After starting the Methotrexate-which is an injection we give every Friday (its pretty traumatic for him every time) we started to get discouraged after he was on it for 11 weeks and still not even a little improvement. Just as the doctor said, it can take 8-12 weeks to start working....after the week 12 injection (end of January) there was noticeably less swelling -like none! We were ecstatic! It had been almost exactly a year since Oliver first showed symptoms and he was now pain free! We have kept him on Naproxen too, since MTX and Naproxen in conjunction work better and he's a completely different kid! He will stay on MTX for a year which would be until October and then be seen and we will slowly wean him off, as long as he continues to do well on it. Unfortunately because of the seriousness of the medication he has to have blood work and a check up with the Rheumatologist every 3 months. He is a trooper and gets over the pokes quickly, though we dread it every time. We haven't noticed any adverse side effects from the MTX either! The only side effect we have noticed is illnesses are more common and stick around longer.
We also have him being seen by Liam's Endocrinologist since he is really tiny, 23 pounds and 7 weeks away from being 3 years old. She saw him January and then last week but wants him to come back in September and then she will decide whether to test him for Growth Hormone Deficiency like Liam has. She is thinking his stunted growth has more to do with his body focusing on fighting itself (joints) instead of on growing, and now that it is under control he will start to grow. That is what we are praying for!!!
It has been incredible to see God work through all of this. Deciding to go ahead with MTX treatment was the hardest decision for us. We prayed tirelessly about it. We started to question if we made the right decision when, after 11 weeks, we still saw no improvement. God is so good to remind us to trust, trust, trust Him! The moment we noticed the swelling was gone was a HUGE blessing. We are so thankful for everyone who is praying!
