Torticollis – a pain in the neck

Tuesday morning seemed to start off normally at the Nobles – that is, as normal as can be expected for a family who has recently moved to a new town with kids in new schools. Sam was already at school (his starts at 8:00 while Adelyn’s starts at 9:00). Adelyn was up and helping put up the dishes when she screamed in pain.

So began our experience with torticollis, or wry neck,which devolved again today into a fit of contorted agony for our nine year-old.

After her initial scream yesterday, Adelyn had to keep her head placed against her right shoulder for any relief. Even then, she had intermittent bursts of extreme pain which left her crying hysterically. I was at the church office, with a morning full of meetings ahead of me when Carolyn called, upset.

After relating that she’d not been able to find a doctor who could see Adelyn today, we decided to take her to the ER of the Montgomery Country Hospital. It was a nightmarish ride for them, with Adelyn unable to find any relief in any position.

After a loooong day yesterday which included a referral visit to a chiropractor, Adelyn was able to finally fall asleep after prescription muscle relaxers did their trick. Unfortunately, the pain began anew this morning.

This evening, she’s resting – but only after a tortured afternoon which required two more visits to the chiropractor. He was truly amazing. We walked in with a suffering little girl with muscle spasms that almost left her incoherent with pain and walked out after more than an hour of treatment and wonderful care with a little girl still sore and tender but able to get about without spasms reducing her to screaming.

We had to cancel our first small group that was to meet tonight because we had no idea where we’d be at this point. I asked for prayer for her today via Facebook and Twitter, and I’m grateful for the electronic intercession. There’s so much I’ve learned from all this (and still learning). Stay tuned…

In the meantime… wry neck is no laughing matter – in spite of numerous attempts to make it so in the last 24 hours.