You all are still in my prayers and thoughts. I know these next weeks will be horribly busy for you all and you will be utterly exhausted nights so I'm also praying for an increase in endurance, physical and mental. Don't hesitate to ask for help when you need it - even if it's just someone to run to the grocery story for you. Hopefully you have or can find some people to come alongside and support you guys during your family's busy time working to get programs, aids and help for your son so he can train and learn all that he can. Wish there were something I could do more practically to help. Get out by yourself when you need it if you can and take a walk, go shopping, go to the park or anywhere you can get away a bit.

Thank you...we are working to get him in a program soon. It looks like we will be able to get some help with the costs. He seems to be handling things pretty well considering. We are looking forward to Easter weekend and spending time together.

dog
 

You and your son will be on my heart and in my prayers a lot. I am so glad he has your love and support. He will have a family of supporters on this site. We truly care and you log on anytime if you need help and advice.
I love that song that says,
"Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone, for I know He holds my future and life is worth living just because He lives."
We never lose hope no matter how dark life becomes because of the promises given to us. "I will never leave you or forsake you." Just call on the name of Jesus and believe in Him and He will be by your side forever!

Easter Wishes
 

Hoping you and your dear son have a peaceful and happy weekend together.
Weather is gorgeous now for walks in the countryside and breathing the fresh scented air of Spring.
Warm thoughts and prayers.
Dot xx

Thank you...it is beautiful here. I believe it will be a wonderful Easter weekend. I wish all of you a very Happy Easter filled with family and love.

Easter
 

Thank you:)
(((Dot)))

Still thinking of you both my sweetheart - wishing you all the very, very best....you KNOW how totally on your side we all are, and would do anything, absolutely anything, to help you through these tough old times...trouble is, I'm ages away - so here's a virtual hug - just so you know I'm thinking of you...:hug: Sally xx

Take this weekend to rest and refresh if you can. No doubt you're ragged with worry and stress but all the time-outs you all can manage to take will be helpful as stress and shock are draining. Just know you aren't alone - many have walked same path you all are walking with your son now and somehow, some way, they've made it forward, many with stunning successes. Many are praying for you and your dear son and our faith sustains, strengthens and imbues us with true courage for the hardest of times but that doesn't always happen immediately. Anytime you feel you are growing weak or don't know what to do next, remember all the prayers going up for you all and stretch out your hand and call on someone you trust and ask for some assistance in how to help your son or yourselves where you are. Don't try to handle alone what you can't yet manage. In time, you'll all be far stronger and surer in how things are going to work but for now, just help son take it step at a time and take all the breaks any of you needs. Hold tight to your faith and know that you will all find your way forward in this and one day even know happiness and joy again, for God knows how to help a suffering son.

Have a blessed Easter Sunday.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
Amen! Wonderful post! Sincere, heartfelt, and true!!

Thank you😊 You do have a wonderful way with words that makes me feel warm inside. I'm getting ready for family to come. It will be a beautiful day😊

dog
 

Very inspiring words sent to you! We all send love and support during this tough time. A lot of us have received comfort from trials from friends and their powerful prayers. You are not alone in this. I surround you with angels from my prayers and know that the Lord will carry you on His shoulders like the lambs and the shepherd. I love this song called Shoulders " When confusion's my companion, and despair holds me to ransom, I will feel no fear I know that You are near! When I'm caught deep in the valley, With chaos for my company, I'll find my comfort here, cause I know that You are near. My help comes from You, You're right here pulling me through, You carry my weakness, my brokenness all on Your shoulders,
My help comes from You, You are my rest, my rescue,I don't have to see to believe that You're lifting me up on Your shoulders." This song comforts me. May it bring peace knowing there's love and care for you, your dear son and family.

Thinking of you and your son on this Blessed Easter. Jeanie has said what is in my heart and thankfully she knows how to express them. God bless everyone on this Holy Day. :love:

Thinking of and praying for your son and you today. You all are never far from my thoughts. How is son doing? How are you and your DH faring?

Just now seeing this and I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for everything you and your son are going through. I can't even imagine. My thoughts are with you both.

We are doing okay. We are in the process of finding a hypoallergenic dog breed that would be large enough to be a service dog. My son is allergic to most dog breeds but not Yorkies, Maltese or Poodles. I thought about the large poodle breed but he thinks they are too ugly.

He seems to be moving towards acceptance, which is good. I am relieved that it's not life threatening and hubby is still a bit in the denial stage. I'm hoping he will come around soon.

If you Google Labradoodle, it mentions an allergen-free guide dog. Labs and Poodles are brilliant dogs and the mix I think would be good.

I am glad to hear your son is doing well with all that has gone on. Has he given the guitar a try yet? Your husband will come around at his own pace. Everyone is different how they cope with unexpected things. Hugs to you and your family!

I'm so glad your son try going for a service dog - should help him a lot eventually and he'll probably even come to enjoy the training process and getting to know his new best buddy. Hope you find just what he needs w/out too much trouble.

Amazing that one this young is already beginning to accept and not still rant and rave, striking out at one and all still. Poor hubs, I think sometimes very bad things are harder for men to accept - they are usually not the most natural nurturers and have problems finding ways to adjust to some things that women seem to navigate a lot more naturally as just another part of our role in life. He'll no doubt find his way in time. Prayers are still bombarding Heaven for your son.

Thanks again...my son is working on learning guitar but he gets frustrated because it is difficult. He's sticking with it though. As for hubby, he's still trying to go through the diagnosis trying to find a reason why it's wrong. I read a 43 page article from the National Neurologic Institute and my son's symptoms line up almost 100% although DNA testing will confirm. I believe we have the right answer and need to begin looking out for the future.

Things are beginning to become more settled. I'm looking forward to my new puppy in May and hope to find a dog for my son this summer. He wants o be as independent as possible and I think a dog will help him do that. He is going to be visiting some schools to help him decide where to go.

I have moments where I still lose it...like yesterday on the way home from work. I just could not stop crying. But then I get it together again and remember how thankful I am that he's going to be okay. Like any other major life changing event, it takes time.

I am soooo thankful to everyone on this site. It has been an incredible blessing!

You seem to be holding things together remarkably well to me. Your son or either of his parents have stayed in bed for days, stopped eating altogether or gone on a crying spell it takes a hospital stay to stop. To me, your son seems to somehow be managing to handle this devastating news exceptionally well for a man of any age, let alone one so young, and from what I can tell, so are you and your husband. The pain and misery you all must be going through every day has got to be agonizing, totally draining, but you all are managing somehow to still function - no mean feat in the face of devastating, frightening news. On top of all that, son is even learning to play a musical instrument, with all the others things he's got to learn, from scratch! Quite a remarkable youngster considering what he's dealing with this past month. You all seem to have a wonderful grace about you. I pray this coming week is uneventful and lets your son and you two parents catch your breath a bit.

I am so glad things seem to be unfolding in a positive direction. Taking your time and dealing with one issue at a time. Thinking through each detail as they came up is the way to go. You will all get through this. The blessing is that this was not something that came on in an instant. You have had some time to prepare. And taking advantage of that will make it easier for all of you. Continuing to pray for all of you.

Thank you again😊 My son has found a support group and they are actually going on an excursion beginning April 18th that will be for two weeks. He is getting excited about it. They will have aides at a 4 to 1 ratio since they are all vision impaired. The group will be going camping, hiking and rafting while they learn to begin the process of learning to be independent. I am nervous but he really wants to go and it's a good opportunity for him to realize that he can still do a lot of things.

I have been a bit under the weather myself for the last few weeks. I'm hoping that I will be better soon. My husband is beginning to accept that my son will not regain his sight. Now it will just take time for all of us to adjust.

I'm very grateful to everyone for their thoughts and prayers. Your warm thoughts and words have been a great comfort to me. I'll let you know how his trip goes and what school he decides to go with as well as the process of getting his dog. There's a lot to do but I think we're on the right path.

Wow, how great that your son has found a support group already and is planning a trip with them soon. It is so encouraging that he is accepting enough of his situation that he is prepared to do this. It will be so useful and give him the confidence to do things himself. It seems that the young are more adaptable than we thought and that bodes well for his future.
So sorry you have been feeling bad these past weeks, but what happened to your son was a deep shock to you and your husband. As your son moves along in a positive direction, you will follow.....confident that he will do ok.
Please do not fret about his trip, he is happy about it and there are plenty of people with him to help and advise.
Good luck to your son with selecting a school and new puppy dog.
Warm thoughts and prayers.

Well...he's on his way! I hope it goes well😁

Bless his heart - he's a brave young soul. So new into vision loss and already participating in a group activity rather than just staying in bed and rejecting help. Just stepping into it. I'd say he's ahead of the pace for learning ways to cope. I'm still praying. You stay strong, mom.

dog
 

I am glad your dear son is better. Now I play guitar and found that nylon strings are so much easier to play than the steel ones. We have the Taylor Guitar manufacturer right here in Santee and I love their baby Taylor. It is small, has a smaller neck and is a lot easier to play. I hope he keeps it up because once he gets the simple chords going-G C D he can begin to play a lot of songs. I play bluegrass songs and a lot of their songs are very basic chords. Prayers for his continued healing .

Trip
 

Your son will really enjoy the trip and experience with others who understand what he is dealing with. You must be relieved that he feels confident enough to take this step forward. As he is away for a time, hoping you will take the opportunity to pamper yourself with a soothing massage etc. You need to restore yourself after the shock you too have been through.
Your son will learn so much on the trip and make friends who will also be there for him when he returns. It is a wonderful opportunity to acclimate to his new world with mentors and peers.
Soon he will learn the guitar and have his doggie companion to give him joy.
I am sure you will be happy to receive updates from him that he is loving the trip:)
Thinking of your family and praying your son continues to accept his situation and is on the path to his new world. Looks like he is doing so well so far.
Hugs, Dot xxxxxx

Thanks for the positive thoughts. He called this morning and is excited about their activities for the day. I worry but they are well supervised and he should have a good time.

:) My daughter actually has a Labradoodle....he is the size of a Labrador, with the totally non-allergic coat of a poodle. He is chocolate brown with beautiful, dark brown Labrador eyes. He is a wonderful, wonderful boy....adores my daughter's 2 cats, and my 2 year old little granddaughter :)

He is the most gentle boy that I could ever wish to meet. Love, love, love him! :D

I wake up every morning thinking of you - I truly hope everything's going well, love and hugs from over here :) xx

It is so heartening to hear about the ongoing transition tKing place in your household ��

When my Cali was in Service Dog School she trained with a labradoodle ( with which she became fast buddies - over the years we have made many across the U.S. visits to see each other!) who was an outstanding service dog. She was usually the head of the class!

I had standard poodles for many years prior to going Yorkie and still to this day think they are the best. But they can be a grooming issue.

Where I live there is a blind judge who just got his new service dog (the whole city turned out for his previous service dog's memorial service - many of them criminals LOL) and it is a Labrador. We laugh because every criminal in town wants the judge with the dog - until they find out that although he is devoted to that dog (has a jar of peppermint treats on his desk) he is not going to let you off easy :D

Service dog training, although time consuming and expensive (we applied for and got a scholarship) it is sooooo wonderful and life changing!

Best to all of you And keep up the positive! I admire your son!

I am glad he is out enjoying these new adventures with people who will do so much good for him now and in his future! You have a truly wonderful young man that from you and his Dad have brought up so well! Can't wait to hear of all he is doing on this trip! Hugs to you!