Cleft Clinic 2021

Back in December Hudsyn got to visit all her doctors at Cleft Clinic 2021. She saw a dentist, orthodontist, geneticist, etc.

Each year Cleft Clinic starts out at the John W Keys Speech and Hearing center – where they test the function of the tubes in her ears, her hearing, and assess her speech. Hudsyn absolutely hates having anything done to her ears – even just got having them looked in! (Kind of like me at the dentist😊😬)The fact that this is where we start our long cleft clinic day is not ideal!😊Lets just say there’s a lot of bribery…

Dr. Glade, the ENT who has put in each of her sets of tubes checked out her ears and both tubes that were placed last January were still in her ears and doing their job! Praise the Lord! For the last four years at this time, we’ve determined that at least one of the tubes placed the year before had come out and a new set was necessary. We’ve had significantly less ear issues this last year (knock on wood) so hopefully her inner ears are growing as they should be and she will outgrow even needing tubes.We are told that many cleft affected children outgrow the need for ear tubes as they grow.

Last year we were told that when we came back this year we would discuss whether or not she would benefit from surgery to correct VPI (Velopharyngeal Insufficiency) to help reduce the nasality of her speech. After the speech assessment, Dr. Smith suggested Hudsyn have a small “procedure” – a nasal endoscopy – in his office, to determine whether or not she was getting closure at the back of her throat. This procedure involves the numbing of the nose/throat and a camera being placed through one nostril to view the back of the throat as she speaks and attempts to make certain sounds. Dr. Smith suggested I get some saline nasal spray and have her “practice” having something sprayed in her nose. I got her some and she was all about it! She kept it on her dresser and was always so proud of herself after using it.

A couple of weeks ago we went to his office for the procedure and she was so brave! The staff was so nice and let me spray the numbing spray in her nose and she took it like a champ… They warned her that the spray might taste bad in the back of her throat so they gave her a sucker. She said it didn’t taste bad – but if you know Hudsyn – you know she didn’t turn down the sucker! After several rounds of “spray” in her nose to make sure she was numb they put the camera in her nose and to the back of her throat and she was so cooperative and such a big girl! Or, in her own words, “I didn’t even hit them and say No! Get Away!” 😂 I was fully expecting to need to sit with her and possibly hold her down a little depending on how it went, but she was so brave and it was quick and easy! Had they been unable to perform this little in-office procedure, we would have had to schedule a different type of swallow study at the hospital and make another trip to the city, etc., so I was so relieved!

When the nasal endoscopy was originally scheduled, the plan was to have a speech therapist there to watch and help determine whether or not Hudsyn was getting good closure at the back of her throat, but she was unable to be there. Dr. Smith was confident, however, that she is not getting full closure which is affecting her speech. When she talks, there is constant air noise; I just assumed that this air was coming from the fistula she still has at the front of her palate near her gum notch (which will be repaired in the future with a bone graft).

Because she is not getting full closure, Dr. Smith would like to use skin from the back of her throat to elongate her palate and allow full closure resulting in less nasality in her speech. He is confident that this surgery followed by good speech therapy will eliminate the nasality in her speech.

After her appointment we had to call all of her people so she could tell them how brave she was! They had also given Barrett a sucker and while we were on the phone he tried to claim that he was brave during his procedure also. She was not having it! She was sure to let everyone know that Bubba did NOT have a procedure – she was the only one and she was the only one that was brave! 😂 She was so brave in fact… that mom failed to get any pictures! Oops!

Her speech has come so far in the last year. The other day I watched a video from a year ago and was amazed at how different her speaking is now than it was then. She is growing and getting so big and I’m so proud of her for so many things. Most specifically, however, I am so proud of her for always just taking things in stride, keeping a smile on her face, and seeing the good in every situation. She reminds me so much of my Meme in that regard! She did ask me the other day “how come Bubba never hast to go to the doctor?” 🤣 but when I told her that God didn’t create Barrett with a Cleft lip and palate so he doesn’t have to go to all the drs appointments she does, she said “oh, okay, well at least we don’t both have to go! He definitely wouldn’t like all of this!” 😂

We will wait patiently to hear from Dr. Smith’s office on a surgery date! 😊

Although it is still overwhelming to think of what she will go through in the future, knowing her ability to deal with things with determination and a smile on her face is comforting. God gave us one tough girl! ❤️