2 Hours and 7 Minutes

Dear Addie,

Sometimes when life feels exceptionally challenging, it's hard to see it as anything but unfair. It can feel as though the universe is somehow singling you out for reasons you'll never understand. But every so often, there comes a moment when years of challenges, unanswered questions, and wandering down paths no one expected suddenly point you toward a destination that finally feels within reach.

That's what happened this week.

Yesterday, after compiling years' worth of medical reports, we sat down with a specialist to talk specifically about this past year...about June 3, 2025, a date that will forever be etched into our story.

After so many doctors' appointments, hospital stays, endless testing, and exhausting one theory after another, I wanted to be optimistic. But I also carried the familiar fear that we'd once again hear, "It's just hormones," or, "She's just growing." Deep down, it always felt like it was so much more than that.

I spent two full evenings organizing every report and gathering my thoughts so I could be as prepared as possible. We were doing this.

The day finally arrived.

You had already started the morning on a rough note, getting sick right after breakfast. Somehow, that only strengthened my resolve to advocate for you in that moment. We headed to the appointment not knowing what this next stop on our journey would bring.

We checked in a few minutes before our 9:30 appointment, and right on time a door swung open and your name was called. After the usual height, weight, and vital signs, we were shown to an exam room where the nurse stepped in just moments later.

She greeted us warmly before asking why we were there...a normal protocol. After we gave the shortest version possible of what had brought us in, she began reviewing your history...not just from this past year, but all the way back to 2023.

I knew in that very moment something was different.

They had done their homework.

We weren't starting from scratch.

She looked through every file, every picture, and even the personal charts I had brought to compare information. She thanked me for being so organized before leaving to brief the doctor.

When he came in, he was just as familiar with your story. Not only the last couple of years, but even the years before that. It felt as though he had walked every step of this journey alongside us, but yet here we were meeting for the first time.

It was truly a breath of fresh air.

As we talked, he carefully worked through his thoughts and explained what he believed could be happening. Suddenly, with a fresh set of eyes, everything began to make sense. The puzzle we had been staring at through the lens of June 3, 2025, was no longer just about the past year. It was piecing together what felt like a lifetime of challenges. For the first time, it felt like someone wasn't simply chasing symptoms. They were looking for the reason behind them.

Over the next few weeks, we'll begin following this new path. There will undoubtedly be some trial and error with treatment, but you have to walk before you can run, right?!

Addie, this week we left a specialist consultation feeling something we haven't felt (or maybe believed in) for a very long time: hope. We walked out of that appointment at 11:37 a.m. after spending two hours and seven minutes with someone who didn't just hear our story he changed the trajectory of how we understood it. For the first time in a long time, it felt like we weren't just chasing answers - we were finally following a map.

It's hard not to feel frustrated when I think about this past year, about chasing symptoms, hearing different theories, and being dismissed by doctors who insisted we were doing all the right things while it was obvious something still wasn't right.

But when I step back and look at the bigger picture, every wrong turn brought us here.

Every theory ruled something else out and we were grateful for that.

Every dismissal strengthened my determination to keep asking questions.

Every closed door fueled my advocacy because we refused to accept that this was simply how life was going to be for you.

Baby girl, this week we spent two hours and seven minutes with someone who didn't promise all the answers.

Instead, he handed us a map.

A map that finally feels like it might lead us where we've been trying to go all along.

Now...

Time will tell.

Love,

Mom