Our Story, Part Four

After hearing Kaylee recite Psalms 139:9&10, I did not doubt again which direction God wanted me to take.  God knew that I needed a huge confirmation in order to be able to do what I was about to do, and He delivered!  I am still amazed by it to this day.

I later found out that Kaylee had been given several verses to memorize throughout the week of VBS (all from Psalms 139), yet this was the verse that she had decided to put to memory.  It was the very one that I needed at the exact moment she gave it to me!  When I later asked her why she had chosen that particular verse and how she had been able to memorize it; she replied quite simply, “Because they told me I would get candy.”  This was certainly not the profound answer I was expecting to hear, yet I learned something about my sweet Kaylee this day.  Kaylee can do whatever she sets her mind to do whenever she is ready!

Dr. Robbins was able to help me all the way from Oklahoma through phone consultations, without ever seeing Kaylee himself.  Urine analysis and blood work can be done through the mail in order to determine specific food allergies and other digestive issues.  However, with Kaylee we simply started with the standard treatment he recommended for all his patients with Crohn’s disease. 

I was told to start with flax oil (for Omega) and probiotics several times a day, as well as digestive enzymes with every meal.  Also, I was told to try to get as many raw fruits and vegetables in Kaylee as possible!  Variety was the key, as every fruit and vegetable has something unique and specific the body needs.  Organic was recommended, but I was told that it was not completely necessary.  Because of the large amounts I knew she would be taking in, I decided to go with organic as much as possible.

I found out that the reason the nutritionist at Children’s Hospital had told us to remove raw fruits and vegetables from Kaylee’s diet was because people with Crohn’s disease cannot easily digest them, and they can be particularly hard on their bodies. By juicing them, however, it allows them to be more easily digested and utilized by the body.  In addition to this, juicing would allow Kaylee to get so much more of the nutritional benefits as well as the enzymes to replenish her body quicker.  My dad gave me a juicer, and I began juicing several times throughout the day.  I juiced carrots, spinach, celery, apples, pineapple, grapes, beets, oranges, and even cabbage.  She averaged around 33 ounces of fresh juice per day.  

Every time Kaylee drank a glass, I felt like I was fueling her up with God’s healing power!  Every night my children and I would gather to pray.  We would ask God to take everything that was being put into her body and use it to bring about her healing. 

Although, some of the juices were good, some were quite challenging to get down her.  Even so, I was told that because of her age, she should be able to turn the corner quickly and that this extreme diet did not have to be permanent.  Dr. Robbins later told me that it would most likely take around a year.

Because I had been told that these diseases were genetically linked, and because I did not want Kaylee to feel alone, I started all of my children juicing.  Along with this, I also started them on Aim Barley Green, which turned out to be one of the most amazing boosts to the overall health of my children.  My one-year-old, for example, had struggled with colds and was constantly coming down with croup.  I can honestly say that during this time of juicing (and for several years to follow) he never even had a runny nose! 

Getting the good stuff in was not the hardest part for us.  It was the food we had to temporarily eliminate that made it so hard.  I was told that she needed to come off of both wheat and dairy for this time.  This was so much more difficult than I could have ever imagined.  I never knew how much food contained wheat!  I can remember walking through the grocery store in tears in the beginning. 

Kaylee’s love of food made everything even more difficult in this area.  It was extremely hard to find foods that she could eat and enjoy.  As an adult, I felt like I could do anything for a period of time.  But this is so much more difficult with a child.  I remember a time that she had to go to a birthday party with a giant bowl of fruit to eat, while the other children ate pizza and cake.  There were some very challenging days in the beginning.

I was truly seeking God with all of my heart during this time, and He continued to lead me, even in the small areas.  When I realized how hard this was going to be on Kaylee not to eat what she liked, I turned to God for help.  I felt that He gave me a peace in my heart that Kaylee could have a once a week “cheat” and eat whatever she wanted.  Dr. Robbins did not recommend this, but I felt strongly that God had it covered.  So this is what we did.  On Friday nights, she ate whatever she wanted.  She ate Mexican food, pizza, and even ice-cream if she wanted.  Even with this once a week “cheat” we still saw instant results.  It made it easier for her to get through the week, knowing that she had this to look forward to.   

Overall, this was truly an amazing time and the results far exceeded my expectations.  I had anticipated that Kaylee might get worse before she got better, but this was not the case at all.  Kaylee not only recovered, she felt better than she had ever felt in her life.  Not only did she improve in her health, her entire disposition changed.  She felt good, and she was full of joy! Contrary to what the doctors at Children’s had predicted; she did not get sick at all while on this diet, even when everyone else in the family did.  She suddenly seemed to be my healthiest child, and had more energy than my other children did.  She was like a different child!

I was able to immediately wean Kaylee off of steroids, and within only 6 months, off of all medication, with no problems at all.  She has never been on medication since!  Dr. Robbins did not recommend that I do this (I am sure this was because of liability).  I can truly say that it was God who led me every step of the way, and in the most amazing way. (I will give more specific details later) 

Within a year, Kaylee was completely recovered and no longer had to stick to this restrictive diet.  We were slowly able to add wheat and dairy back into her diet.  For the next four years, Kaylee did wonderfully.  During this time, I took Kaylee to another gastrointestinal doctor (at Saint Vincent’s) who had no explanation for how well Kaylee was doing.  He even told me that Kaylee had most likely been misdiagnosed.  Of course, he had no access to the very extensive test that had been run to determine this diagnosis, but it didn’t really matter.  We knew differently.

I praise God for leading me to this diet, and it was certainly our miracle at the time.   I do want to add, however, that I do not believe that this extreme diet is  necessarily God's answer for everyone or the only way healing can come.  God can heal in any way that He chooses to do so.  He does work through doctors and medication as well.  The important thing is to always seek guidance from the "Great Physician" and to never limit Him to only one avenue.  God is not limited to the understanding of man.

As wonderful as the results of this diet were, I understand that it can be costly to eat this way.  It is not something that everyone would be able to afford to do.  I do not believe that God is going to provide us with only one answer that everyone cannot afford.  Juicing, planning, shopping, and cleaning during this time consumed my entire life. It was a full time job! There are many mothers who would not have the time to put into it that I did.   

Although I have seen first hand that this diet works for the treatment of Crohn’s disease (and other diseases), and I strongly recommend improving our diets; I do not believe that God is limited to healing these auto-immune diseases only through diet either.  It is very easy to let a diet become an “idol” and to loose sight of the One who is ultimately bringing about the healing.  Throughout this time, I was often guilty of this myself.   

I want to spread the word about what worked for Kaylee, because I believe in it.  But more importantly, I want to stress again that disease is not something we need to ever accept, even when the medical profession cannot provide us with a cure!  If I had not gotten past this initial “stumbling block,” I am convinced we would still be struggling with disease to this day.

There are many years left for me to talk about, and much more to our story.  Kaylee’s complete and perfect healing would come later, through the power of prayer!  ….God still had much work to do in me to bring me to a place of belief.