First of all let me say THANK YOU to each and every one of you who've prayed for me and posted sweet comments on my blog and facebook. I really appreciate your support - it's nice to know I'm not alone in the midst of such a frustrating situation. To be sick for so many months and not know what is wrong with you is very trying - physically, emotionally, and even spiritually. So thanks for being there for me!

Now I want to share a little update with you all that we are hoping is good news!

I had a doctor's appointment today with Dr. Clark - a general physician that a friend here connected me to. He has a heart for missions and orphans - he has done overseas mission work and has adopted 4 children from Haiti. We were anxious to see him after a frustrating experience with my last doctor, and excited to talk to someone with overseas experience (and hopefully parasite experience).

As it turns out, he DID have the experience we were hoping for! He has been treated for parasites in the past, and several of the children he adopted had parasites as well. He didn't think we were crazy (as some other medical professionals we talked to did) and AGREED that all my symptoms sound like PARASITES!

He also informed us that it was highly unlikely that any labs here in Michigan would be able to diagnose me properly. No matter what tests were run, they would probably come back NEGATIVE (even if I did have parasites!) Lab techs here in America are just too inexperienced when it comes to finding parasites, so usually they go undetected (which explains why my last two tests came back negative).

So - in an effort to treat me quickly (and without numerous, expensive, painful tests), Dr. Clark prescribed a strong antibiotic that he said will kill 80 - 90% of the types of parasites that exist. He believes this is the best thing to try first, and hopefully it will get rid of all my issues quickly and inexpensively!

So - I start antibiotics on Sunday. There is a chance they will make me sick for a few days, but that's a small price to pay to get healing for these issues. I am SO GLAD we found a doctor who was familiar with parasites - if not we would be doing 5 blood tests right now for much more serious illnesses!

• That this IS parasites, and that this treatment works! There is a still a chance it is not parasites. If this treatment doesn't work, we will have to do further testing and there is still a chance it could be a more serious issue, or a more difficult to diagnose/treat parasite. So please pray this antibiotic works, my symptoms end and we are DONE with these issues soon!

• That I won't be too sick from the antibiotics. Apparently, the more parasites you have, the sicker you can get while the medicine works to get rid of them. I'd really like to be able to enjoy Thanksgiving, so please pray I don't get too sick!

• 100% HEALING ASAP! We are still praying for healing - whether miraculously by God's hand or by God using doctors and antibiotics. I need to be healthy and my immune system needs to be strong before we leave for Thailand in 2 months.

Again - thank you all for your prayers and support! It means so much to have the Body of Christ praying for you and encouraging you through difficult times!