It wasn't until we got the second call that Dr. Mark was a half an hour away that I could literally feel Maddy's heart start to pound. As anyone who is about to receive a fecal transplant for the first time might react, her mind and body began to feel overwhelmed with trepidation and anxiety.
Once Dr. Mark arrived and received a thorough inspection from Echo, guard dog extraordinaire, Maddy began to get very nervous and felt like she was going to throw up. We spent about half an hour talking about the procedure and what was going to happen before getting Maddy into a comfortable position in which to receive the enema. It was at this point that the fear overwhelmed her and she did in fact throw up. As we all know, throwing up isn't at all desirable at the best of times but particularly not when you haven't eaten in 40 hours. It took a bit more conversation but in the end she chose to go through with the treatment despite her fear. On Dr. Mark's suggestion, she also chose to administer it herself and quickly realized how painless it was and that she could in fact do this! I've never been so proud! This kid of mine is one tough cookie. I've also never been more impressed with a doctor in all my experience with medical professionals of all kinds. Mark was kind, patient, helpful and most importantly, he took his time. He talked Maddy through all of her fears and ultimately, he made her feel in control. Maddy was so impressed with him, as were Scott and I. We had a few more chats, laughs and encouragement before Mark packed up his equipment and went on to see his next patient. Maddy gave Mark a big hug and thanked him for being so awesome. Then it was hugs all around for Scott and I too...and of course Maddy needed one last hug. Now, THAT is how a doctor should be-talk about feeling like old friends! He made Maddy feel so comfortable and even empowered her to take her treatment into her own hands-literally!
Maddy had a treatment from the acupuncturist this afternoon and spent the day reading in bed. She threw up two more times but she was eventually able to eat and hold down her meals and lots of water to rehydrate. The recommended amount of time to try to retain the FMT for is 4 hours, Maddy was able to take in the entire amount of the transplant AND retain it for 4.5 hours! You can't ask for much more than that! What a huge success this first day was!
It was a long and emotional day but we are all feeling optimistic about our experience here in Portland. And Maddy-well, she is busily making lists of food trucks to visit while we are here...next stop: Voodoo Doughnuts! :-)