IntroMessage, The Jochim Family! This photo was taken in October 2007. We are from left to right: John (11), Mark, Josh (12), Sara (9), Isaac (2 1/2), Steph, Grace (6) and Sophia (10 months).
Welcome to Josh's Web Page. It has been provided to keep family and friends updated on Josh's journey.
Josh’s journey with cancer began when he was 8 years old. He fell at school one day and hurt his back. By the weekend he was in so much pain that he could hardly walk. We spent the next month going back and forth to the clinic and hospital. We were told everything from “it’s just a virus” to “kids are tough, he will get better soon” to “the pain is in his head and he is just scared that he will get hurt again” to “maybe it’s a blood infection” to finally on 11-10-03 “I’m sorry, Mrs. Jochim, but Joshua has leukemia”. Those words are words that no parent should ever have to hear. We took Josh to the Mayo clinic and stayed there for the first 34 days of his treatment. We then returned home to continue his 38 months of chemotherapy treatment at MedCenter One in Bismarck under the care of Dr. Serabe and her staff. Josh had his ups and downs during his treatment but for the most part he did very well. He started Maintenance Therapy in July of 2004. Josh finished his chemotherapy treatment on 1-9-07 when he received his last spinal tap and bone marrow biopsy. On 2-8-07 Josh had surgery to remove his port-a-cath. Another day that changed our lives forever. We are learning to be "normal" again after 3 years and 2 months! No more pills to remember every night!! No more spinal taps!!
We had an Off Treatment Party for our family on 2-24-07. At the party we had a jar filled with 3,846 M&M's to represent the number of pills that Josh took during his treatment. We also had 10 red balloons to represent the 10 bone marrow aspirations he had and 20 white balloons to represent the 20 spinal taps he had. It was a joyous day and even with the terrible North Dakota weather so many of our family and friends were able to come and celebrate the day with us. Having our son diagnosed with cancer was the worst day of our lives BUT without it we wouldn't have known how blessed we really are. We do ask that you continue to pray for Josh and the rest of our family so that the beast stays at bay and also to pray for all of the children fighting for their lives and for those who have won the battle and are flying high in Heaven and are finally pain free.
Some interesting statistics: **46 children in the United States are diagnosed with cancer every single day!
**One in 330 children will develop cancer by the tender age of 20!
**35% of these children will die even with todays great cure rates!
**Cancer is the number one disease killer among children; more than genetic anomalies, cystic fibrosis and AIDS combined!
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua1:9b
"Sometimes God calms the storm and Sometimes He lets the storm rage and calms his child."
Today, 4-24-04, I have gone back and entered Josh's entire journey as it happened. I had to add it on top of what I have all ready entered so please bear with this mess!!
The Littlest Soldiers By Cheryl Jagannathan The medals on our chests Are broviacs for meds Helmets won't stay on Cause no hair is on our heads.
Our weapons of destruction We take every day We fight the battle within us While we struggle on to play.
We fight with honor and courage No marine could do as well We are only children Living in this hell.
So bring on the metals The purple hearts of war The gold cross, the silver star To place upon our scars.
For we are the children of cancer No one has fought so hard but every day we struggle on Our life is our Reward!
"What Cancer Cannot Do"
Cancer is so limited... It cannot cripple Love It cannot shatter Hope It cannot corrode Faith It cannot destroy Peace It cannot kill Friendship It cannot suppress Memories It cannot silence Courage It cannot invade the Soul It cannot steal eternal Life It cannot conquer the Spirit If this disease has invaded your life, refuse to let it touch your spirit. Your body can be severely afflicted and you may have a great struggle. If you keep trusting God's love, your spirit will remain strong. Why must I bear this pain? I cannot tell, I only know my Lord does all things well. And so I trust in God, my all in all, For He will bring me through, whate'er befall. Annonymous
Josh received his Make A Wish on July 2, 2004 to read about it click on past journal enteries and scroll down to July 2.
Frustrated is about all I can say! Joshua's sinus surgery did not work. He's had 2 sinus infections since he had surgery and he had surgery JUST BEFORE Easter!
The first time he had an infection after surgery the ENT doc put him on leviquin - she thought it was one of the few choices of antibiotics that MIGHT work for him. The benefits outweighed the risks -- what are the risks? Well since he just barely met the qualifications for taking the med (age and weight) it was quite a risk -- the most serious side effect would be that he could injure or even tear tendons in his body. So I was very reluctant to use the medicine but we decided to go ahead and give it a try in the end. She gave him just a 7 day 1 time a day dose. 2 days after finishing the medicine his wrists started to hurt really really bad. Now when I say really really bad I mean bad because Joshua typically does not complain about anything. He had been working really hard working calves but it was nothing out of the ordinary for him to be doing. So when I called the clinic I was told "this is extremely concerning". He had to rest and we put some braces on his wrists which seemed to help and he took lots of tylenol and ibuprofen.
So today was his 2nd recheck after surgery. We went in knowing he had yet another sinus infection or well knowing that the med that he had taken hadn't cleared it up. The doctor was very good and I do feel she is doing everything possible to help him it's just that nothing is working for him. So I asked about the medicine he got while on treatment several times when he had sinus infections - rocephin - she thought it was a wonderful idea. The bad part is it has to either be given in an IV or in a shot. So he had to have 2 shots today and we go back in again on Thursday for another shot. From there she is giving him a week to be cleared of the sinus infection. If he's not clear she wants to do another CT to make sure she's "not missing anything". The junk she took out when he surgery was cultured and there was "nothing scarey" in it then -- meaning she had looked to make sure there was nothing cancerous which is AWESOME. So I'm not really sure what she would be looking for I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.
I feel terrible for him. He's been through soo much all ready and still he feels so nasty most of the time. And *I* know it could be sooo much worse then this don't get me wrong - I am extremely thankful that he IS still with us when others aren't and still has the ability to do everything he enjoys when others can't. I know we have a lot to be thankful for but some days I just want to say thank you leukemia for the lasting effects...just leave us alone all ready! And yet other days all I want to do is pray for all the others. Today is one of the crappy days.
Please remember to pray for all of the kids fighting this battle and for their families. Have a wonderful week! Hugs!
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