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Well that’s just it Perna, other than a couple of sinus infections as a child she’s been healthy as a horse. She’s maybe been on antibiotics twice in her life. So this should have stood out in my mind as a potential problem.
She unfortunately inherited an eye condition from her father, but because that was caught early and corrected with patching and glasses the long term effects are minimal. She’ll never have proper depth perception and will wear glasses or contacts for the rest of her life.
Our children did not hit the genetic lottery. Quite honestly if I knew then; what I know now I don’t know that I would have passed on these genes to another generation. The best I can do is educate them on proper nutrition, life-style choices, and proper medical care.
The only long term effects she’s had from the mauling (that I know of) is pain in the winter on the ear that was almost completely torn off. It seems so foolish that we all overlooked this for so long. Even our old family doctor that was an amazing doctor came to the natural conclusion that these headaches were most probably a genetic issue, and they still may be. I will be crushed if I discover that they are a result of scar tissue from the mauling. That will serve no purpose, because if that is the problem, there is really nothing they can do other than pain management.
Lynn – this does bring up old issues. The woman that was in charge of the vicious dog died a couple years ago. The dog actually belonged to her adult son. My FIL continues to socialize with this man! We stopped in on our way through, he knew we were coming and this man was sitting at his kitchen table drinking coffee!
Neither this man, nor his mother, ever apologized for what happened! Even though it was COURT ORDERED! We never pursued a civil case (which I regret) but during the criminal case the judge asked my daughter what she wanted. At SIX YEARS OLD she stood and said “I have gotten cards and letters from people I don’t even know telling me how sorry they are for what happened to me. I would like her to tell me she’s sorry.” There wasn’t a dry eye in the courtroom (except for the defendant).
My daughter is an extremely beautiful young woman. The first hospital that triaged her understood that these facial wounds had to be properly addressed and sent her on to the nearest hospital with a plastic surgeon on duty. Even though the wounds were very severe, the surgeon did an excellent job. The only time anyone even notices the scars is when she goes to a new hair dresser. The surgeon was gifted, but when you comb through her hair to part it for a cut it is obvious something horrible has happened.
But all of that aside, these people changed her life permanently and they should make amends. My FIL just doesn’t get it. The attack happened in his yard, he saw her, he is an EMT he treated her until the ambulance arrived. How do you overlook that and break bread with the man responsible for such destruction? AND AND AND as icing on the cake, a few years later the man had ANOTHER dog that was a biter that bit my nephew in my FIL’s yard!
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I've been married for 24 years and have four wonderful children.
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