Montana

Hello.  My name is Desiree Van Blaricom and I am the mother of a 21 month old boy, Isaac, who was diagnosed with TM at six months.  I am writing to tell everyone that we will be starting a support group in Montana.  Sandy has been very kind to help when I had my toughest questions and was able to direct us down the right path.  So when he asked if I would be interested in starting a support group here, I was very happy to help. 

I am excited to report that we have already had a TM meeting here in Montana, even before we have a “support group” set up.  Debbie Capen, the secretary of the TMA, came to Missoula, MT in October and she asked if I would invite the TM members here.  I was able to contact people over the phone and through emails and we had a lunch with three adults and two children.  That was close to half of all of the TMA membership in Montana!  It was great to sit down and hear each other’s stories and what they are going through now.  This was especially helpful for me as my little guy doesn’t yet talk and can’t tell me what he is feeling.  So, thank you so much to everyone who attended; we hope to meet with you all again soon. 

As for my son, we are fortunate that he is recovering slowly and walking with a little walker.  He works very hard at physical therapy and to his benefit (or maybe he doesn’t think so), his mother is a physical therapist, so he also works hard with me at home.  Isaac’s symptoms came on very fast.  I was with him at noon and he was fine; when I picked him up at 5 PM, he was not sitting up or moving his legs.  Also, his left hand was not opening all the way.  We brought him to the ER and they diagnosed him with a sore throat and being lethargic.  They told us to take him home and to watch him.  I wish I could tell you that we brought him back the next day; but we continued to wait for him to get better, as he still had reflexes and responded to noxious stimuli. 

The following day we brought Isaac back to the hospital.  They did an MRI and diagnosed him with TM.  And at that time, we had no idea what we were going to be dealing with 15 months later.  Even as a PT, I had never heard of TM and I did not understand how devastating it can be.  He did receive his six month shots one week prior to being diagnosed.  Other than the sore throat, he had not been sick before he got TM, so we are concerned about giving him his immunizations due to fear of a set-back.  At this time, we are working on him standing alone, one handed walking, and hip, knee and ankle control.  Please pray for Isaac as he has shown great gains with prayer. 

My goal with starting this support group is to help even one person find direction and answers in a very confusing and hard time in their lives. 

Desiree’ and Clint Van Blaricom
Butte, MT
(406)299-2030
racheldes03@hotmail.com