Ten months ago, what started as severe abdominal pain turned into a diagnosis that changed Boothe’s life. After years of unexplained abdominal pain, we finally had our answer. I would have never dreamed that his pain was caused by chronic pancreatitis. It was something I had never heard of a child suffering from. It turns out that Boothe has a genetic mutation that predisposed him to pancreatitis. In the past 296 days he has been through hospital stays, extensive testing, two procedures for stent placement that were unsuccessful, and several painful attacks. Boothe has smiled and stayed positive through every bit of it.
There are days that I know he is overwhelmed, and days that I know he would rather stay in bed. And he knows that he can if he needs to. But most days, he smiles and gives it everything he has! Thursday afternoon, I got the sweetest call from Boothe’s homeroom teacher. She just wanted to let me know that Boothe had scored distinguished on all three of his MAP tests. As usual, I was in awe of the effort he puts into reaching his goals, even as he faces the biggest challenge of his life. I may be a bit bias, but Boothe really is amazing.
November 7th is getting closer, and especially for a kid, it is a big surgery. But Boothe is headed into it with the same determination and positive attitude. I think a lot of that is because of this amazing, giant support system he has. We appreciate each and every one of you more than you will ever know. Thank you for following along with Boothe on this journey and for every single prayer, well wish, kind word, and donation made in his honor.
Brittany
