The Beginning of Healing?

I have been reluctant to write for the past few months. I can't pinpoint a reason, other than exhaustion and lack of mental space ... but that's a different post for a different time. Maybe.

But I can not let the events of today go unrecorded. And I absolutely can not hold back the praise due to The Healer for answering our prayers. We believe we have seen a significant step forward in bringing healing to Benjamin's body.

Around Christmastime we were approached by a friend of ours who had seen a doctor for some pretty significant health challenges. She had seen some pretty dramatic relief from life-long food allergy issues and asked if we would be interested in taking Benj for evaluation and treatment. We were unsure if we would proceed because of several complicating factors. Honestly, it just seemed like a really off time to be trying to deal with this issue because of so many other things going on in our life right now. But as I talked to her more and heard some of the amazing stories of what this doctor's specialized knowledge had been able to accomplish for his patients I became convinced we had to try.

Today was our first visit with the doctor. He asked about Benj's history, different issues he has experienced, and some of his specific allergens. He then started to test him. The first allergen he pulled out was dog. The basic procedure was that he would hold a vial of an allergen close to Benjamin's body and test the reaction of his muscles. A weakened muscle would tell him that Benj was allergic or sensitive to that allergen. He showed Benj that the way it affected his body was so strong that if Seth was touching him and the vial was near him it would make Seth's muscles weak! Unsurprisingly, the dog vial affected him significantly. The doctor then began to tap Benjamin at various points on his head and back, explaining that he was actually erasing the allergy from Benj's body, reprogramming his body's response. He took the vial away and brought it close again, pushing on Benj's outstretched arm as he did. The arm remained strong and did not give way. He said, "OK, that one's done. What's next?"

This very surreal procedure and proclamation were repeated again and again as we went through the list: dogs, cats, grasses, trees, dust, dust mites, molds.... We had some sample items from environments where he has had significant asthma reactions in the past. The doctor would agree, "oh yes, you don't like this place at all!" and tap, tap, tap, "OK, all better." Whaaaat?

Next we moved onto foods. Benj commented soon after we told him our plan to take him to see this doctor, "Well, if it works, I hope corn is the first one to go!" So when the doctor asked him what he wanted to work on first we definitely agreed it had to be corn. Tap, tap, tap. "What's next?" As he continued to work we had some interesting surprises. Most significantly, he found Benj was very sensitive to fructose...you know, fruit? Yeah, it was pretty much making him sick every time he ate it. We were also surprised to find that he was sensitive to the lactose (sugar) in milk, not the casein (protein) we had always thought, and what had appeared to be an oat allergy was actually a virus that was activated by oats in his body. The same was true with peanuts. Dealing with those is on the agenda for tomorrow.

Too good to be true? It definitely sounded like it. At the end of the appointment he asked us if we had questions. Well, yes, many. Such as, "what just happened?!" I thought that, but what I actually asked was, "so what do you want us to do in the next 24 hours?" (We have appointments with him for 3 consecutive days.) He said, "I want you to test one thing." You mean like feed him something he is (was?) allergic to? Yep. That's what he meant. We asked Benj what he wanted to try and he picked popcorn. So tonight Seth popped a small pan full of popcorn and we watched with smiles on our faces (and a bit of anxiety in our hearts) as Benj ate popcorn for the first time in his life. An hour and a half later he was still completely pain free (he gets severe stomach cramps with corn) and now, several hours later he is sleeping peacefully. I honestly can't wrap my head around it.

A couple of other significant moments from our visit that I don't want to forget:

1. The doctor commented that with all the problems his body was having he wasn't absorbing nutrients properly. With the help of a vitamin supplement he said he's going to start growing like crazy. (If you don't know, Benj is 8 and wearing size 5's. This was definitely great news!
2. He asked about school. I told him Benj is smart and does well in school but he has issues paying attention. He said something along the lines of, "Well, of course he does. He feels terrible! You're going to see a big difference in school."

Do we know yet that Benj is completely healed? No. Do we know that he will be completely healed? No, not for sure. But I do know my son ate popcorn tonight and is not in pain in his sleep. And I say, praise God for that!