prepped in case this medicine doesn't help and a new one is needed.
In the midst of this news, Abby is in physical therapy for joint/muscle pain. We've learned that she's hyper-mobile {extra flexible} and needed some help gaining strength to support her joints. In a whole host of tests, we've learned she has asthma but her new medicine is helping a lot!
For Annalise, over the past year, she's developed what we thought were just normal allergies. We've learned that she has an extreme dust allergy. We also learned through her allergy bloodwork, that she has iron deficiency anemia. Her numbers are very concerning and we had doctors calling and emailing us as soon as her results came in. She's started iron supplements, but we do not yet know the cause of her deficiency.
Along with normal things like eye check ups and dentist visits, the seriousness of some of these things show that we've definitely been under a full attack on our health.
Your prayers have been holding us up and we are deeply thankful for your care, concern, love and encouragement in this season.
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