You have surrounded me on every side, behind me and before me,
and You have placed Your hand gently on my shoulder.
It is the most amazing feeling to know how deeply You know me, inside and out;
the realization of it is so great that I cannot comprehend it.
Can I go anywhere apart from Your Spirit?
Is there anywhere I can go to escape Your watchful presence?
If I go up into heaven, You are there.
If I make my bed in the realm of the dead, You are there.
If I ride on the wings of morning,
if I make my home in the most isolated part of the ocean,
Even then You will be there to guide me;
Your right hand will embrace me, for You are always there.
Even if I am afraid and think to myself, “There is no doubt that the darkness will swallow me,
the light around me will soon be turned to night,”
You can see in the dark, for it is not dark to Your eyes.
For You the night is just as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are the same to Your eyes.
For You shaped me, inside and out.
You knitted me together in my mother’s womb long before I took my first breath.
I will offer You my grateful heart, for I am Your unique creation, filled with wonder and awe.
You have approached even the smallest details with excellence;
Your works are wonderful;
I carry this knowledge deep within my soul.
Psalm 139:5-14 The Voice
and You have placed Your hand gently on my shoulder.
It is the most amazing feeling to know how deeply You know me, inside and out;
the realization of it is so great that I cannot comprehend it.
Can I go anywhere apart from Your Spirit?
Is there anywhere I can go to escape Your watchful presence?
If I go up into heaven, You are there.
If I make my bed in the realm of the dead, You are there.
If I ride on the wings of morning,
if I make my home in the most isolated part of the ocean,
Even then You will be there to guide me;
Your right hand will embrace me, for You are always there.
Even if I am afraid and think to myself, “There is no doubt that the darkness will swallow me,
the light around me will soon be turned to night,”
You can see in the dark, for it is not dark to Your eyes.
For You the night is just as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are the same to Your eyes.
For You shaped me, inside and out.
You knitted me together in my mother’s womb long before I took my first breath.
I will offer You my grateful heart, for I am Your unique creation, filled with wonder and awe.
You have approached even the smallest details with excellence;
Your works are wonderful;
I carry this knowledge deep within my soul.
Psalm 139:5-14 The Voice
My Stem Cell Treatment For RP
On November 26, 2014, after a long and winding road, much prayer, and research I was treated with my own stem cells at The Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center in Phoenix Arizona, in hopes of restoring lost eyesight due to RP. I have a form of RP called LCA, which is differentiated by early childhood onset. I was legally blind since birth, and in my mid 20's began the long and grinding journey of losing what vision I had. Although I am in my 50's now with very advanced retinal disease, and although at the time of treatment I had a teeny tiny visual field with light perception only, the stem cell treatment is working, and I have already experienced significant visual increases.
This blog is for people who want to learn about my journey and this hopeful treatment for many blind people. It is also written to joyfully proclaim that Jesus made my stem cells... and yours too! The Almighty Maker of the universe Who loves us so, left part of His original creation of each of us inside us still, that we can touch again and seek His power to create anew. For many blind people, and many with other health issues, this is awesome news!
This blog is my journal drawn from emails I wrote to family and friends, from before stem cell treatment to the present. In it you will find facts about autologous stem cell treatment, descriptions of the milestones in my journey and the tough days too, thoughts, feelings, and matters of the heart.
Welcome, and blessings to you in Jesus' name as you read,
Pam
P.S. This blog seeks to spread information and good news about AUTOLOGOUS STEM CELL TREATMENT, meaning treatment with your own stem cells. This is an amazing and safe treatment, offering new hope and promise for many, and I want to spread the word.
Tragically, some misguided treatments are being offered with stem cells obtained by taking innocent human life. These treatments use stem cells taken from human embryos or from developing babies who are aborted -- called embryonic or fetal stem cells. This practice is evil and abhorrent, it is wrong under all circumstances, and I stand firmly against it.
This blog is for people who want to learn about my journey and this hopeful treatment for many blind people. It is also written to joyfully proclaim that Jesus made my stem cells... and yours too! The Almighty Maker of the universe Who loves us so, left part of His original creation of each of us inside us still, that we can touch again and seek His power to create anew. For many blind people, and many with other health issues, this is awesome news!
This blog is my journal drawn from emails I wrote to family and friends, from before stem cell treatment to the present. In it you will find facts about autologous stem cell treatment, descriptions of the milestones in my journey and the tough days too, thoughts, feelings, and matters of the heart.
Welcome, and blessings to you in Jesus' name as you read,
Pam
P.S. This blog seeks to spread information and good news about AUTOLOGOUS STEM CELL TREATMENT, meaning treatment with your own stem cells. This is an amazing and safe treatment, offering new hope and promise for many, and I want to spread the word.
Tragically, some misguided treatments are being offered with stem cells obtained by taking innocent human life. These treatments use stem cells taken from human embryos or from developing babies who are aborted -- called embryonic or fetal stem cells. This practice is evil and abhorrent, it is wrong under all circumstances, and I stand firmly against it.
Links to Journal Entries
Oct 16, 2014 JOURNEYING, RESEARCH, NEW DIRECTION AND GOOD NEWS_
Nov 11, 2014 2 WEEKS!
Dec 3, 2014 TREATMENT DONE! NOW TIME FOR THE BLESSING!!!
Dec 12, 2014 STEWARDING THE ACORN
Dec 16, 2014 OUR CHRISTMAS TREE
Dec 27, 2014 VISION REPORT & THOUGHTS ABOUT THE STEM CELLS
Jan 10, 2015 NEW PHOTORECEPTORS!
Jan 20, 2015 BIGGER PICTURE, WHITE CANE, GOD'S VOICE
Jan 26, 2015 2 DOOR-POSTS!!!
Feb 5, 2015 3 IN A ROW
Feb 25, 2015 LIGHTHEARTED... WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS!
Mar 24, 2015 MORE... BRIGHTER... A LITTLE CLEARER
Apr 10 2015 IT'S GOOD!!!
May 9, 2015 A VISIT WITH MY STEM CELL DOC'
Jun 14, 2015 GOD'S LEADING
Jul 21, 2015 FEATURES!
Jul 22, 2015 A FIRST INKLING OF THINGS TO COME!
Aug 29, 2015 DANCING
Sept 7 2015 ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT CHANGE
Oct 13 2015 LIGHT-HEARTED WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS... SOM'MORE
Nov 11, 2014 2 WEEKS!
Dec 3, 2014 TREATMENT DONE! NOW TIME FOR THE BLESSING!!!
Dec 12, 2014 STEWARDING THE ACORN
Dec 16, 2014 OUR CHRISTMAS TREE
Dec 27, 2014 VISION REPORT & THOUGHTS ABOUT THE STEM CELLS
Jan 10, 2015 NEW PHOTORECEPTORS!
Jan 20, 2015 BIGGER PICTURE, WHITE CANE, GOD'S VOICE
Jan 26, 2015 2 DOOR-POSTS!!!
Feb 5, 2015 3 IN A ROW
Feb 25, 2015 LIGHTHEARTED... WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS!
Mar 24, 2015 MORE... BRIGHTER... A LITTLE CLEARER
Apr 10 2015 IT'S GOOD!!!
May 9, 2015 A VISIT WITH MY STEM CELL DOC'
Jun 14, 2015 GOD'S LEADING
Jul 21, 2015 FEATURES!
Jul 22, 2015 A FIRST INKLING OF THINGS TO COME!
Aug 29, 2015 DANCING
Sept 7 2015 ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT CHANGE
Oct 13 2015 LIGHT-HEARTED WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS... SOM'MORE
Oct 16, 2014 JOURNEYING, RESEARCH, NEW DIRECTION AND GOOD NEWS
After a long journey and extensive research, I discovered the option of being treated with my own "autologous" stem cells. When I first looked into the current state of research to restore vision I almost gave up on stem cells, because the first studies I found involved the taking of innocent human life through the use of embryonic or even fetal stem cells. That's evil and I wanted no part of it.
In contrast to such darkness, what a joy it is to discover that TODAY autologous stem cells are being used to treat people with retinitis pigmentosa and other eye conditions with wonderful and life changing results! I have read about many, and spoken to several stem cell clinics in Mexico and the US doing this work!
Below are some key facts I have learned about these stem cells, called autologous, mesenchymal, adipose derived adult stem cells. Remember that the retina is neural tissue, the same as neurons in the brain. My retinas have rods and cones -- neurons that have greatly degenerated. The rods and cones are provided nutrition by the retinal layer called the RPE. The degeneration of my rods and cones has happened due to poor nutritional handling by the RPE layer over my lifetime. So here's the GOOD STUFF!!!
Autologous, mesenchymal, adipose derived adult stem cells...
- Are multipotent... they can multiply many many times and have the potential to become many kinds of cells including NEURONS
- Are known to repair and rescue existing RPE cells, and may also become new RPE cells
- Are attracted to damaged, diseased and injured cells to rescue and repair... they find the right places and work exactly where they are needed, this has been specifically noted in treating eyes
- Have Paracrine effects -- they secrete approximately 60 different growth factors that rescue, repair and restore nearby cells and increase blood flow, this includes HGF which is involved in regenerating neurons
- Are SAFE: No risk of inflammation, rejection, formation of cancerous tumors (BTW, these are significant risks when using embryonic or fetal stem cells... it's like God built in that the good cells are all good, and the ill-gotten cells come with extra troubles.
There has never been a serious adverse event reported with autologous stem cell treatment. This treatment is safe!
For many good reasons, my search has brought me to a clinic called The Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center in Phoenix, AZ. They have been in business for 10 years and have treated over 1200 people with autologous stem cells including 50 to 70 people with retinitis pigmentosa.
When I first called to ask if they offered stem cell treatments for people with RP the answer was, "Yes!... And that has been one of the bright spots in the work we do. What an amazing thing to hear!
Currently, autologous stem cell treatment is permitted in the US, however the FDA has not yet approved stem cell treatment for specific medical conditions. It's an odd catch 22 that probably has a lot to do with why I had heard so little about it. Today, stem cell centers are not permitted to make any medical claims, and they cannot publish any testimonials. This also means medical insurance does not currently cover these treatments. However, I have found numerous articles published by The National Institutes of Health that state all the facts about adult mesenchymal stem cells cited above. When people with RP are treated with their own stem cells, way more get some improvements than don't.
It's not directly related to treating RP, but they have seen people go from wheelchairs to walking! This is so cool because it means their treatments targeted toward the central nervous system, which includes the retina, are succeeding!
When the team of doctors met to consider my case, they were very enthusiastic about treating me. Rather than being daunted, the doctors were thrilled that my form of RP is rare, since birth, severe with significant degeneration and no good treatment options. Their attitude was, "Bring her on!," partly because they love tackling big challenges, and partly because this treatment holds such promise for patients with RP.
I asked if they have observed any patterns about which RP patients do and don't respond to this treatment. There haven't been definite patterns, but they have noticed a few general principles.. They have NOT seen a correlation between the severity of the condition and the response to stem cells. I've heard this from another stem cell clinic in Mexico as well. They've also NOT seen a pattern related to how long people have had RP symptoms. Can you believe this? Sure brings joy to my heart, and is such a change from all I've heard over and over about my advanced RP. There seems to be a drop-off around age 80 that stem cell treatments don't do as much. In general healthier people do better. People being treated for eye conditions seem to not gain as much if they also have another very serious medical condition. My health is good. In this arena I'm relatively young in my 50's, and I don't have any other serious medical stuff going on. By these criteria I have good reason to be very positive and hopeful.
Treatment at this clinic takes 2 days. The first day the doctor does a medical exam, finalizes the treatment plan, and also designs my post treatment plan which includes nutrition and supplements to nurture and foster the stem cells doing their thing in my body.
The second day adipose tissue is extracted in the morning. Yes, I have to have a little liposuction to help my eyes, now isn't that a hoot?! Then over about 4 hours in the afternoon I will receive concentrated stem cells in several ways. They will be administered IV, treated with stuff to help them cross the blood/brain barrier and get to my retinas. Probably only 5% to 10% will make it to my retinas this way, the others will do repair work all around my body. They will administer an intra-nasal spray of stem cells 5 separate times over 45 minutes. This is designed to target my central nervous system by getting stem cells into my brain so they can travel down the neural pathways to my retinas. I have confirmed in NIH articles that this promotes formation of new neurons. Then I will receive a retro-bulbar injection of stem cells. There is a needle designed for this that slides in between the eyeball and eye socket to inject the stem cells behind each eye. Although this is called an injection, no part of my eye is punctured and this is considered minimally invasive. The reason to put stem cells behind my eye is because both the optic nerve and optic artery are back there. Also the inside of the back wall of my eyeball is where the retina is. The goal is to place stem cells where they can travel through the optic nerve, through the optic artery, and through the back of the eyeball to my retina so they can do their stuff in the right places. I have confirmed in NIH articles that stem cells travel through nerves, arteries, and blood. This is another cool thing... I took detailed notes from the first time I spoke with The Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center, noting many incredible facts about autologous stem cells that sounded almost too good to be true. In later research over and over I found statements in articles from The National Institutes of Health that completely backed up every fact. If anything, the statements in the NIH articles were even stronger.
In addition to all the stem cell approaches to help my eyes, we're also going to do an injection in each of my knees because they're starting to complain and show their age a little. The Stem cell Rejuvenation Center charges a flat fee for whatever conditions are being treated, so including my knees adds nothing to the cost.
They said I am likely to begin noticing changes in my vision sometime between 6 weeks and 6 months following the treatment, and then the increases in sight normally continue until about a year from the time of treatment. I'm hoping to schedule the treatment some time in November because 6 weeks later might put the first visual changes I notice right around Christmas. What a glorious way to celebrate Jesus' birthday! He said He came to restore sight to the blind, you know.:)
It is such a breath of fresh air to speak with people who are eager to treat me, comfortable with who I am and how I view this journey, and who are optimistic that they can help! I have great PEACE about doing this.
So that's the journey of the last few months. I believe the Lord has led me to the information about this stem cell treatment, and I am hugely excited about the next steps. Please pray that the Lord would use this or whatever way He chooses to give me sight.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Pam
In contrast to such darkness, what a joy it is to discover that TODAY autologous stem cells are being used to treat people with retinitis pigmentosa and other eye conditions with wonderful and life changing results! I have read about many, and spoken to several stem cell clinics in Mexico and the US doing this work!
Below are some key facts I have learned about these stem cells, called autologous, mesenchymal, adipose derived adult stem cells. Remember that the retina is neural tissue, the same as neurons in the brain. My retinas have rods and cones -- neurons that have greatly degenerated. The rods and cones are provided nutrition by the retinal layer called the RPE. The degeneration of my rods and cones has happened due to poor nutritional handling by the RPE layer over my lifetime. So here's the GOOD STUFF!!!
Autologous, mesenchymal, adipose derived adult stem cells...
- Are multipotent... they can multiply many many times and have the potential to become many kinds of cells including NEURONS
- Are known to repair and rescue existing RPE cells, and may also become new RPE cells
- Are attracted to damaged, diseased and injured cells to rescue and repair... they find the right places and work exactly where they are needed, this has been specifically noted in treating eyes
- Have Paracrine effects -- they secrete approximately 60 different growth factors that rescue, repair and restore nearby cells and increase blood flow, this includes HGF which is involved in regenerating neurons
- Are SAFE: No risk of inflammation, rejection, formation of cancerous tumors (BTW, these are significant risks when using embryonic or fetal stem cells... it's like God built in that the good cells are all good, and the ill-gotten cells come with extra troubles.
There has never been a serious adverse event reported with autologous stem cell treatment. This treatment is safe!
For many good reasons, my search has brought me to a clinic called The Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center in Phoenix, AZ. They have been in business for 10 years and have treated over 1200 people with autologous stem cells including 50 to 70 people with retinitis pigmentosa.
When I first called to ask if they offered stem cell treatments for people with RP the answer was, "Yes!... And that has been one of the bright spots in the work we do. What an amazing thing to hear!
Currently, autologous stem cell treatment is permitted in the US, however the FDA has not yet approved stem cell treatment for specific medical conditions. It's an odd catch 22 that probably has a lot to do with why I had heard so little about it. Today, stem cell centers are not permitted to make any medical claims, and they cannot publish any testimonials. This also means medical insurance does not currently cover these treatments. However, I have found numerous articles published by The National Institutes of Health that state all the facts about adult mesenchymal stem cells cited above. When people with RP are treated with their own stem cells, way more get some improvements than don't.
It's not directly related to treating RP, but they have seen people go from wheelchairs to walking! This is so cool because it means their treatments targeted toward the central nervous system, which includes the retina, are succeeding!
When the team of doctors met to consider my case, they were very enthusiastic about treating me. Rather than being daunted, the doctors were thrilled that my form of RP is rare, since birth, severe with significant degeneration and no good treatment options. Their attitude was, "Bring her on!," partly because they love tackling big challenges, and partly because this treatment holds such promise for patients with RP.
I asked if they have observed any patterns about which RP patients do and don't respond to this treatment. There haven't been definite patterns, but they have noticed a few general principles.. They have NOT seen a correlation between the severity of the condition and the response to stem cells. I've heard this from another stem cell clinic in Mexico as well. They've also NOT seen a pattern related to how long people have had RP symptoms. Can you believe this? Sure brings joy to my heart, and is such a change from all I've heard over and over about my advanced RP. There seems to be a drop-off around age 80 that stem cell treatments don't do as much. In general healthier people do better. People being treated for eye conditions seem to not gain as much if they also have another very serious medical condition. My health is good. In this arena I'm relatively young in my 50's, and I don't have any other serious medical stuff going on. By these criteria I have good reason to be very positive and hopeful.
Treatment at this clinic takes 2 days. The first day the doctor does a medical exam, finalizes the treatment plan, and also designs my post treatment plan which includes nutrition and supplements to nurture and foster the stem cells doing their thing in my body.
The second day adipose tissue is extracted in the morning. Yes, I have to have a little liposuction to help my eyes, now isn't that a hoot?! Then over about 4 hours in the afternoon I will receive concentrated stem cells in several ways. They will be administered IV, treated with stuff to help them cross the blood/brain barrier and get to my retinas. Probably only 5% to 10% will make it to my retinas this way, the others will do repair work all around my body. They will administer an intra-nasal spray of stem cells 5 separate times over 45 minutes. This is designed to target my central nervous system by getting stem cells into my brain so they can travel down the neural pathways to my retinas. I have confirmed in NIH articles that this promotes formation of new neurons. Then I will receive a retro-bulbar injection of stem cells. There is a needle designed for this that slides in between the eyeball and eye socket to inject the stem cells behind each eye. Although this is called an injection, no part of my eye is punctured and this is considered minimally invasive. The reason to put stem cells behind my eye is because both the optic nerve and optic artery are back there. Also the inside of the back wall of my eyeball is where the retina is. The goal is to place stem cells where they can travel through the optic nerve, through the optic artery, and through the back of the eyeball to my retina so they can do their stuff in the right places. I have confirmed in NIH articles that stem cells travel through nerves, arteries, and blood. This is another cool thing... I took detailed notes from the first time I spoke with The Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center, noting many incredible facts about autologous stem cells that sounded almost too good to be true. In later research over and over I found statements in articles from The National Institutes of Health that completely backed up every fact. If anything, the statements in the NIH articles were even stronger.
In addition to all the stem cell approaches to help my eyes, we're also going to do an injection in each of my knees because they're starting to complain and show their age a little. The Stem cell Rejuvenation Center charges a flat fee for whatever conditions are being treated, so including my knees adds nothing to the cost.
They said I am likely to begin noticing changes in my vision sometime between 6 weeks and 6 months following the treatment, and then the increases in sight normally continue until about a year from the time of treatment. I'm hoping to schedule the treatment some time in November because 6 weeks later might put the first visual changes I notice right around Christmas. What a glorious way to celebrate Jesus' birthday! He said He came to restore sight to the blind, you know.:)
It is such a breath of fresh air to speak with people who are eager to treat me, comfortable with who I am and how I view this journey, and who are optimistic that they can help! I have great PEACE about doing this.
So that's the journey of the last few months. I believe the Lord has led me to the information about this stem cell treatment, and I am hugely excited about the next steps. Please pray that the Lord would use this or whatever way He chooses to give me sight.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Pam
Nov 11, 2014 2 WEEKS!
What a relief!!!
No tests to pass!
No criteria to meet!
No 25 page document that tells me all the ways I might get tossed out of a clinical trial on my ear!
No more sitting back and letting my eyes go to pot because there's really nothing else to be done!
The Dark Before the Dawn - The Story Before this Story
I am so grateful God has shown me a new road and my feet get set upon it starting 2 weeks from today!
...With doctors who are excited, optimistic, and eager to treat me!
Hallelujah!!! Thank you Jesus!!!
Proverbs 13:12 says...
Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
How about that!!!
Lord willing, the deferment ends in 2 weeks!!!
a God story...
Remember that awful email that arrived out of the blue last June, indicating that I almost certainly would not be treated in the clinical trial? One thing I realized a couple weeks ago... If they hadn't sent that email I wouldn't have gone back to square 1 looking for alternatives. So God used that. It's sure easier to see that now than it was at the time. Here's the thing... About a month later in July, my sister-in-law Christin saw a plaque in a gift shop, as soon as she saw it she felt like God told her to buy it and send it to me for my birthday. It has "HOPE" written large in the center with parts of hymns around it. It's hard to describe, but it is artistic and beautiful. God spoke to my sister-in-law and she was listening! He used that and a couple other emails from people to specifically tell me there was HOPE! The plaque and 2 other messages of HOPE arrived right on the heels of the email... right when I was extremely vulnerable and it felt like HOPE had left the building. How Awesome is our God!!
At dinner last week, our son talked about hoping the day is soon coming that he'll stop getting mixed up pairs of socks in his clean laundry.:) I haven't been able to tell socks apart in at least a couple decades, so I wonder how long it will be before I can. It's incredibly fun to start dreaming of little, simple things that could get a lot easier as Jesus uses this treatment to restore my sight.
It's completely amazing how the Lord suddenly just dropped this in my lap, and also how undaunted and truly excited the people at the clinic are to treat me. It's such a contrast from the struggle of the last 6 years. A few weeks ago Our pastor spoke about how sometimes you can labor at something for years, and then when it is God's time He will suddenly move you forward 10 years in a few days. Our Lord has done that for me! It's AWESOME!!!
More to come...
God is good!!!
There is HOPE!!!
Love,
Pam
No tests to pass!
No criteria to meet!
No 25 page document that tells me all the ways I might get tossed out of a clinical trial on my ear!
No more sitting back and letting my eyes go to pot because there's really nothing else to be done!
The Dark Before the Dawn - The Story Before this Story
I am so grateful God has shown me a new road and my feet get set upon it starting 2 weeks from today!
...With doctors who are excited, optimistic, and eager to treat me!
Hallelujah!!! Thank you Jesus!!!
Proverbs 13:12 says...
Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
How about that!!!
Lord willing, the deferment ends in 2 weeks!!!
a God story...
Remember that awful email that arrived out of the blue last June, indicating that I almost certainly would not be treated in the clinical trial? One thing I realized a couple weeks ago... If they hadn't sent that email I wouldn't have gone back to square 1 looking for alternatives. So God used that. It's sure easier to see that now than it was at the time. Here's the thing... About a month later in July, my sister-in-law Christin saw a plaque in a gift shop, as soon as she saw it she felt like God told her to buy it and send it to me for my birthday. It has "HOPE" written large in the center with parts of hymns around it. It's hard to describe, but it is artistic and beautiful. God spoke to my sister-in-law and she was listening! He used that and a couple other emails from people to specifically tell me there was HOPE! The plaque and 2 other messages of HOPE arrived right on the heels of the email... right when I was extremely vulnerable and it felt like HOPE had left the building. How Awesome is our God!!
At dinner last week, our son talked about hoping the day is soon coming that he'll stop getting mixed up pairs of socks in his clean laundry.:) I haven't been able to tell socks apart in at least a couple decades, so I wonder how long it will be before I can. It's incredibly fun to start dreaming of little, simple things that could get a lot easier as Jesus uses this treatment to restore my sight.
It's completely amazing how the Lord suddenly just dropped this in my lap, and also how undaunted and truly excited the people at the clinic are to treat me. It's such a contrast from the struggle of the last 6 years. A few weeks ago Our pastor spoke about how sometimes you can labor at something for years, and then when it is God's time He will suddenly move you forward 10 years in a few days. Our Lord has done that for me! It's AWESOME!!!
More to come...
God is good!!!
There is HOPE!!!
Love,
Pam
Dec 3, 2014 TREATMENT DONE! NOW TIME FOR THE BLESSING!!!
The treatment day is done! What an experience!
Before I get into details I need to thank my family -- my parents who flew from Florida to support me, my 2 brothers and their wives and families who live in Phoenix. They all planned a fabulous week of great desert fun, delicious food, and a red carpet welcome and care for our whole family. We all had such a wonderful time surrounded by joy, thoughtfulness and loving care. My brothers and their families put forth significant and selfless effort so we could relax and focus our efforts on my eye treatment. When we boarded the plane to fly home, our kids were in tears after having to say goodbye to so many kind and loving cousins, and a wonderful fun-packed stay.
Thank you also to several people who gave significant financial gifts. May you grin and laugh, and jump up and down with hilarity as you read this and share the blessing, because God loves a hilarious giver.:)
I also want to thank everyone who prayed and prayed! I know this was a big bunch of people. Your prayers were powerful and effective, and you share this blessing.So join in the hilarity!!! I laughed many times through the week that Abba Father's nose must be flaring and crinkling with all the incense rising up about me.:) As you read on, you will know He gave great attention and smiled on us.
Tuesday afternoon everyone in my family who could, gathered at the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center to pray. Cool thing... my nephew grumbled when he was picked up from school, not knowing why he had to leave his friends. Later when he learned he was visiting the Center and joining our prayer effort, he told his parents he wouldn't have missed it for anything. They let us all into the treatment room where everything would happen on Wednesday. We prayed, sang, and shared a glorious time. As we left I told the staff the room was now prepped for me. They laughed. I knew with confidence it was true.
The Doctor and Medical Assistant who treated me were both awesome! I knew I was in the presence of brilliant experts in their field, and it was also a very warm and caring experience.
The morning liposuction was by far the hardest part. They do it in as gentle a manner as possible to avoid leaving damaged tissue that the stem cells would want to repair, but the process included frequent big jabs of pain. During the first procedure where they push tubes and inject fluid about 6 inches deep, when the assistant said "We're half way through," it was not good news. I wondered how I would make it through, but knew I had to because this was the way to get stem cells. I was holding the clinging cross and the cloth from Margaret to remind me of the woman who touched Jesus' robe, and it dawned on me that now was the time to cling. I just held tight to the cross, buried my face in the pillow and asked for Jesus' help. He came and He helped. My heart calmed down and the pain decreased.
Following the morning harvest of stem cells, they told us to go relax and eat a good lunch. My husband, a brother, and my parents were all with me. We shared lunch and love. I settled down and calmed down from being all keyed up from the lidocaine and such. I walked back into the clinic feeling brave and ready to let them go after me with their hammers some more.:)
...But I was sure relieved when they said I made it through the hard stuff in the morning, and it would all get easier from here. It did. The lab technician estimated a harvest of 76 million stem cells. They told us the microscope cannot see the smallest stem cells, so the real harvest was probably twice that number. In the morning I had prayed for 150 million cells, so I think Jesus gave us 2 million extra just for joy, and so we would see His Hand.
I got an IV of vitamins and stuff to open the pathways for the stem cells, then they sent stem cells through the same IV, then more vitamins to keep all the stem cells fat and happy. I snorted stuff to open pathways from my sinuses to my brain, and then snorted 4 doses of stem cells. Then stem cells were injected into my heel for plantar fasciitis, my knees for just growing grumpy with age, and several acupuncture points related to vision and hearing. The heel injection hurt. All the rest felt like acupuncture pokes even though the Doctor was going at least an inch deep in some cases. Then we capped off the day with injections behind my eyes. I could hear the stem cells squirting in. At the end of the injection I saw big flashes of light. The Doctor had not prepared me to expect this, but when it happened she exclaimed, "Yes!!!" the way people say it when just the hoped for thing has happened.
The Medical Assistant explained that injured or damaged cells put out a triangle shape as an indicator. Stem cells have little V-shaped antennae. They tool around the system with their antennae out looking for triangles like puzzle pieces to latch onto. This is how stem cells ignore healthy cells and find the right areas to set up shop and start repair and construction. When I heard that, I thought it is like stem cells run around with little Victory in Jesus signs out, just looking for where Victory in Jesus is needed. Soooooooo Cool!
We went home to my brother's house with my eyes nearly swollen shut, and instructions to stay reclined with my head back or lying down for as much of the next 24 hours as possible. I was not in pain, just tired. Everyone in my family treated us like royalty. They found an old recliner and carried it down to the family room so I could stay reclined but be part of the action. One of my nephews told how at school his teacher asked students in the class to share what they were thankful for. His hand flew up, and he shared how his aunt who was blind for 52 years was receiving stem cell treatment today. The teacher and class all got tears in their eyes. We all felt so much excitement and thankfulness.
Thanksgiving was a joyful and yummy experience with lots of love and 37 people I think. What a glorious day!
We flew home without a hitch on Friday. I wondered things like... Did I keep my head back well enough for the 24 hours? Are the stem cells really in me? Did they find the right places to set up shop and get to work, or are they distracted and working on the wrong place? You may remember that I was told to expect to begin seeing changes in my vision sometime between 6 weeks and 6 months following the treatment.
Well... here is my journal of the treatment day and the next several days.
11/26/2014 Treatment Day
11/27/14 Lying in bed I looked at my pink pajamaed legs and noticed more dimension.
11/29/14 Sunny day, I turned toward our entryway from Great room, my eyes were overwhelmed with the brightness of the sunlight, I had to turn away. This has never happened before. At Waffle House I could see contrast of the white plates on wood table, then also the white napkins in the "window" of the napkin holder.
11/30/14 Noticed more lights catching my eye as we walked around the mall.
I could see the door-post of the 4-Runner that comes down between the windshield and the window of my passenger door. I could see the light through both windows on either side of the door-post. Previously the door-post had faded from my view. The surface of our bed stands out more in the bedroom light.
In the closet light I can see variety in the long line of hanging clothes.
12/1/14 LIGHT! The general color of light shifted back from muddy golden, which is the color I had perceived for at least a couple years... to white! Bright white!
My visual field where I have light perception grew! These are definite changes that indicate the stem cells are in the right place setting up shop and starting work!
12/2/14 Folding laundry today I could see shapes better and had a little more sense of variety of color although it's still just dark and light... not specific colors.:)
12/3/14 The blurry cloud of light that is my visual field has grown hugely, probably twice as high and twice as wide as before. It is an oval shape of light, surrounded by gray then black. The light area has gotten much bigger. Before the treatment the light area was high and toward my nose. I am watching the light perception roll downward just like I used to watch it roll up and feel so sad, knowing that vision was gone. Now it is coming back!!! WooHoo!!!
-------
I want to explain a little more about the light change on December 1. If you know someone who has had cataracts removed, they are likely to have gone through a similar experience. As cataracts form, the color of light and the world around you becomes muddy gold or tan looking. Colors lose their brightness and wash out. Seven years ago I experienced this when I had cataracts, a common complication of retinitis pigmentosa. When the cataracts were removed, suddenly light became bright white again and the world looked newly bright and beautiful. Well, a couple years ago I noticed that the color of my world had gone back to that muddy golden color. I felt very sad, knowing it was because my poor retinas were so far gone they just couldn't produce the brightness of the world for me anymore. The light change I experienced on December 1 was exactly like the before and after of cataract surgery. The light in my world went back to the color white. NO MORE MUD!!! Anyone else catch some symbolism in this??
All these changes are real! They have come and stayed. My vision has literally increased over the several days I've been writing this email. My dieing retinas now have new life and new creation going on. I don't have color yet, but the world looks bright and beautiful again. The muddy dull darkness of the last 2 or 3 years is over!
It is completely amazing, a gift from Heaven, victory in Jesus that I am already seeing changes in my vision! These stem cells are alive, full of energy, busy in the right places repairing and replacing... doing the will of Jesus everywhere they go; and Lord willing, they should be at it for at least the next year or so. Glory and Thank You to Abba Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit!!!
More to come,
God is soooooooo good!
Love,
Pam
Before I get into details I need to thank my family -- my parents who flew from Florida to support me, my 2 brothers and their wives and families who live in Phoenix. They all planned a fabulous week of great desert fun, delicious food, and a red carpet welcome and care for our whole family. We all had such a wonderful time surrounded by joy, thoughtfulness and loving care. My brothers and their families put forth significant and selfless effort so we could relax and focus our efforts on my eye treatment. When we boarded the plane to fly home, our kids were in tears after having to say goodbye to so many kind and loving cousins, and a wonderful fun-packed stay.
Thank you also to several people who gave significant financial gifts. May you grin and laugh, and jump up and down with hilarity as you read this and share the blessing, because God loves a hilarious giver.:)
I also want to thank everyone who prayed and prayed! I know this was a big bunch of people. Your prayers were powerful and effective, and you share this blessing.So join in the hilarity!!! I laughed many times through the week that Abba Father's nose must be flaring and crinkling with all the incense rising up about me.:) As you read on, you will know He gave great attention and smiled on us.
Tuesday afternoon everyone in my family who could, gathered at the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center to pray. Cool thing... my nephew grumbled when he was picked up from school, not knowing why he had to leave his friends. Later when he learned he was visiting the Center and joining our prayer effort, he told his parents he wouldn't have missed it for anything. They let us all into the treatment room where everything would happen on Wednesday. We prayed, sang, and shared a glorious time. As we left I told the staff the room was now prepped for me. They laughed. I knew with confidence it was true.
The Doctor and Medical Assistant who treated me were both awesome! I knew I was in the presence of brilliant experts in their field, and it was also a very warm and caring experience.
The morning liposuction was by far the hardest part. They do it in as gentle a manner as possible to avoid leaving damaged tissue that the stem cells would want to repair, but the process included frequent big jabs of pain. During the first procedure where they push tubes and inject fluid about 6 inches deep, when the assistant said "We're half way through," it was not good news. I wondered how I would make it through, but knew I had to because this was the way to get stem cells. I was holding the clinging cross and the cloth from Margaret to remind me of the woman who touched Jesus' robe, and it dawned on me that now was the time to cling. I just held tight to the cross, buried my face in the pillow and asked for Jesus' help. He came and He helped. My heart calmed down and the pain decreased.
Following the morning harvest of stem cells, they told us to go relax and eat a good lunch. My husband, a brother, and my parents were all with me. We shared lunch and love. I settled down and calmed down from being all keyed up from the lidocaine and such. I walked back into the clinic feeling brave and ready to let them go after me with their hammers some more.:)
...But I was sure relieved when they said I made it through the hard stuff in the morning, and it would all get easier from here. It did. The lab technician estimated a harvest of 76 million stem cells. They told us the microscope cannot see the smallest stem cells, so the real harvest was probably twice that number. In the morning I had prayed for 150 million cells, so I think Jesus gave us 2 million extra just for joy, and so we would see His Hand.
I got an IV of vitamins and stuff to open the pathways for the stem cells, then they sent stem cells through the same IV, then more vitamins to keep all the stem cells fat and happy. I snorted stuff to open pathways from my sinuses to my brain, and then snorted 4 doses of stem cells. Then stem cells were injected into my heel for plantar fasciitis, my knees for just growing grumpy with age, and several acupuncture points related to vision and hearing. The heel injection hurt. All the rest felt like acupuncture pokes even though the Doctor was going at least an inch deep in some cases. Then we capped off the day with injections behind my eyes. I could hear the stem cells squirting in. At the end of the injection I saw big flashes of light. The Doctor had not prepared me to expect this, but when it happened she exclaimed, "Yes!!!" the way people say it when just the hoped for thing has happened.
The Medical Assistant explained that injured or damaged cells put out a triangle shape as an indicator. Stem cells have little V-shaped antennae. They tool around the system with their antennae out looking for triangles like puzzle pieces to latch onto. This is how stem cells ignore healthy cells and find the right areas to set up shop and start repair and construction. When I heard that, I thought it is like stem cells run around with little Victory in Jesus signs out, just looking for where Victory in Jesus is needed. Soooooooo Cool!
We went home to my brother's house with my eyes nearly swollen shut, and instructions to stay reclined with my head back or lying down for as much of the next 24 hours as possible. I was not in pain, just tired. Everyone in my family treated us like royalty. They found an old recliner and carried it down to the family room so I could stay reclined but be part of the action. One of my nephews told how at school his teacher asked students in the class to share what they were thankful for. His hand flew up, and he shared how his aunt who was blind for 52 years was receiving stem cell treatment today. The teacher and class all got tears in their eyes. We all felt so much excitement and thankfulness.
Thanksgiving was a joyful and yummy experience with lots of love and 37 people I think. What a glorious day!
We flew home without a hitch on Friday. I wondered things like... Did I keep my head back well enough for the 24 hours? Are the stem cells really in me? Did they find the right places to set up shop and get to work, or are they distracted and working on the wrong place? You may remember that I was told to expect to begin seeing changes in my vision sometime between 6 weeks and 6 months following the treatment.
Well... here is my journal of the treatment day and the next several days.
11/26/2014 Treatment Day
11/27/14 Lying in bed I looked at my pink pajamaed legs and noticed more dimension.
11/29/14 Sunny day, I turned toward our entryway from Great room, my eyes were overwhelmed with the brightness of the sunlight, I had to turn away. This has never happened before. At Waffle House I could see contrast of the white plates on wood table, then also the white napkins in the "window" of the napkin holder.
11/30/14 Noticed more lights catching my eye as we walked around the mall.
I could see the door-post of the 4-Runner that comes down between the windshield and the window of my passenger door. I could see the light through both windows on either side of the door-post. Previously the door-post had faded from my view. The surface of our bed stands out more in the bedroom light.
In the closet light I can see variety in the long line of hanging clothes.
12/1/14 LIGHT! The general color of light shifted back from muddy golden, which is the color I had perceived for at least a couple years... to white! Bright white!
My visual field where I have light perception grew! These are definite changes that indicate the stem cells are in the right place setting up shop and starting work!
12/2/14 Folding laundry today I could see shapes better and had a little more sense of variety of color although it's still just dark and light... not specific colors.:)
12/3/14 The blurry cloud of light that is my visual field has grown hugely, probably twice as high and twice as wide as before. It is an oval shape of light, surrounded by gray then black. The light area has gotten much bigger. Before the treatment the light area was high and toward my nose. I am watching the light perception roll downward just like I used to watch it roll up and feel so sad, knowing that vision was gone. Now it is coming back!!! WooHoo!!!
-------
I want to explain a little more about the light change on December 1. If you know someone who has had cataracts removed, they are likely to have gone through a similar experience. As cataracts form, the color of light and the world around you becomes muddy gold or tan looking. Colors lose their brightness and wash out. Seven years ago I experienced this when I had cataracts, a common complication of retinitis pigmentosa. When the cataracts were removed, suddenly light became bright white again and the world looked newly bright and beautiful. Well, a couple years ago I noticed that the color of my world had gone back to that muddy golden color. I felt very sad, knowing it was because my poor retinas were so far gone they just couldn't produce the brightness of the world for me anymore. The light change I experienced on December 1 was exactly like the before and after of cataract surgery. The light in my world went back to the color white. NO MORE MUD!!! Anyone else catch some symbolism in this??
All these changes are real! They have come and stayed. My vision has literally increased over the several days I've been writing this email. My dieing retinas now have new life and new creation going on. I don't have color yet, but the world looks bright and beautiful again. The muddy dull darkness of the last 2 or 3 years is over!
It is completely amazing, a gift from Heaven, victory in Jesus that I am already seeing changes in my vision! These stem cells are alive, full of energy, busy in the right places repairing and replacing... doing the will of Jesus everywhere they go; and Lord willing, they should be at it for at least the next year or so. Glory and Thank You to Abba Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit!!!
More to come,
God is soooooooo good!
Love,
Pam
Dec 12, 2014 STEWARDING THE ACORN
Last week I was listening to a sermon from Bill Johnson of Bethel Church, who said that sometimes when we ask the Father for an oak tree He gives us an acorn to steward. Wow! That describes my present perfectly.
My current vision changes are subtle, exciting, uneven and sometimes strange. The joy is that, as they would say here in the South, after a few months of this we're really gonna have us somethin'! The joy is also that changes are happening. That tells me the stem cells are in the right place doing their stuff! WooHoo!!!
The hard part is having patience, and to some degree endurance...
I asked the Doctor what I should do to keep the stem cells happy and multiplying. She said...
Don't drink
Don't smoke
Don't do recreational drugs
Cool! I can do that!:)
Then she said to stay on the supplements she recommends for at least 6 months. Well, that's a little harder...
Some of the supplements are just good vitamins for my body and eyes, but I swallow a Tablespoon of cod liver oil daily. Woof! Twice a week my husband gives me injections of vitamin B-12 mixed with glutathione. My husband gave himself allergy shots as a teenager, and he gives our cows shots too, so he knows how to do it. BTW, I hold a lot more still than the cows do.:) But the glutathione is more acidic than the human body so these shots BURN... a lot... for at least a few minutes every time. Nightly I swallow 5 drops of food grade hydrogen peroxide mixed with water. I cut it with lime juice to help get it down. About a year and a half ago I did hydrogen peroxide together with my parents. I eventually quit because the taste made me want to hurl! So today I just have to get over the hurling thing and gulp that H2O2 down!
None of this is complaint, just an accurate description of the present. I know the day is coming when my visual changes are so awesome that the difficulties with the supplements become trivial. But I'm writing this to continue telling the whole story. I am so thankful to be walking in these new shoes with a new hopeful future for my eyes!!! Yet the patience and endurance in these early days is hard.
Last Wednesday morning I woke up so excited to see what would look different. When I turned on the lights things looked more muddled and confusing than the day before. What a let-down! Then all day until about 7 at night it looked is if I had a layer of golden glittery light about a foot in front of me. A few minutes of this would have just been interesting, but after so many hours I was warn out! It's not easy having such a noisy visual field all day long. Then suddenly at dinner I saw the kitchen light glint off my fork... haven't seen that in awhile. Then I saw light reflecting off the kitchen faucet. Then I saw a huge reflection off a cookie tin! It's Christmas after all, so we have cookies around. All the sudden the whole day of visual craziness was worth it and I was smiling. The next day light was bright beautiful white everywhere I went. In the evening we went to a live nativity where they do a walk through Bethlehem in a church basement in very low light. For the first time in at least a year, I could see the outline of the head and shoulders of each person who spoke to us in a Bethlehem scene. I could look right at each of them in the normal, courteous way. Probably a year ago it became such an effort to look at people when I talked to them, I just couldn't see any part of them to look at, that I decided to just give up. Yesterday it was such a joy to look right at each character as they spoke to us. What a night!
Though it has its crazy moments, I'm delighted to be on this wild ride! I am so thankful to already be having these visual changes now, rather than muddling through in the dark with the supplements for 6 weeks or more, wondering if anything will come of it.
It feels to me like there has been such a build up of the incense of prayer, and fasting, and pleading with the Father, some of it starting 52 years ago. When the time came, the power of His Kingdom came bursting and showering down from Heaven all over me with such a blast, those stem cells just zoomed under Jesus' direction right to my eyes and set up shop to start doing all the right things.
I was told the early vision changes I noticed were most likely because the stem cells arrived and released growth factors all around my existing cells, which responded by perking up and improving. Now we need the stem cells to stay put in my eyes, latch onto the cells there and start to multiply. So I ask you to pray for this to happen.
Meantime... I'm stewarding the acorn.:)
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
My current vision changes are subtle, exciting, uneven and sometimes strange. The joy is that, as they would say here in the South, after a few months of this we're really gonna have us somethin'! The joy is also that changes are happening. That tells me the stem cells are in the right place doing their stuff! WooHoo!!!
The hard part is having patience, and to some degree endurance...
I asked the Doctor what I should do to keep the stem cells happy and multiplying. She said...
Don't drink
Don't smoke
Don't do recreational drugs
Cool! I can do that!:)
Then she said to stay on the supplements she recommends for at least 6 months. Well, that's a little harder...
Some of the supplements are just good vitamins for my body and eyes, but I swallow a Tablespoon of cod liver oil daily. Woof! Twice a week my husband gives me injections of vitamin B-12 mixed with glutathione. My husband gave himself allergy shots as a teenager, and he gives our cows shots too, so he knows how to do it. BTW, I hold a lot more still than the cows do.:) But the glutathione is more acidic than the human body so these shots BURN... a lot... for at least a few minutes every time. Nightly I swallow 5 drops of food grade hydrogen peroxide mixed with water. I cut it with lime juice to help get it down. About a year and a half ago I did hydrogen peroxide together with my parents. I eventually quit because the taste made me want to hurl! So today I just have to get over the hurling thing and gulp that H2O2 down!
None of this is complaint, just an accurate description of the present. I know the day is coming when my visual changes are so awesome that the difficulties with the supplements become trivial. But I'm writing this to continue telling the whole story. I am so thankful to be walking in these new shoes with a new hopeful future for my eyes!!! Yet the patience and endurance in these early days is hard.
Last Wednesday morning I woke up so excited to see what would look different. When I turned on the lights things looked more muddled and confusing than the day before. What a let-down! Then all day until about 7 at night it looked is if I had a layer of golden glittery light about a foot in front of me. A few minutes of this would have just been interesting, but after so many hours I was warn out! It's not easy having such a noisy visual field all day long. Then suddenly at dinner I saw the kitchen light glint off my fork... haven't seen that in awhile. Then I saw light reflecting off the kitchen faucet. Then I saw a huge reflection off a cookie tin! It's Christmas after all, so we have cookies around. All the sudden the whole day of visual craziness was worth it and I was smiling. The next day light was bright beautiful white everywhere I went. In the evening we went to a live nativity where they do a walk through Bethlehem in a church basement in very low light. For the first time in at least a year, I could see the outline of the head and shoulders of each person who spoke to us in a Bethlehem scene. I could look right at each of them in the normal, courteous way. Probably a year ago it became such an effort to look at people when I talked to them, I just couldn't see any part of them to look at, that I decided to just give up. Yesterday it was such a joy to look right at each character as they spoke to us. What a night!
Though it has its crazy moments, I'm delighted to be on this wild ride! I am so thankful to already be having these visual changes now, rather than muddling through in the dark with the supplements for 6 weeks or more, wondering if anything will come of it.
It feels to me like there has been such a build up of the incense of prayer, and fasting, and pleading with the Father, some of it starting 52 years ago. When the time came, the power of His Kingdom came bursting and showering down from Heaven all over me with such a blast, those stem cells just zoomed under Jesus' direction right to my eyes and set up shop to start doing all the right things.
I was told the early vision changes I noticed were most likely because the stem cells arrived and released growth factors all around my existing cells, which responded by perking up and improving. Now we need the stem cells to stay put in my eyes, latch onto the cells there and start to multiply. So I ask you to pray for this to happen.
Meantime... I'm stewarding the acorn.:)
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Dec 16, 2014 OUR CHRISTMAS TREE
We put up our Christmas tree on Saturday December 6, and decorated it on Sunday the 7th with ornaments and strings of little red LED lights I bought on clearance after Christmas last year. I had never seen the lights lit, just bought them for a song and put them on the shelf for this year. Well, when the tree was all decorated and the kids plugged in the lights... I couldn't see a thing. I couldn't have told you if the tree was lit or not. My heart sank.
As I examined the tree, I saw that the little red lights were very dim. If I found one light with my hand and then focused my eyes on it, then I could see it, but not easily.
This Saturday December 13, we volunteered to help YWAM with a street store for homeless people in a park in Asheville. It was a cold, clear, sunny day. For the last hour or so, the bench I was on was flooded with bright, though not direct sunlight. It became too bright, so I closed my eyes most of the way and eventually asked Jerry to get me some sunglasses from the car. When our work was finished and we drove home, my right eye started to hurt... yikes!!! I was worried! Could we go do a thing God laid on our hearts, and the stem cells in my right eye be totally messed up because of the sun?
Later we went back into Asheville for our daughter's dance class Christmas performance at a nursing home. All the dancers did a beautiful and charming job, and the residents and families were greatly blessed. After the performance, another girl's Dad who had never met us approached us. He started by stumblingly expressing that he had never met us. I could tell he had a word from the Lord for us. I encouraged him that it was fine to speak what was on his heart. He said the Lord was showing me spiritual things others might not see. He also said, "You are concerned about your physical eyes... your eyes are going to be fine!" Is it so amazing and cool that the Holy Spirit sent a direct word to address my worries about our work in the morning and my hurting right eye?! Hold on... it gets even better!
Our Son then told him about my stem cell treatment. We all started laughing with joy! I asked him if he knew I was blind or had seen me come in with my white cane. HE HAD NO IDEA! We had a little joy fest and he told us how greatly the Father loves us. I'm still amazed thinking how the Holy Spirit sent a direct word for our immediate concern from a perfect stranger who knew nothing about us. Thank You Jesus!
Sunday afternoon we went to a warm, glorious, yummy Christmas open house hosted by friends who have prayed fervently for me through these past 2 years. Steve and Nancy live in a wonderful town-home on a mountain side with spectacular views. Yesterday we could look out over the top side of the clouds that covered Asheville and see the mountaintops above the clouds. The sighted people could see airplanes flying around. We watched the sun set from the upper deck because God has laid on Steve's heart that He will make the way for me to see the glorious sunsets that happen there. So this was the "just out of the gate" sunset view, with new, glorious sunset views live and in color yet to come!
Before we left I made a pit-stop. I looked at the light fixture above the bathroom sink. As in our bathroom at home I was able to distinguish the separate lights. I counted 3, and then later verified with my hand that I saw them correctly. A month ago, light fixtures like this just appeared as a big blurry glare of light on the wall. So we had a little joy fest about seeing the separate bathroom lights.
We went home and snuggled on the sofa to watch Star Trek, a cozy family thing we enjoy. I started looking toward the Christmas tree, thinking I saw a glow there. Through the show I kept checking and re-checking, wondering if it was my imagination. Finally I got up and walked over to the tree. As I gazed I could see several of those little red LED's. Our Son was so excited he bounced up to join me. I pointed out LED's to him, and he verified that little red lights were present where I pointed.
In one week I have gone from needing to first locate a light with my hand, then look and look, and then being able to see the one light; to standing near the tree being able to gaze and see a handful of lights at once, and also to seeing the glow of the tree from across the room. Thank you Jesus, and more please!:)
My husband is thinking I'm gaining back at least a month of visual re-generation every day... likely even more than that. It's an uneven journey, so I can have a great day followed by a strange or subdued day, but the jaggedy line on the graph is always trending upward and the whole thing is exciting and awesome!
Enduring all the supplements is already becoming trivial, and the ride is getting FUN FUN FUN!!!
Every good present and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father who made
the sun, moon, and stars.
James 1:17 Names of God Bible
I'm sure loving this wonderful present from our Abba Father!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
PS. Yes, I will take our experience to heart, and make sure I carry sunglasses if we might be out in the sun.
As I examined the tree, I saw that the little red lights were very dim. If I found one light with my hand and then focused my eyes on it, then I could see it, but not easily.
This Saturday December 13, we volunteered to help YWAM with a street store for homeless people in a park in Asheville. It was a cold, clear, sunny day. For the last hour or so, the bench I was on was flooded with bright, though not direct sunlight. It became too bright, so I closed my eyes most of the way and eventually asked Jerry to get me some sunglasses from the car. When our work was finished and we drove home, my right eye started to hurt... yikes!!! I was worried! Could we go do a thing God laid on our hearts, and the stem cells in my right eye be totally messed up because of the sun?
Later we went back into Asheville for our daughter's dance class Christmas performance at a nursing home. All the dancers did a beautiful and charming job, and the residents and families were greatly blessed. After the performance, another girl's Dad who had never met us approached us. He started by stumblingly expressing that he had never met us. I could tell he had a word from the Lord for us. I encouraged him that it was fine to speak what was on his heart. He said the Lord was showing me spiritual things others might not see. He also said, "You are concerned about your physical eyes... your eyes are going to be fine!" Is it so amazing and cool that the Holy Spirit sent a direct word to address my worries about our work in the morning and my hurting right eye?! Hold on... it gets even better!
Our Son then told him about my stem cell treatment. We all started laughing with joy! I asked him if he knew I was blind or had seen me come in with my white cane. HE HAD NO IDEA! We had a little joy fest and he told us how greatly the Father loves us. I'm still amazed thinking how the Holy Spirit sent a direct word for our immediate concern from a perfect stranger who knew nothing about us. Thank You Jesus!
Sunday afternoon we went to a warm, glorious, yummy Christmas open house hosted by friends who have prayed fervently for me through these past 2 years. Steve and Nancy live in a wonderful town-home on a mountain side with spectacular views. Yesterday we could look out over the top side of the clouds that covered Asheville and see the mountaintops above the clouds. The sighted people could see airplanes flying around. We watched the sun set from the upper deck because God has laid on Steve's heart that He will make the way for me to see the glorious sunsets that happen there. So this was the "just out of the gate" sunset view, with new, glorious sunset views live and in color yet to come!
Before we left I made a pit-stop. I looked at the light fixture above the bathroom sink. As in our bathroom at home I was able to distinguish the separate lights. I counted 3, and then later verified with my hand that I saw them correctly. A month ago, light fixtures like this just appeared as a big blurry glare of light on the wall. So we had a little joy fest about seeing the separate bathroom lights.
We went home and snuggled on the sofa to watch Star Trek, a cozy family thing we enjoy. I started looking toward the Christmas tree, thinking I saw a glow there. Through the show I kept checking and re-checking, wondering if it was my imagination. Finally I got up and walked over to the tree. As I gazed I could see several of those little red LED's. Our Son was so excited he bounced up to join me. I pointed out LED's to him, and he verified that little red lights were present where I pointed.
In one week I have gone from needing to first locate a light with my hand, then look and look, and then being able to see the one light; to standing near the tree being able to gaze and see a handful of lights at once, and also to seeing the glow of the tree from across the room. Thank you Jesus, and more please!:)
My husband is thinking I'm gaining back at least a month of visual re-generation every day... likely even more than that. It's an uneven journey, so I can have a great day followed by a strange or subdued day, but the jaggedy line on the graph is always trending upward and the whole thing is exciting and awesome!
Enduring all the supplements is already becoming trivial, and the ride is getting FUN FUN FUN!!!
Every good present and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father who made
the sun, moon, and stars.
James 1:17 Names of God Bible
I'm sure loving this wonderful present from our Abba Father!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
PS. Yes, I will take our experience to heart, and make sure I carry sunglasses if we might be out in the sun.
Dec 27, 2014 VISION REPORT & THOUGHTS ABOUT THE STEM CELLS
Vision Report...
After seeing our Christmas tree on December 14 I went through about 10 days of very subtle increases in clarity and definition. I knew these changes would be cumulative, and indicated that things were going well and in the right direction. But nothing was like a lightening bolt kind of change that I could wrap any words around. Also these changes happen unevenly, with a few hours of noticeable clarity followed by a few hours of visual muddle. So, from time to time I wondered if the stem cells were fat and happy and in the right places doing their stuff.
Well... on Christmas Eve we ran to Walmart for a few last minute items. Before the treatment, at Walmart I could only see the blobby shapes of the top shelves of stuff near me. Everything lower than the top shelves faded into gray and then black. Suddenly on Christmas Eve I noticed that I could see the blobby shapes of the shelves all the way down to the floor, and the contrasting light colored floor all around us.
Then on Christmas day I was tearing off strips of tin-foil to put around the edges of a pie. I wanted to put the dull side of the foil toward the pie crust and the shiny side up -- a task that has long been impossible for me without sighted help. But on Christmas, out of the blue, with no effort, no holding the foil up close to my face, no walking across the kitchen in search of better light, I could immediately and easily detect which side was which to place the foil how I wanted it on the pie. No one in our family can remember how long ago I could differentiate the sides of the foil. Our kids remember being puzzled little ones, watching me turn a piece of foil over and over in the light, while they wondered what in the world I was doing.:)
On one hand, the visual changes I am experiencing are gradual, uneven, and sometimes very strange. It is peculiar and takes great patience to have my eyes healed and rebuilt over the course of a year.
On the other hand, seeing the Walmart shelves and floor, and the dull and shiny sides of the tin-foil are huge, momentous changes that mightily confirm the glorious, powerful, re-creative activity of the stem cells.
I am DEEPLY THANKFUL!!!
BTW, they told me the stem cell attachment happens relatively quickly and is probably complete now. From my shoes, seeing changes so quickly confirms that I've got a boatload of stem cells that latched on in the right places. Thank you Jesus!
My Perspective...
I think many of us have pondered God sending me help in this way. Here are some of my thoughts.
God often works in unexpected ways like this.
A starting place for me is James 1:17...
Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who
created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. (NLT)
I take this seriously. All the good things, and mercies, and rescues, and blessings, and kindness, and love that comes into our lives... it is all a gift from God interrupting and intervening on our behalf in the brokenness of our world.
All healing -- miraculous, medical, the healing forces built into our bodies, sudden healing, or slow healing processes over time -- it all falls under the category of good and perfect gifts from our Father Who created the lights in the heavens. This stem cell treatment, no matter how puzzling or unexpected, is a gift from Him.
It is amazing to me that, even in our broken world and broken selves, God left these stem cells inside us with the capacity to touch His original "knitting together of us" and put His creative power in play once again. What a gift!
I think it is very cool that the doctors who work in this arena can develop vast wisdom and savvy about how to extract, concentrate, and re-administer our own stem cells to help us. I believe the doctors at the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center are among the wisest and most intuitive. They can do brilliant things to get millions and millions of stem cells to the right places. However after that, their work is done. They have to step back and let the stem cells do the work -- repairing, replacing, multiplying, creating anew. These are not human capabilities, they are God enabled and empowered phenomena. This is one example of God's Kingdom coming and His will being done on earth as it always is in Heaven.
I can say during our times at the clinic, I had a mighty sense that this was the time, the day that God's intervention arrived. I had such a strong sense of His Kingdom and power showering down all over and around me. I know the reason I could see a subtle change the very next day is that the stem cells were under the irresistible power and direction of Almighty God, Maker of Heaven and earth.
Why now? I don't know. I value and trust all the accounts of Jesus and others healing adults who had lived for years with their disabilities and diseases. That tells me God is good and loving and right here in our world, where other people lived in the same boat with me and were touched by Him on their special day too.
This year-long process and the crazy path that came before it keep me turning to the Good Shepherd all the time with thanks and praise, questions, and requests. That keeps our relationship fresh and interesting, with a lot of bubbling moments of fun and joy now.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!!!
Love,
Pam
After seeing our Christmas tree on December 14 I went through about 10 days of very subtle increases in clarity and definition. I knew these changes would be cumulative, and indicated that things were going well and in the right direction. But nothing was like a lightening bolt kind of change that I could wrap any words around. Also these changes happen unevenly, with a few hours of noticeable clarity followed by a few hours of visual muddle. So, from time to time I wondered if the stem cells were fat and happy and in the right places doing their stuff.
Well... on Christmas Eve we ran to Walmart for a few last minute items. Before the treatment, at Walmart I could only see the blobby shapes of the top shelves of stuff near me. Everything lower than the top shelves faded into gray and then black. Suddenly on Christmas Eve I noticed that I could see the blobby shapes of the shelves all the way down to the floor, and the contrasting light colored floor all around us.
Then on Christmas day I was tearing off strips of tin-foil to put around the edges of a pie. I wanted to put the dull side of the foil toward the pie crust and the shiny side up -- a task that has long been impossible for me without sighted help. But on Christmas, out of the blue, with no effort, no holding the foil up close to my face, no walking across the kitchen in search of better light, I could immediately and easily detect which side was which to place the foil how I wanted it on the pie. No one in our family can remember how long ago I could differentiate the sides of the foil. Our kids remember being puzzled little ones, watching me turn a piece of foil over and over in the light, while they wondered what in the world I was doing.:)
On one hand, the visual changes I am experiencing are gradual, uneven, and sometimes very strange. It is peculiar and takes great patience to have my eyes healed and rebuilt over the course of a year.
On the other hand, seeing the Walmart shelves and floor, and the dull and shiny sides of the tin-foil are huge, momentous changes that mightily confirm the glorious, powerful, re-creative activity of the stem cells.
I am DEEPLY THANKFUL!!!
BTW, they told me the stem cell attachment happens relatively quickly and is probably complete now. From my shoes, seeing changes so quickly confirms that I've got a boatload of stem cells that latched on in the right places. Thank you Jesus!
My Perspective...
I think many of us have pondered God sending me help in this way. Here are some of my thoughts.
God often works in unexpected ways like this.
A starting place for me is James 1:17...
Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who
created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. (NLT)
I take this seriously. All the good things, and mercies, and rescues, and blessings, and kindness, and love that comes into our lives... it is all a gift from God interrupting and intervening on our behalf in the brokenness of our world.
All healing -- miraculous, medical, the healing forces built into our bodies, sudden healing, or slow healing processes over time -- it all falls under the category of good and perfect gifts from our Father Who created the lights in the heavens. This stem cell treatment, no matter how puzzling or unexpected, is a gift from Him.
It is amazing to me that, even in our broken world and broken selves, God left these stem cells inside us with the capacity to touch His original "knitting together of us" and put His creative power in play once again. What a gift!
I think it is very cool that the doctors who work in this arena can develop vast wisdom and savvy about how to extract, concentrate, and re-administer our own stem cells to help us. I believe the doctors at the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center are among the wisest and most intuitive. They can do brilliant things to get millions and millions of stem cells to the right places. However after that, their work is done. They have to step back and let the stem cells do the work -- repairing, replacing, multiplying, creating anew. These are not human capabilities, they are God enabled and empowered phenomena. This is one example of God's Kingdom coming and His will being done on earth as it always is in Heaven.
I can say during our times at the clinic, I had a mighty sense that this was the time, the day that God's intervention arrived. I had such a strong sense of His Kingdom and power showering down all over and around me. I know the reason I could see a subtle change the very next day is that the stem cells were under the irresistible power and direction of Almighty God, Maker of Heaven and earth.
Why now? I don't know. I value and trust all the accounts of Jesus and others healing adults who had lived for years with their disabilities and diseases. That tells me God is good and loving and right here in our world, where other people lived in the same boat with me and were touched by Him on their special day too.
This year-long process and the crazy path that came before it keep me turning to the Good Shepherd all the time with thanks and praise, questions, and requests. That keeps our relationship fresh and interesting, with a lot of bubbling moments of fun and joy now.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!!!
Love,
Pam
Jan 10, 2015 NEW PHOTORECEPTORS!
The area in my eyes that I have any perception at all keeps growing and growing! WooHoo!!!
My vision is often strange, with flashes and other odd stuff going on. Much of the time I would describe my vision as being like a very snowy picture on an old fashioned TV. The picture is in bits and pieces and still very vague. I've confirmed with the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center (henceforth SCRC) this is all normal. I can sense that there is LIFE in my eyes!!!... very different from what came before.
Seems like I go along a few days and then suddenly notice something new. Last Monday I noticed objects way out on my left popping into view, in an area where I haven't seen anything in a long time. I told the Patient Coordinator at SCRC about this and he said this amazing thing... drum-roll please... "TO ME, THAT MEANS YOU'VE GOT STEM CELLS BECOMING NEW PHOTORECEPTORS."
PRAISE GOD!!!!!!!!!
In case you haven't brushed up on your anatomy lately, photoreceptors are the rods and cones in your retina that respond to light and initiate vision. Here is a Wikipedia link... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoreceptor_cell
For most of my life, the medical establishment believed making new rods and cones was impossible, so once they were lost nothing more could be done. But... This is the beginning of the big result the SCRC doctors and I hoped we would get, but no one was sure.
WooHoo!!!
Walking, and leaping, and praising God!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
My vision is often strange, with flashes and other odd stuff going on. Much of the time I would describe my vision as being like a very snowy picture on an old fashioned TV. The picture is in bits and pieces and still very vague. I've confirmed with the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center (henceforth SCRC) this is all normal. I can sense that there is LIFE in my eyes!!!... very different from what came before.
Seems like I go along a few days and then suddenly notice something new. Last Monday I noticed objects way out on my left popping into view, in an area where I haven't seen anything in a long time. I told the Patient Coordinator at SCRC about this and he said this amazing thing... drum-roll please... "TO ME, THAT MEANS YOU'VE GOT STEM CELLS BECOMING NEW PHOTORECEPTORS."
PRAISE GOD!!!!!!!!!
In case you haven't brushed up on your anatomy lately, photoreceptors are the rods and cones in your retina that respond to light and initiate vision. Here is a Wikipedia link... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoreceptor_cell
For most of my life, the medical establishment believed making new rods and cones was impossible, so once they were lost nothing more could be done. But... This is the beginning of the big result the SCRC doctors and I hoped we would get, but no one was sure.
WooHoo!!!
Walking, and leaping, and praising God!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Jan 20, 2015 BIGGER PICTURE, WHITE CANE, GOD'S VOICE
The word for this morning is... BIGGER PICTURE!!! My visual field is HUGE!!!... multiple times larger than my itty bitty visual field before treatment. My eyes are seeing where they didn't see before!!! God is creating anew!!!
Today also while walking our driveway for exercise, I could see my white cane tapping back and forth. That involves both increased clarity, and also now seeing in an area of my visual field that WAS previously black... no vision at all.
This gradual process with ups and downs isn't all easy. The 15 days that elapsed since I saw new objects on my left and the orange fruit against my dark coat, felt like a long time.
Just yesterday I went through several hours that my eyesight was very dim, like looking through dark and blurry smoked glass. Most days so far include a few hours of slightly changed good vision and a few hours of stepping backward. It's unusual to experience wonderful vision from dawn till dusk. My perception of where things are in space is often off because my vision is changing all the time... forward and back, forward and back. This is not complaint, just description. It's a wonderful and wild ride, with patches that are tough to march through.
But today is a party and I am rejoicing!!! This vision is FUN, COOL, BRIGHT, MORE, NEW, gives me CONFIDENCE that EVEN GREATER INCREASES are coming!!!
THANK YOU ABBA FATHER FOR THIS AWESOME GIFT!!!
Last week, while the time between big changes was feeling loooooooong, two things dawned on me. First, in this gradual process that feels long and includes elements of 3 steps forward and 2 back, every day I get to receive a gift from God's Hand of a slight increase in vision... little daily miracles that turn into a big miracle. That's awesome!!!
For the second thing that dawned on me, here's an excerpt from an email I wrote almost 2 years ago in March 2013...
##
At our prayer group I silently floated a question to God
from my heart, "Are You going to leave me blind?" Many of the times in
my life when people have prayed for sight for me, I've floated the
question to God from my heart, "Lord, is this the time?" Most times I
haven't had a response. The prayer has ended, I've opened my eyes and
seen that the world still looked the same. So I have left the prayer
time knowing the Lord was with me, but this wasn't the time.
This time, when I floated the question to the Lord, "Are You going to
leave me blind?" the very clear response was, "No." I sensed a quiet but
very clear "No." WOW!... Um... well... let me try again...
YAHOO HALLELUJAH!!!
###
What dawned on me is that even with all the confusing, frustrating, heart-breaking, hope-dashing things that followed that email, including an unkept word from Philadelphia, on that day nearly 2 years ago I heard... truly heard ABBA FATHER'S VOICE. ...And now He is doing what He said. How amazing, awesome, and what a JOY!!!
It was hard to walk through the time between God's quiet promise then, and His wonderful deliverance today. I will not forget the grind of waiting. I have such joy and thankfulness now. May my story renew hope for others who are walking through the waiting time.
Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1 WEB Bible
More to come,
God is good!!!
Your trust in Him WILL NOT BE MISPLACED,
Love,
Pam
Today also while walking our driveway for exercise, I could see my white cane tapping back and forth. That involves both increased clarity, and also now seeing in an area of my visual field that WAS previously black... no vision at all.
This gradual process with ups and downs isn't all easy. The 15 days that elapsed since I saw new objects on my left and the orange fruit against my dark coat, felt like a long time.
Just yesterday I went through several hours that my eyesight was very dim, like looking through dark and blurry smoked glass. Most days so far include a few hours of slightly changed good vision and a few hours of stepping backward. It's unusual to experience wonderful vision from dawn till dusk. My perception of where things are in space is often off because my vision is changing all the time... forward and back, forward and back. This is not complaint, just description. It's a wonderful and wild ride, with patches that are tough to march through.
But today is a party and I am rejoicing!!! This vision is FUN, COOL, BRIGHT, MORE, NEW, gives me CONFIDENCE that EVEN GREATER INCREASES are coming!!!
THANK YOU ABBA FATHER FOR THIS AWESOME GIFT!!!
Last week, while the time between big changes was feeling loooooooong, two things dawned on me. First, in this gradual process that feels long and includes elements of 3 steps forward and 2 back, every day I get to receive a gift from God's Hand of a slight increase in vision... little daily miracles that turn into a big miracle. That's awesome!!!
For the second thing that dawned on me, here's an excerpt from an email I wrote almost 2 years ago in March 2013...
##
At our prayer group I silently floated a question to God
from my heart, "Are You going to leave me blind?" Many of the times in
my life when people have prayed for sight for me, I've floated the
question to God from my heart, "Lord, is this the time?" Most times I
haven't had a response. The prayer has ended, I've opened my eyes and
seen that the world still looked the same. So I have left the prayer
time knowing the Lord was with me, but this wasn't the time.
This time, when I floated the question to the Lord, "Are You going to
leave me blind?" the very clear response was, "No." I sensed a quiet but
very clear "No." WOW!... Um... well... let me try again...
YAHOO HALLELUJAH!!!
###
What dawned on me is that even with all the confusing, frustrating, heart-breaking, hope-dashing things that followed that email, including an unkept word from Philadelphia, on that day nearly 2 years ago I heard... truly heard ABBA FATHER'S VOICE. ...And now He is doing what He said. How amazing, awesome, and what a JOY!!!
It was hard to walk through the time between God's quiet promise then, and His wonderful deliverance today. I will not forget the grind of waiting. I have such joy and thankfulness now. May my story renew hope for others who are walking through the waiting time.
Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1 WEB Bible
More to come,
God is good!!!
Your trust in Him WILL NOT BE MISPLACED,
Love,
Pam
Jan 26, 2015 2 DOOR-POSTS!!!
Remember in an early email I wrote about traveling in our 4-Runner and noticing I was able to see both the windshield, my passenger window, and the doorpost between them?
Today while we were driving our daughter to dance lessons, I could see the windshield, 2 DOORPOSTS on either side of it, and parts of my husband's side window and my side window, all at the same time. That's a wide, wide visual field I haven't had in years! It also means a bundle of newly created visual field is coming into play in my right eye that has always been far worse than my left. It's almost unbelievable to me how much vision I'm getting in that eye! It's currently not as good as my left eye, but the gap between how well each eye sees is getting less and less. AMAZING!!!
Remember the email about the day we worked in bright sunlight at a park in Asheville? Afterward my right eye started to hurt, and I was very concerned I had damaged the stem cells. The Dad of another dance student who didn't know us or my eye history at all, came to us with a word from the Lord. He said I was worried about my physical eyes, but my eyes were going to be fine. Well, here's awesome fulfillment of that word... my right eye is doing fine indeed!!!
To borrow from an old song, this new visual field is not only wide, it's deep! I can look at a wall in our house and see all of the height of the wall and part of the ceiling and floor too, all at the same time.
God is good!!!
Today the vision within this field is blurry, but it's new, and bright, and good, and God's wonderful gift in progress... and we've got more than 43 weeks of new creation to go!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
P.S. Just a note that this is an open email that you are welcome to share. If a friend forwarded this to you, and you would like to receive these directly, just send me an email request and I will add you to my list.
Today while we were driving our daughter to dance lessons, I could see the windshield, 2 DOORPOSTS on either side of it, and parts of my husband's side window and my side window, all at the same time. That's a wide, wide visual field I haven't had in years! It also means a bundle of newly created visual field is coming into play in my right eye that has always been far worse than my left. It's almost unbelievable to me how much vision I'm getting in that eye! It's currently not as good as my left eye, but the gap between how well each eye sees is getting less and less. AMAZING!!!
Remember the email about the day we worked in bright sunlight at a park in Asheville? Afterward my right eye started to hurt, and I was very concerned I had damaged the stem cells. The Dad of another dance student who didn't know us or my eye history at all, came to us with a word from the Lord. He said I was worried about my physical eyes, but my eyes were going to be fine. Well, here's awesome fulfillment of that word... my right eye is doing fine indeed!!!
To borrow from an old song, this new visual field is not only wide, it's deep! I can look at a wall in our house and see all of the height of the wall and part of the ceiling and floor too, all at the same time.
God is good!!!
Today the vision within this field is blurry, but it's new, and bright, and good, and God's wonderful gift in progress... and we've got more than 43 weeks of new creation to go!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
P.S. Just a note that this is an open email that you are welcome to share. If a friend forwarded this to you, and you would like to receive these directly, just send me an email request and I will add you to my list.
Feb 5, 2015 3 IN A ROW!!!
This week I experienced 3 days of good vision in a row, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I think this is the first time I've had 3 good days in a row. Thank you Lord!!! It's fun!!!
Last week when I saw the 2 doorposts, that good vision stayed with me for 2 consecutive days. Then I went through a muddley patch from Wednesday through Sunday. This "3 steps forward and 2 back" thing isn't easy. Yet, in the middle of the muddle I realized 2 things. First, this really is in God's Hands, and second I need to keep daily asking Him for the increase. Most every day I take a moment to thank Father God for the sight He is giving me, and then to say, in Jesus' name... sight be multiplied!
Today most of my vision is more muddled than the 3 previous days, but my vision is very bright, and I have a strong and joyful sense new big clarity is coming.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Last week when I saw the 2 doorposts, that good vision stayed with me for 2 consecutive days. Then I went through a muddley patch from Wednesday through Sunday. This "3 steps forward and 2 back" thing isn't easy. Yet, in the middle of the muddle I realized 2 things. First, this really is in God's Hands, and second I need to keep daily asking Him for the increase. Most every day I take a moment to thank Father God for the sight He is giving me, and then to say, in Jesus' name... sight be multiplied!
Today most of my vision is more muddled than the 3 previous days, but my vision is very bright, and I have a strong and joyful sense new big clarity is coming.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Feb 25, 2015 LIGHTHEARTED... WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS!
First, the vision report...
Currently my vision is getting brighter on its up and down path. The growing brightness is good. I believe it is because more and more retinal cells are being formed and layering upon each other. I'm waiting... waiting for more clarity to come. The waiting is happy on the good days, hard on the days of lesser vision. I am so thankful to have hope and life in my eyes!!!
-----------
Yesterday I received an email newsletter that included the story of Allison Corona, a 22 year old young lady who is one of the glowing successes of Philadelphia's clinical trial. What an interesting trail of feelings and thoughts have followed.
The first time I read about Allison's wonderful visual improvements was last May... about a month before I received the "no-go" email from Philadelphia. OUCH!!!!! I remember how hard it was to read Allison's story and feel with all my heart that the chance to share all that joy and better vision should have also come to me. Those were dark and difficult days.
This time when I read Allison's story, I realized I didn't have to look out through my tiny fading tunnel of light perception, and feel hope drain away and depression come. I didn't have to read her story and struggle with envy. I didn't have to spend several days feeling shunted aside and left behind., and then slowly gather the pieces and start living again.
This time I get to just be glad for Allison and glad for me... and glad for the people in Philadelphia -- lighthearted without complications! What a blessing from Heaven!!! Woohoo!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love and Shalom,
Pam
Currently my vision is getting brighter on its up and down path. The growing brightness is good. I believe it is because more and more retinal cells are being formed and layering upon each other. I'm waiting... waiting for more clarity to come. The waiting is happy on the good days, hard on the days of lesser vision. I am so thankful to have hope and life in my eyes!!!
-----------
Yesterday I received an email newsletter that included the story of Allison Corona, a 22 year old young lady who is one of the glowing successes of Philadelphia's clinical trial. What an interesting trail of feelings and thoughts have followed.
The first time I read about Allison's wonderful visual improvements was last May... about a month before I received the "no-go" email from Philadelphia. OUCH!!!!! I remember how hard it was to read Allison's story and feel with all my heart that the chance to share all that joy and better vision should have also come to me. Those were dark and difficult days.
This time when I read Allison's story, I realized I didn't have to look out through my tiny fading tunnel of light perception, and feel hope drain away and depression come. I didn't have to read her story and struggle with envy. I didn't have to spend several days feeling shunted aside and left behind., and then slowly gather the pieces and start living again.
This time I get to just be glad for Allison and glad for me... and glad for the people in Philadelphia -- lighthearted without complications! What a blessing from Heaven!!! Woohoo!!!
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love and Shalom,
Pam
Mar 24, 2015 MORE... BRIGHTER... A LITTLE CLEARER
Things are well on this slow journey.
For about 3 weeks my visual advances and retreats seemed to stay in the same range... no discernible step forward. That got a little nerve racking taking supplements... getting shots... drinking that horrid H2O2 with my vision seeming to wallow around in the same place. I tried to trust that it was all cumulative and going somewhere good, but it was hard.
Then Saturday March 14 we walked to a neighbor's house and I could see the presence and shapes of trees far more clearly than before. We went to a restaurant we visit often and suddenly I could see far more of the light fixtures, and their shapes were truer rather than just looking like big blobs of light. Sunday at church I noticed I moved around more easily than I ever have there.
I consistently see more of the outlines of people gathered in groups -- classes I am part of or people gathered together at a table. A couple people have volunteered that they notice my eyes focusing on them and holding more steady.
Our driveway is about 400 feet long. Most days now standing at the top, I can see the blurry shape of our house below. I can also see our curvy blacktop driveway in contrast with the land around it.
I have brightness and perception in a HUGE area where, last November, I was blind. This is AMAZING, and COOL, and the FATHER OF LIGHTS WHO GENEROUSLY GIVES GOOD AND PERFECT GIFTS IS DOING GREAT THINGS!!!
God is creating and giving new sight where there was nothing. There is HOPE in your impossible situation too.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
For about 3 weeks my visual advances and retreats seemed to stay in the same range... no discernible step forward. That got a little nerve racking taking supplements... getting shots... drinking that horrid H2O2 with my vision seeming to wallow around in the same place. I tried to trust that it was all cumulative and going somewhere good, but it was hard.
Then Saturday March 14 we walked to a neighbor's house and I could see the presence and shapes of trees far more clearly than before. We went to a restaurant we visit often and suddenly I could see far more of the light fixtures, and their shapes were truer rather than just looking like big blobs of light. Sunday at church I noticed I moved around more easily than I ever have there.
I consistently see more of the outlines of people gathered in groups -- classes I am part of or people gathered together at a table. A couple people have volunteered that they notice my eyes focusing on them and holding more steady.
Our driveway is about 400 feet long. Most days now standing at the top, I can see the blurry shape of our house below. I can also see our curvy blacktop driveway in contrast with the land around it.
I have brightness and perception in a HUGE area where, last November, I was blind. This is AMAZING, and COOL, and the FATHER OF LIGHTS WHO GENEROUSLY GIVES GOOD AND PERFECT GIFTS IS DOING GREAT THINGS!!!
God is creating and giving new sight where there was nothing. There is HOPE in your impossible situation too.
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Apr 10, 2015 IT'S GOOD!!!
Our bathroom has big, bright windows divided into fourths. Every morning since I was treated, I get out of bed, round the corner to the bathroom, and look to see what I'm going to see that day.
On Friday March 27 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! My visual field was HUGE!!!... bigger than it has been for decades!!! The vision in that field is currently very imprecise, but the area of visual perception is enormous!!!
On Wednesday April 1 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! My vision was BRIGHT!!!... blurry, but the brightest it has been in maybe 15 years!!!
On Friday April 3 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! I clearly saw the center-post of the windows from about 12 feet away. Previously I had to be within about 4 feet to see it.
On Resurrection Day morning we hopped in the car for church and... THANK YOU JESUS, MORE RESURRECTION WAS OCCURRING!!! My vision took a huge leap forward in clarity. The lines that delineated everything were clearer!!!
All of these are indicators that this journey... God's healing and restoration of my eyes is going very well indeed.
Right after the treatment, the times that my vision went backwards were like stepping back temporarily to the vision I had before starting, and those backward steps sometimes lasted for days. It was disconcerting to say the least.
Today, even when my vision goes backward, I have so much more vision than I started out with. It is such a blessing to begin to have my experience 24-7 match the goodness Our Lord had told me He had in store.
I spoke to the SCRC after noticing my huge visual field, and they said this gives reason to be optimistic for a very positive outcome! WooHoo!!!
The SCRC explained that the very first changes I noticed were probably from stem cells releasing growth factors around my existing cells, which perked up and did some repair and recovery. The next wave that follows is the stem cells latching on, and then multiplying via repeated cell division. This is likely still ongoing. Then the next wave, which has probably begun, is that the stem cells differentiate into retinal cells, and grow enough that they are no longer stem cells. They are immature retinal cells that don't yet function efficiently or see fully. Think of an embryo developing into a baby, whose vision is still developing even after birth. That is the process that has started and will be ongoing in my eyes. My huge visual field is most likely full of these immature cells that will be developing, growing, working more efficiently, and seeing more and more over time. Thank you Abba Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit!!!... and... more please.:)
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
On Friday March 27 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! My visual field was HUGE!!!... bigger than it has been for decades!!! The vision in that field is currently very imprecise, but the area of visual perception is enormous!!!
On Wednesday April 1 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! My vision was BRIGHT!!!... blurry, but the brightest it has been in maybe 15 years!!!
On Friday April 3 I rounded the corner and... BAM!!! I clearly saw the center-post of the windows from about 12 feet away. Previously I had to be within about 4 feet to see it.
On Resurrection Day morning we hopped in the car for church and... THANK YOU JESUS, MORE RESURRECTION WAS OCCURRING!!! My vision took a huge leap forward in clarity. The lines that delineated everything were clearer!!!
All of these are indicators that this journey... God's healing and restoration of my eyes is going very well indeed.
Right after the treatment, the times that my vision went backwards were like stepping back temporarily to the vision I had before starting, and those backward steps sometimes lasted for days. It was disconcerting to say the least.
Today, even when my vision goes backward, I have so much more vision than I started out with. It is such a blessing to begin to have my experience 24-7 match the goodness Our Lord had told me He had in store.
I spoke to the SCRC after noticing my huge visual field, and they said this gives reason to be optimistic for a very positive outcome! WooHoo!!!
The SCRC explained that the very first changes I noticed were probably from stem cells releasing growth factors around my existing cells, which perked up and did some repair and recovery. The next wave that follows is the stem cells latching on, and then multiplying via repeated cell division. This is likely still ongoing. Then the next wave, which has probably begun, is that the stem cells differentiate into retinal cells, and grow enough that they are no longer stem cells. They are immature retinal cells that don't yet function efficiently or see fully. Think of an embryo developing into a baby, whose vision is still developing even after birth. That is the process that has started and will be ongoing in my eyes. My huge visual field is most likely full of these immature cells that will be developing, growing, working more efficiently, and seeing more and more over time. Thank you Abba Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit!!!... and... more please.:)
More to come,
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
May 9, 2015 A VISIT WITH MY STEM CELL DOC'
Last week I was in Phoenix for the glorious wedding of my niece. It was a joyous and beautiful celebration. She and her new husband both love Jesus first, and are mightily in love with each other.
When I let the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center know I would be in the area, my Doctor said she would love a chance to touch base and say hello. My parents came too, and we all had a very cool meeting with hugs all round, and we got a chance to ask questions about my progress.
Before we came I emailed my log of dates and the visual changes I noticed. I especially wanted to meet, because the times of 2 steps back between big leaps forward sometimes leave me with questions, wondering if everything is going alright.
The Doctor affirmed that all the peculiar things that happen in my vision -- dark and light days, the image being like a snowy picture on an old fashioned TV, waviness, glitteriness, and flashes -- all those odd things and the ups and downs are completely normal. These are part of the experiences of many people who have had good improvements in their vision.
I expressed that when I'm in a backward time, I sometimes wonder if I did something wrong and killed the stem cells. My Doctor said, "Oh! That never happens!" She indicated if I have radiation or started using drugs, that would damage and possibly stop the stem cells. But if I'm just doing life and staying healthy they will keep developing and building tissue. She said the tissue building just continues... even after a year. WooHoo! That's the first time I've heard that, and it's great news!
The Doctor said my "snowy TV picture image is often described by others as like looking through a shattered mirror. That's an apt description. I asked if anyone gets stuck with this visual effect. She said the shattered effect goes away as the pieces come together. It so helped me to hear this! I remember a day early on that the effect was so "noisy" it literally wore me out by the end of the day. With the understanding of what to expect, I'm aware the "noisiness" of this visual effect has lessened a lot since the first days after treatment, and what I can discern visually within the snowiness has greatly increased. My vision is currently still imprecise, but I can tell this is moving in the right direction.
With no prompting, my Doctor echoed something that I have sensed many times in this journey:
"There's LIFE going on in your eyes, not death!"
This meeting is such an uplift and encouragement to me. Now when I look out and see the crazy things that are part of new retinas being built in my eyes, I SMILE! I have stopped worrying and wondering if everything is OK, or if this is all going to turn out alright. I have been assured that all is very well indeed, and going in great directions.
My ratio of good hours to bad hours is increasing. The brightness of my vision is increasing. I notice I can see things in much less light than I used to. Good things are here and greater things are still coming!!!
More to come...
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
When I let the Stem Cell Rejuvenation Center know I would be in the area, my Doctor said she would love a chance to touch base and say hello. My parents came too, and we all had a very cool meeting with hugs all round, and we got a chance to ask questions about my progress.
Before we came I emailed my log of dates and the visual changes I noticed. I especially wanted to meet, because the times of 2 steps back between big leaps forward sometimes leave me with questions, wondering if everything is going alright.
The Doctor affirmed that all the peculiar things that happen in my vision -- dark and light days, the image being like a snowy picture on an old fashioned TV, waviness, glitteriness, and flashes -- all those odd things and the ups and downs are completely normal. These are part of the experiences of many people who have had good improvements in their vision.
I expressed that when I'm in a backward time, I sometimes wonder if I did something wrong and killed the stem cells. My Doctor said, "Oh! That never happens!" She indicated if I have radiation or started using drugs, that would damage and possibly stop the stem cells. But if I'm just doing life and staying healthy they will keep developing and building tissue. She said the tissue building just continues... even after a year. WooHoo! That's the first time I've heard that, and it's great news!
The Doctor said my "snowy TV picture image is often described by others as like looking through a shattered mirror. That's an apt description. I asked if anyone gets stuck with this visual effect. She said the shattered effect goes away as the pieces come together. It so helped me to hear this! I remember a day early on that the effect was so "noisy" it literally wore me out by the end of the day. With the understanding of what to expect, I'm aware the "noisiness" of this visual effect has lessened a lot since the first days after treatment, and what I can discern visually within the snowiness has greatly increased. My vision is currently still imprecise, but I can tell this is moving in the right direction.
With no prompting, my Doctor echoed something that I have sensed many times in this journey:
"There's LIFE going on in your eyes, not death!"
This meeting is such an uplift and encouragement to me. Now when I look out and see the crazy things that are part of new retinas being built in my eyes, I SMILE! I have stopped worrying and wondering if everything is OK, or if this is all going to turn out alright. I have been assured that all is very well indeed, and going in great directions.
My ratio of good hours to bad hours is increasing. The brightness of my vision is increasing. I notice I can see things in much less light than I used to. Good things are here and greater things are still coming!!!
More to come...
God is good!!!
Love,
Pam
Jun 14, 2015 GOD'S LEADING
This email is about cool stuff!
For a couple years now I have felt God's leading to share my story as I live it. That's why these emails.:)
The Lord opened new doors for more sharing. Following where God directed my heart, I approached Pete and Nancy Torpey. Pete is blind, Nancy is sighted. They are both retired physicists. They do a weekly podcast called Eyes on Success that is a prominent information source in the blindness community. Their interview style is warm and welcoming, and the goal of their podcast is to, "provide information about the ever changing world of accessibility." Their podcast covers anything and everything, from a blind soccer league in India, to a new budding blind musician, to cutting-edge access technologies.
I offered Pete and Nancy an interview about my stem cell treatment, and they accepted with great interest. We will record our interview this Tuesday, June 16. Our conversation will be edited to fit into their 30 minute format, and the podcast will air one of the weeks in August, Lord willing.
I am very excited about this opportunity, and ask for your prayers that our Lord will give me the words and ability to communicate this story well. At one level this is a story about stem cell treatment, at another it is a story about God's mercy and creative power, that left these awesome stem cells in us that have the capability to re-create and do His will. From my heart together with God's Heart, I want to tell the whole story. I need His help to do it.
I've listened to the Eyes on Success podcast many times now. At the end of each podcast, Pete and Nancy ask how people may contact their guest. I spent a couple months pondering and asking God how to handle this. Through the Lord speaking to my heart, a sermon from Derek Prince from John 1, and a conversation with my sister and Brother-in-law, God has provided the coolest answer.
There is a free service called Weebly, through which anyone can easily build and publish a website or blog. These emails are the foundation from which my husband, Jerry and I are beginning work to construct a blog for anyone interested to read. The desire of my heart is to tell the whole story. Jesus said He came to bring recovery of sight to the blind, and stem cells are one awesome way He does it. I want people to know all about autologous stem cell treatment. I also want people to know that the HOPE of this treatment comes straight from the Almighty Creator of the Universe Who loves each of us so!
So when Pete and Nancy ask how people may contact me, I will answer that the address for my blog communicates what I know to be true about this whole story...
JesusMadeMyStemCells.weebly.com
It's Good!!!
Now here's some fun stuff about my eyes. Visual improvements continue to happen gradually. The up and down of the process is still very present. Changes are subtle and hard to wrap words around, but examples of things I keep noticing more and more are...
- I see things in lower and lower levels of light.
- I often see my hands as they work. Years ago I had stopped trying to watch what I was doing because it was pointless.
- Watching TV I sometimes see shapes or movement on the screen. I used to only see if the screen was lit or not.
- When looking at a pile of dishes or laundry... I am a mom after all:)... I see more defined shapes or color variations in the pile, although my color perception is still gray-scale.
Here's more cool stuff. I was discussing the huge increase in my visual field with the SCRC, and they commented that they haven't seen this happen all that often. To me, it's such a sign of God's Hand in this. I told how, on the down days, I look at my huge visual field for confidence and encouragement.
Then we talked about how it helps to think of the journey with stem cells as being like the development of a baby in the womb. The weird part is that, as an adult, I am conscious and aware, looking out of my eyes the whole time that my retinas are being built. When they have studied the development of babies, the rods that see in black and white and do night vision develop first, and the cones which see in color develop later. I remember from my psych background that there is a lot of evidence that newborn babies see in black and white, and develop color vision after birth.
This all fits with my experience. The huge visual field and vision in ever dimmer light are big evidence of rods being formed. It gives me great confidence that cones and color vision are coming. May it be, Lord!
More to come,
God is merciful, loving and very good!
Love,
Pam
For a couple years now I have felt God's leading to share my story as I live it. That's why these emails.:)
The Lord opened new doors for more sharing. Following where God directed my heart, I approached Pete and Nancy Torpey. Pete is blind, Nancy is sighted. They are both retired physicists. They do a weekly podcast called Eyes on Success that is a prominent information source in the blindness community. Their interview style is warm and welcoming, and the goal of their podcast is to, "provide information about the ever changing world of accessibility." Their podcast covers anything and everything, from a blind soccer league in India, to a new budding blind musician, to cutting-edge access technologies.
I offered Pete and Nancy an interview about my stem cell treatment, and they accepted with great interest. We will record our interview this Tuesday, June 16. Our conversation will be edited to fit into their 30 minute format, and the podcast will air one of the weeks in August, Lord willing.
I am very excited about this opportunity, and ask for your prayers that our Lord will give me the words and ability to communicate this story well. At one level this is a story about stem cell treatment, at another it is a story about God's mercy and creative power, that left these awesome stem cells in us that have the capability to re-create and do His will. From my heart together with God's Heart, I want to tell the whole story. I need His help to do it.
I've listened to the Eyes on Success podcast many times now. At the end of each podcast, Pete and Nancy ask how people may contact their guest. I spent a couple months pondering and asking God how to handle this. Through the Lord speaking to my heart, a sermon from Derek Prince from John 1, and a conversation with my sister and Brother-in-law, God has provided the coolest answer.
There is a free service called Weebly, through which anyone can easily build and publish a website or blog. These emails are the foundation from which my husband, Jerry and I are beginning work to construct a blog for anyone interested to read. The desire of my heart is to tell the whole story. Jesus said He came to bring recovery of sight to the blind, and stem cells are one awesome way He does it. I want people to know all about autologous stem cell treatment. I also want people to know that the HOPE of this treatment comes straight from the Almighty Creator of the Universe Who loves each of us so!
So when Pete and Nancy ask how people may contact me, I will answer that the address for my blog communicates what I know to be true about this whole story...
JesusMadeMyStemCells.weebly.com
It's Good!!!
Now here's some fun stuff about my eyes. Visual improvements continue to happen gradually. The up and down of the process is still very present. Changes are subtle and hard to wrap words around, but examples of things I keep noticing more and more are...
- I see things in lower and lower levels of light.
- I often see my hands as they work. Years ago I had stopped trying to watch what I was doing because it was pointless.
- Watching TV I sometimes see shapes or movement on the screen. I used to only see if the screen was lit or not.
- When looking at a pile of dishes or laundry... I am a mom after all:)... I see more defined shapes or color variations in the pile, although my color perception is still gray-scale.
Here's more cool stuff. I was discussing the huge increase in my visual field with the SCRC, and they commented that they haven't seen this happen all that often. To me, it's such a sign of God's Hand in this. I told how, on the down days, I look at my huge visual field for confidence and encouragement.
Then we talked about how it helps to think of the journey with stem cells as being like the development of a baby in the womb. The weird part is that, as an adult, I am conscious and aware, looking out of my eyes the whole time that my retinas are being built. When they have studied the development of babies, the rods that see in black and white and do night vision develop first, and the cones which see in color develop later. I remember from my psych background that there is a lot of evidence that newborn babies see in black and white, and develop color vision after birth.
This all fits with my experience. The huge visual field and vision in ever dimmer light are big evidence of rods being formed. It gives me great confidence that cones and color vision are coming. May it be, Lord!
More to come,
God is merciful, loving and very good!
Love,
Pam
Jul 21, 2015 FEATURES!
I've been a bit remiss in getting this written. Here's a progress report, and then in the next email I'll tell about a cool happening last night.
Back on June 12th I was walking our driveway for exercise. Suddenly I noticed features... I could see contrasting colors of the blacktop driveway, the deeper color of the grass on the left and the lighter tan of the stoney bank on the right, the deep color of the trees atop the bank and another clump of trees far away, and the beautiful blue sky with puffy white clouds above. I could see all the differences in the features around me, and in a very large visual field all at the same time. SO COOL!
One of the hard parts of this journey is that often, right after I have a new big gain in what I can see, it goes into hiding for awhile... usually 4 to 6 days. This time the ability to see all those features went into hiding for about 2 & 1/2 weeks. That's hard! That beautiful view didn't come back until June 29. I was so thankful when it did!
On July 4th we went to our town's fireworks. I have always loved fireworks! They are a low vision person's eye-candy -- perfect contrast... bursts of light in vivid color against the night sky. Last year's fireworks were depressing. I could hardly see any of it -- here and there a dull patch of light, or once in a while a flash. It was just "in my face" that this fun thing I've loved all my life was nearly gone.
This year my eyes easily found most of the flashes of fireworks in the sky. I could not yet discern color or the unique characteristics of different fireworks, but I sure enjoyed the flashes. So going home I felt fairly happy, not depressed. What I could see was much more than a year ago, and I deeply hope for even more next year.
So this journey is good... awesomely good... but not for the faint of heart.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
Love,
Pam
Back on June 12th I was walking our driveway for exercise. Suddenly I noticed features... I could see contrasting colors of the blacktop driveway, the deeper color of the grass on the left and the lighter tan of the stoney bank on the right, the deep color of the trees atop the bank and another clump of trees far away, and the beautiful blue sky with puffy white clouds above. I could see all the differences in the features around me, and in a very large visual field all at the same time. SO COOL!
One of the hard parts of this journey is that often, right after I have a new big gain in what I can see, it goes into hiding for awhile... usually 4 to 6 days. This time the ability to see all those features went into hiding for about 2 & 1/2 weeks. That's hard! That beautiful view didn't come back until June 29. I was so thankful when it did!
On July 4th we went to our town's fireworks. I have always loved fireworks! They are a low vision person's eye-candy -- perfect contrast... bursts of light in vivid color against the night sky. Last year's fireworks were depressing. I could hardly see any of it -- here and there a dull patch of light, or once in a while a flash. It was just "in my face" that this fun thing I've loved all my life was nearly gone.
This year my eyes easily found most of the flashes of fireworks in the sky. I could not yet discern color or the unique characteristics of different fireworks, but I sure enjoyed the flashes. So going home I felt fairly happy, not depressed. What I could see was much more than a year ago, and I deeply hope for even more next year.
So this journey is good... awesomely good... but not for the faint of heart.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
Love,
Pam
Jul 22, 2015 A FIRST INKLING OF THINGS TO COME!
On Monday we picked up an order at JCP, and spotted 2 pair of winter pajamas on massive clearance, red plaid for Jerry and blue plaid for our son. We thought it would be great fun to have father/son matching jam's in the middle of winter, so we bought them at $4.17 apiece. How could we say no?
Each pair was a little large for its future wearer, so I washed and dried them to shrink them down. I pulled the first pajama top out of the drier, folded it and set it down. When I folded the second top and set it beside the first, I could see that the color was different. I folded the first pair of bottoms and held them up to each top. Right away I could see they went with the top on the left. I could also see that the next pair of bottoms went with the top on the right, and did not match the top on the left. Although I would not be able to identify the colors as blue and red, I perceived the color on the left as a dark, cool color and the color on the right as a warm, slightly lighter color.
Our son loves to help with stuff like this, so I called him in to check my work. Indeed the pajamas were correctly matched with the blue on the left and the red on the right!
If I had tried to do this even a month ago, I would have taken the PJ's to a very bright light, held them close to my face and studied them a long time to make my best guess with little confidence. I did not seek brighter light or engage in prolonged staring at the pajamas. I looked for a second or 2, knew the differences in the colors, and I was pretty confident I had it right when I called our son.
This is a BIG DEAL -- the first inkling of the beginning of perception of COLOR!!! I love colors! I miss colors!
A couple months ago the SCRC told me my huge visual field was strong evidence that I had stem cells differentiating into retinal cells. They said that rods develop first -- these are the photo-receptors that see at night. They see in black and white. When they've studied the development of retinas in babies, the cones develop later. Cones are the photo-receptors that see in daylight and in color. This is the first visual event on my journey that indicates the birthing of cones in my eyes. Woo-Hoo!!!
This morning when I rounded the proverbial corner to the bathroom, BAM! My eyes were overwhelmed by brightness from the windows there. I've noticed lots of new brightness all day. I can only interpret it as new cells coming on-line, starting to get connected up.
Tomorrow, July 23, we leave for the awesome, amazing conference we attended last year with Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda and Bill and Beni Johnson at All Nations Church in Ft. Mill SC. We were so blessed and moved last year, we made plans to attend this year's conference on the way home. Last year we all felt challenged to grow in experiencing and bringing the joy of the Lord into our lives. We've all enjoyed new life and joy in our relationships with Father God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit. We're very excited to go, and wonder what new lessons and blessings the Lord has in store for us.
Seeing in color has begun!!! Hallelujah!!!
My faith is renewed!!!
More to come,
God is wonderfully good,
Love,
Pam
Each pair was a little large for its future wearer, so I washed and dried them to shrink them down. I pulled the first pajama top out of the drier, folded it and set it down. When I folded the second top and set it beside the first, I could see that the color was different. I folded the first pair of bottoms and held them up to each top. Right away I could see they went with the top on the left. I could also see that the next pair of bottoms went with the top on the right, and did not match the top on the left. Although I would not be able to identify the colors as blue and red, I perceived the color on the left as a dark, cool color and the color on the right as a warm, slightly lighter color.
Our son loves to help with stuff like this, so I called him in to check my work. Indeed the pajamas were correctly matched with the blue on the left and the red on the right!
If I had tried to do this even a month ago, I would have taken the PJ's to a very bright light, held them close to my face and studied them a long time to make my best guess with little confidence. I did not seek brighter light or engage in prolonged staring at the pajamas. I looked for a second or 2, knew the differences in the colors, and I was pretty confident I had it right when I called our son.
This is a BIG DEAL -- the first inkling of the beginning of perception of COLOR!!! I love colors! I miss colors!
A couple months ago the SCRC told me my huge visual field was strong evidence that I had stem cells differentiating into retinal cells. They said that rods develop first -- these are the photo-receptors that see at night. They see in black and white. When they've studied the development of retinas in babies, the cones develop later. Cones are the photo-receptors that see in daylight and in color. This is the first visual event on my journey that indicates the birthing of cones in my eyes. Woo-Hoo!!!
This morning when I rounded the proverbial corner to the bathroom, BAM! My eyes were overwhelmed by brightness from the windows there. I've noticed lots of new brightness all day. I can only interpret it as new cells coming on-line, starting to get connected up.
Tomorrow, July 23, we leave for the awesome, amazing conference we attended last year with Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda and Bill and Beni Johnson at All Nations Church in Ft. Mill SC. We were so blessed and moved last year, we made plans to attend this year's conference on the way home. Last year we all felt challenged to grow in experiencing and bringing the joy of the Lord into our lives. We've all enjoyed new life and joy in our relationships with Father God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit. We're very excited to go, and wonder what new lessons and blessings the Lord has in store for us.
Seeing in color has begun!!! Hallelujah!!!
My faith is renewed!!!
More to come,
God is wonderfully good,
Love,
Pam
Aug 29, 2015 DANCING
Awesome things happened at the conference we attended with Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda and Bill and Beni Johnson in July. On the first or second night the leaders had a word of knowledge that the Lord would heal joints, especially knees. People wanting healing prayer for their knees raised their hands, and we were all encouraged to find someone nearby to pray for. Our son laid hands on, and prayed 2 or 3 times for the knee of a man named Tom Martin. Tom's knee had troubled him for 50 years. The cartilage was very deteriorated and using his knee caused significant pain. Through these prayers, God completely restored Tom's knee, new cartilage and all! Over the weekend people who experienced significant healings could write out what happened. Tom's report was one of the ones the leaders read to give glory to God and to spread encouragement that miracles were happening. My husband and son got to talk with Tom Sunday afternoon at the end of the conference. His knee was whole and pain-free!!! Thank you Lord!!! Tom has other health issues with his heart and lungs, so we are continuing to pray for him. ...And God healed Tom's knee to the joy of Tom and his wife... and of our son. We believe God is giving our son a gift of healing. We are very excited to see how this gift grows in his life. We also believe God wouldn't heal Tom's knee only to stop there. Our good and loving Dad in Heaven has more healing for tom, and we're asking for it to come fully very soon. Saturday evening there is a huge service, open to the public. It starts with about a 90 minute all-out worship party unto the Lord with music, dancing, flags, shofar blowing. It's joyous and brings to mind for Jerry and me what it must have been like to be part of King David's worship celebrations. There was a moment that part of it got uncomfortable for me, so I told God I was uncomfortable. In answer, Jesus came to me and said, "How about we just dance, and God will take care of everything else that's going on." So Jesus and I danced and had a great time of fun and communion. He told me about how I am usually a wall-flower at dances, but He doesn't want me to be a wall-flower dancing with Him. It was a very precious time! At the Sunday morning service, the last of the conference, a woman on the worship team played "The Lovers Waltz" on her flute with piano. It was gorgeous! Then they told the story of how she chose the song. She and her husband have a young son who is a mighty light for the Lord. He also has a terrible seizure disorder with frequent grand mal seizures. A few days earlier, she had been crying out to the Lord about it. She cried, "This just feels like 2 steps forward and 1 back!" The Lord answered her... "It's not like that when we're dancing!" So out of that experience she played The Lovers Waltz. Their son has also been seizure free for 3 days! For me, this all immediately connected with dancing with Jesus the night before. How many times in these emails have I described the ups and downs with my vision as being like 3 steps forward and 2 back? It was like Jesus was standing right before me saying, "You and I are dancing too." It's a revelation I'm holding on to. On Saturday night and again on Sunday morning the conference leaders with prayer teams ended the service with a wonderful experience commonly called a "fire tunnel." This is a really cool way for each person in an audience of perhaps 800 or more to receive personal prayer and a wonderful opportunity to encounter God. Leaders and volunteer pray-ers form 2 lines facing each other, making a walk-way between them. The ushers direct the entire audience in a continuous line that moves slowly through the prayer tunnel. Leaders and prayer team members lay hands on each person and pray as we move through the tunnel. The Lord moves in all kinds of ways, doing with each of us whatever He wants to do. This is not a hype kind of thing. It's a very wonderful, personal experience with God. The Saturday night prayer tunnel included about 10 pray-ers or so. For me it was a powerful, more "down-to-business" experience. When I walked through, Mahesh Chavda, who is a person I consider to strongly hear and know the voice of the Lord, laid a powerful hand on me, and prayed aloud fervently that God would bless the stem cells and make the treatment work wonderfully well and fast. It's very meaningful to me that God would move Mahesh to specifically pray this way. The Sunday morning prayer tunnel was an unexpected, wonderful surprise. I would guess maybe 25 or 30 pray-ers made the tunnel, so it was long. For me the extra time made it easier to relax and drink in the experience. Early on I reached out a hand toward one of the pray-ers. I'm so thankful I did! That person took my hand, and then they handed me person to person as I moved through the tunnel. In a way, that provided the experience that sight lends to a sighted person. I had a strong sense of each person individually praying for me as I moved through. The prayers were all powerful, but with different qualities... quiet, moved, loving, joyful, mighty, etc. I got happy early on, and became filled with the joy of the Lord. I laughed through most of the tunnel with joy just bubbling up from my heart. It was a completely new and awesome experience for me. Perhaps 2/3 of the way through the tunnel, a woman from the prayer team put her hand on my chest and loudly prayed for the fire of the Lord on me. This was a totally new experience for me, and completely good... just the right, unexpected thing. After she repeated her prayer twice, I thought... I could brace myself and stay standing as she prayed, or I could let go and just let God move in the prayer in whatever way He wanted. I don't come from a floor-dropping tradition, so this was all new to me. I decided not to brace. The prayer was full of power, and joy, and the hand of the Lord... and down to the floor I happily went. Then the usher stood me up and we moved on.:) The last pray-er in the tunnel was a man who took my hand with a strong grasp, and firmly prayed, "Shalom!" This word is translated "peace" in Scripture. The Hebrew word really means, nothing missing nothing broken. His prayer and blessing was deeply powerful in a grounding, mighty way. We all went home deeply blessed by a full and wonderful encounter with God, Who we love and Who so greatly loves us! A couple weeks later, Jerry and I streamed a healing meeting headed by Randy Clark, who has seen many healing miracles in the last couple decades of his ministry. Randy said some people are healed during prayer, and others are healed as they try to do something they haven't been able to do, I decided to take a step of faith and walk our driveway without using my white cane. There is no way I could do this without getting lost even 4 months ago. I did it several times successfully... not perfectly, but fairly easily with no getting lost. Aug. 21 Jerry had the pick-up parked at the midpoint of the driveway with stuff needed for gardening. Previously I would need to come into contact with the truck with my cane, and then navigate around it. This time I could see the truck enough to not run into it,and then to walk around it without my cane. This is significant progress! I'm waiting for the Lord to do more... perhaps as I am walking. So Jesus and I are dancing. Sometimes it's very graceful and joyful. Sometimes I get caught up in the 3 steps forward and 2 back, and my part of the dance gets clunky. Jesus is truly with me no matter how my steps are going. May I spend more time with my eyes on Jesus and my heart dancing with Him, and less with my eyes focused on me. He will do all He promised, including restoring sight to blind eyes. Blessings to all of you in Jesus' name! More to come, God is wonderfully good! Love, Pam
Sept 7 2015 ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT CHANGE
This morning I printed a note for our mail carrier in all caps, 16 point, bold font. I walked through a bright area of our house with the note in my hand, and thought I would try to see if I could tell which side of the paper the note was printed on. After looking at both sides for a couple seconds I was pretty sure I could tell. I checked with our son who affirmed I had it right. Then our son, being himself grabbed the note and said, "I'm shuffling it around, Mom." He handed it back to me. I took a couple seconds, showed him what I saw as the printed side, and sure enough I got it right again!
We really can't remember how many years it has been since I could see enough to do this... 10?... 15?... a looooooooong time!
Yes, I want to see more, and yet this is significant progress. I'm smiling a BIG SMILE today, and looking for more big changes in the next 3 months.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
He came to restore sight to blind eyes!
Love,
Pam
We really can't remember how many years it has been since I could see enough to do this... 10?... 15?... a looooooooong time!
Yes, I want to see more, and yet this is significant progress. I'm smiling a BIG SMILE today, and looking for more big changes in the next 3 months.
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
He came to restore sight to blind eyes!
Love,
Pam
Oct 13 2015 LIGHT-HEARTED WITHOUT COMPLICATIONS... SOM'MORE
You may have read that in December, 2012 I was screened for a gene therapy clinical trial in Philadelphia, and disqualified for scores that fell too low on the mobility course that was the primary measure in the study. I was not told until the day of screening that a person could see too poorly to qualify for the trial, so when this happened it was a complete and heart breaking shock.
The gene therapy used in that trial is slated to be the first commercial product of a new business that is likely to receive FDA approval for this treatment in 2016. About a year ago, I signed up on the business's website to receive email updates. Last Tuesday (Oct. 6) I received the first update. The email indicated that attached I would find a press release announcing the top-line results of the clinical trial.
So many feelings welled up as I read the email... sadness, regret, feeling stunned still at the years of chasing that opportunity only to have my hopes utterly dashed. I asked myself, "Have I really forgiven them?" I thought about it awhile and realized I have released them from any debt to me, and I have trusted this all into God's Hands. I have forgiven them, but I was deeply wounded. My heart still feels those feelings.
I still wanted to know the results of the study, so I took a deep breath and opened the attachment.
- They got statistically significant improvement with people walking the mobility course using only their first treated eye, when they compared scores before treatment to scores one year after treatment.
- They got statistically significant improvement in retinal responsiveness to light.
- They did not get statistically significant improvement in visual acuity.
It is also note-worthy that younger people have routinely gained more from this gene therapy. Gene therapy can only fix viable retina that still exists, it cannot create new retina. If I had made it into this clinical trial, my age and advanced retinal disease would not have been in my favor.
If you have been a reader of all these emails, like me you won't have to think long to realize that I have gotten at least as much visual improvement from being treated with my own stem cells... probably more. In addition... and this is HUGE, I have newly created retina that didn't exist before the treatment. Hallelujah!!!
Remember the email about walking our driveway without my white cane? A year ago I would have gotten lost. Well... there's the mobility course!
Remember the Christmas tree lights, things popping into view off to the side, the rolling away of the blackness where I had no vision, my HUGE visual field, things getting brighter and brighter? That's all retinal responsiveness to light!
Above and beyond increased mobility and increased retinal responsiveness to light are: Seeing the shapes of people I'm with... first up close and later at 12 - 15 feet away; seeing the shelves and the floor at stores; seeing the separate features of the sky, trees, grass and driveway; the beginning of a sense of color when I sorted the red and blue pajamas; identifying the printed side of the page.
Many times in life, I and other followers of Jesus move forward in faith without all the answers. When I was disqualified from the clinical trial, I believed that I was still in the loving care of our Father in Heaven, but I sure couldn't have explained much.
It is so amazingly cool that the Lord has let me see clear earthly answers about His Rescue Plan. In the wake of being tossed from the clinical trial, my good and loving Dad in Heaven did not walk me down a lesser path. Anyone can objectively see this is true! He made a different way to give me everything the clinical trial would have given... and more.
May many find my journey and this objective evidence convincing of the love and almighty power of our loving Father and Maker, and His Son Jesus who gave everything for us.
For me, His goodness shown so clearly makes me light-hearted... without complications! What a joy!!!
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
Love,
Pam
The gene therapy used in that trial is slated to be the first commercial product of a new business that is likely to receive FDA approval for this treatment in 2016. About a year ago, I signed up on the business's website to receive email updates. Last Tuesday (Oct. 6) I received the first update. The email indicated that attached I would find a press release announcing the top-line results of the clinical trial.
So many feelings welled up as I read the email... sadness, regret, feeling stunned still at the years of chasing that opportunity only to have my hopes utterly dashed. I asked myself, "Have I really forgiven them?" I thought about it awhile and realized I have released them from any debt to me, and I have trusted this all into God's Hands. I have forgiven them, but I was deeply wounded. My heart still feels those feelings.
I still wanted to know the results of the study, so I took a deep breath and opened the attachment.
- They got statistically significant improvement with people walking the mobility course using only their first treated eye, when they compared scores before treatment to scores one year after treatment.
- They got statistically significant improvement in retinal responsiveness to light.
- They did not get statistically significant improvement in visual acuity.
It is also note-worthy that younger people have routinely gained more from this gene therapy. Gene therapy can only fix viable retina that still exists, it cannot create new retina. If I had made it into this clinical trial, my age and advanced retinal disease would not have been in my favor.
If you have been a reader of all these emails, like me you won't have to think long to realize that I have gotten at least as much visual improvement from being treated with my own stem cells... probably more. In addition... and this is HUGE, I have newly created retina that didn't exist before the treatment. Hallelujah!!!
Remember the email about walking our driveway without my white cane? A year ago I would have gotten lost. Well... there's the mobility course!
Remember the Christmas tree lights, things popping into view off to the side, the rolling away of the blackness where I had no vision, my HUGE visual field, things getting brighter and brighter? That's all retinal responsiveness to light!
Above and beyond increased mobility and increased retinal responsiveness to light are: Seeing the shapes of people I'm with... first up close and later at 12 - 15 feet away; seeing the shelves and the floor at stores; seeing the separate features of the sky, trees, grass and driveway; the beginning of a sense of color when I sorted the red and blue pajamas; identifying the printed side of the page.
Many times in life, I and other followers of Jesus move forward in faith without all the answers. When I was disqualified from the clinical trial, I believed that I was still in the loving care of our Father in Heaven, but I sure couldn't have explained much.
It is so amazingly cool that the Lord has let me see clear earthly answers about His Rescue Plan. In the wake of being tossed from the clinical trial, my good and loving Dad in Heaven did not walk me down a lesser path. Anyone can objectively see this is true! He made a different way to give me everything the clinical trial would have given... and more.
May many find my journey and this objective evidence convincing of the love and almighty power of our loving Father and Maker, and His Son Jesus who gave everything for us.
For me, His goodness shown so clearly makes me light-hearted... without complications! What a joy!!!
More to come,
God is wonderfully good!
Love,
Pam