February 23, 2008 Hello from Jessica. Jessica developed a cold last Saturday, probably the same one that is hitting everyone this season. Then she developed a low grade fever and was having a lot of coughing so Mary Ann took her to urgent care and they diagnosed her with bronchitis and an ear infection. They started her on antibiotics for the ear infection and inhalers for the bronchitis, the antibiotic did not agree with her system so they had to call in to have it changed. Anyway she is doing better but she is still having trouble with her breathing, Her hand and feet are still healing, the doctor removed the metal pins that were holding her foot bones straight and she is attending therapy sessions to get back normal movement of her hand and arm. Thanks for all your good wishes from Jessica and family. January 22, 2008 Hello from Jessica Jessica went to Kaiser to her two Doctors today. X-rays were taken of both of her feet and her right arm and the doctors removed the stitches that were used to seal Jessica's incisions. Jessica is still on pain meds but her spirits are good. She is going to start therapy sessions this Thursday so that she can regain the normal use of her hands. She has been able to move her hands already but it takes effort to control what moves and in which direction. When we move our hand or arm it is automatic and she has to learn that all over again. She has a removable cast on her arm and she has been able to flatten out her hand, something she was not able to do for a long time. She has not been on her computer to answer email but she should before too long. Love to all from Jessica and family January 18, 2008 Hi All, Jessica is home today! The hard arm cast is off and she now has a softer, removable cast. Her tummy is doing well and she is coming off the stronger pain medications. She looks great, is real talkative, and is exercising her arm. She and Mary Ann will now be able to get some much needed rest. Thanks again for all the good wishes and prayers. Jessica and Family January 14, 2008 A Message from Jessica January 10, 2008 Jessica had her bandages replaced yesterday, both feet and her arm. The doctors are pleased with her progress and Mary Ann was able to snap some pictures, before they were re-bandaged. She has not developed the expected illius, that she usually gets with her surgeries, so that is very good news. She is supposed to have the N.G. tube removed tomorrow. Up to this point it was kind of hard to eat anything, except crème soups, but she should be able to eat more solid food after the tube is withdrawn. She is still taking pain meds and she is in pain but her spirits are high. If all continues to go smoothly, she should be coming home much sooner than everyone expected. Thanks for all the care from all the nurses and doctors in the hospital who have helped her during her stay and thanks to all of the people who pray for her quick recovery. Love to you all from Jessica and Family January 4, 2008 Jessica's Out of Surgery She went into surgery on January 2 at 1:30pp and it lasted till about 5:00 pm. She had work done on both feet and on her left arm. Dr. McDermott worked on her feet to realign them to their natural angle so she has bandages on both her feet. Dr. Shoemaker worked on her left arm, he severed and reattached the tendons that control her arm movement and rearranged the muscles and tendons so that what usually pulled in one direction now pulls in the other. That will cause her arm to be able to have a more normal range of motion. The doctor said that she will have to relearn how to move her arm because of this rearrangement and it will take some intensive therapy sessions before it will behave the way her brain wants it to. After leaving the recovery area Jess was moved to a semi-private room due to the amount of people in the Kaiser pediatric ward. She was moved to a private room yesterday and although she is in a lot of pain, they are hoping that by not using too many narcotics they prevented her from developing another illius. If that is the case she may be able to leave the hospital much sooner than anticipated. Thanks to everyone for your good wishes and prayers. Jessica and family December 2007 I am looking forward to Christmas and spending time with family and friends and I am looking forward to a happy and healthy new year, however on January 2nd I am scheduled for yet another major surgery. Dr. Shoemaker will be operating on my right arm and hand, while Dr. Mc Dermott will be fixing both of my feet. It will be a trying few weeks, but I know the outcome will be well worth the effort. They are both great doctors. We will keep you updated on the hospital stay and my progress. My family and I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year. Please take a couple of minutes to enjoy my friend and angel Eve Selis's performance of "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear". Thank you all for your love and support. Jessica Smith and family November 27, 2007 Hello Everyone! I hope this update finds everyone happy and healthy! I hope each and every one of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was very nice to be feeling well and to be able to enjoy it with my family and friends. I can't believe that Christmas is almost here, wow time flies! Speaking of flying... I was able to be a Pilot for a day! Please take a minute to watch the video below and sign my Guestbook to tell me what you thought. A wonderful organization called "Challenge Air" takes kids and young adults with disabilities up in a little 4 seater plane! The great thing is each plane has hand controls so I was actually able to fly the airplane! I loved my pilot Joe Mutti, he was the nicest guy you could ever meet. After he got the plane leveled off he gave me the controls! I flew for about 15 minutes, I even got to fly around Mt. Miguel, which I think made my sister and Paul a little nervous. We flew all over, including some of the burned areas. It was a once in a lifetime experience, all I can say is it was AMAZING! The only bad part was I banked it hard to the right and pressed my sister's face up against the window, but hey she said she wanted a thrill ride and she got one! I want to thank Dave Scott and everyone at KUSI News for all of the air time. I also want to thank him for giving me permission to put this on my site so that I could share my Amazing Adventure with all of you. My family and I would like to wish each and everyone one of you a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season. I will update again soon. Thank you for flying Jessica Airlines! Thank you for your continued love and support! Love, Jessica Smith & Family! October 29, 2007 Hello Everyone! I hope this update finds everyone safe and well! I'm really sorry I have not written in awhile, the fact of the matter was I really didn't know what to say. I want to thank everyone who volunteered and attended The 2nd Annual Cerebral Palsy/ Rainforest Benefit back on August 25th from the bottom of my heart! We raised over $6,000.00 and still counting! I will, however, say I didn't use my best judgement. The week prior to the benefit I was sick with an Ileus (that is what occurs when my stomach shuts down). I did not tell anyone including my parents that I was feeling this way because this illness almost always turns into a hospitalization. I must have gotten a lot of my grandma's stubbornness, because I decided I would just go on with my benefit and make doctors appointments at a later date. Needless to say that was a very bad idea on my part! By the time it was showtime the night of the benefit everything caught up to me and I was very sick. Hopefully many of you who attended couldn't tell. Then to top it all off my body thought it would give gymnastics a shot, as I fell out of my wheelchair at Intermission. (I hope a lot of you didn't notice that one either) In my usual go BIG or go home style, I landed on my face and not on my feet. (I need to work on my landings) A HUGE thank you to Dr. Shoemaker and all of my nurses who helped me out at the benefit! We then went directly from the Benefit to the ER, where I was treated for 2 hairline fractured femurs, as a result of my fall. aI was treated for my ileus, which resulted in a 3-week hospital stay. I was sporting 2 bright pink casts for awhile. However, that was the good part of the story, I was recently told I may have Amnesia, which explains why I can't remember any of the benefit. I've been told I should get my memory back and I am starting to remember some things. I am doing pretty well. Last Saturday I went with my family to the Project Warmth show. My family and I were shocked when my name was called for The Everyday Angels Foundation Angel of the Year Award! I am honored to have received this award. I promise I will keep doing Charity Work and hopefully I will continue to make everyone proud. I need to thank The Everyday Angels Foundation, My angel Eve Selis and her wonderful band. I also need to thank Anita York, The talented Peggy Lebo, and the beautiful Kimberly King from NBC 7/39 for giving me this very special award. I will never be able to thank all of you enough! I also would like to say my family and I are with all of you who have been affected by the fires. If you need any help please let us know. Our hearts are with all of you. I also know that the people of San Diego are strong, and we will all get through this rough time and come back even stronger! If you have time please sign my guestbook. I will be updating more frequently so please check back often. Let's all continue to lend a helping hand to the victims of the fire. I know even a simple hug will make people feel better. Have A Safe AND Happy Halloween! Until next time! Thank you For All Of Your Love AND Support! Jessica Smith & Family July 24, 2007 Hello everybody, how are you? I hope this update finds all of you well. I hit another big milestone in my life, back on July 17th. I turned a big two zero and celebrated with a large party this past Sunday. It was a blast. (Click here to see pictures from the party.) I want to thank all of those who attended and help me celebrate with food and cake and thanks for all the birthday presents. I'm feeling better each day. It's taking time but I know I will be back to my super energetic self in no time. It's just another hill I have to get to the top of but I know I will succeed. Just a reminder that tickets are available for the upcoming benefit through my website "jessicamsmith.com". We are also looking for donations for the silent auction, if you wish to donate please contact me through the website. Please make all donations by August 20th in order to get them into the auctions. I was honored when I found out that the Rain Forest newsletter entrusted me as an editor for their publication. To all of you, thanks for your prayers and good wishes and hope to see you at the benefit on August 25th. Love, Jesssica and family May 16, 2007 Hello Everyone, I am doing a lot better! How are all of you doing? I hope everyone is doing well. I went to see Dr. Shoemaker. I am about 95% back to my normal self and it's getting better each day! I have a huge announcement to make... WE ARE GOING TO DO A 2ND ANNUAL CEREBRAL PALSY/RAINFOREST BENEFIT ON AUGEST 25TH!!! The flyers are being made as we speak! We are in need of Volunteers! We are doing the Silent Auction again and we are in need of DONATIONS for the Silent Auction! We will even make arrangements to come and pick-up the donations. Anything you are willing to donate will be a big help! If you would like to contact me regarding the benefit please email me at CprainforestSD@AOL.COM. If you can't make it that night, we are also taking CASH DONATIONS. We raised $8,000.00 last year! Let's break that record! Are we up for the Challenge? I know I am! Thank you so much for your love and support! Love, Jessica & Family April 3, 2007 Jess has been in the intensive care unit for a couple of days. Her blood pressure level was very low and she was dehydrated. She really hates being in that room and wants to get out of there as soon as she can. Her regular nurses come down for visits and her regular room 4103 is being kept reserved for her. Her blood fungus is being treated in ICU and they are regulating her blood pressure. They've re-established her PICC line in order to give her antibiotics and nutrients. They believe she may have a slight case of pneumonia. She MAY be moved out of ICU and into her regular room tonight but stay tuned for that. April 1, 2007 On Thursday Jessica developed a 100 degree temperature. Her temp started to rise and got all the way to 105. The doctors did a culture of her blood and found that she had developed a blood borne fungal infection. They started her on anti-fungal medicine and removed her PICC line because fungal infections form on anything that touches the blood and body. On Friday they had her in a bed of ice and cold compresses to reduce the fever. They've ordered additional tests to determine her overall condition. They want another ultrasound of the kidneys and additional x-rays. March 26, 2007 Jessica was admitted to the hospital last Wednesday morning after experiencing extreme pain and ongoing regurgitation. The Doctors diagnosed an intestinal blockage with a continuing kidney/bladder infection. They later found a free floating kidney stone which was blasted with ultrasound on Friday. She has had to have general anesthetic for the kidney stone procedure and, as is the normal occurrence with her and anesthesia, she developed an illius. She may be released by the end of this week if all goes well, we just have to wait and see. Thank you for being patient since she has not been able to get on the computer for several weeks. February 24, 2007 Hello from Jessica, Jess would like me to tell you that she went to the doctor on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday she could not get a regular appointment so she went to the emergency care part of Kaiser and was given a cat scan, an x-ray, IV antibiotics and pain meds. On Tuesday she saw her G.P. who said she had a kidney/bladder infection and referred her to a urologist that she will see this Thursday. She may have a kidney stone, which could be causing the pain and they have her scheduled to have an ultrasound to decide. She is presently taking pain meds every 4 hours and does not feel too chipper. Jessica would like to thank all those who called when she wasn't available on the computer. As soon as she is feeling up to it she will get back on the computer and communicate with you. February 18, 2007 Some of you may have noticed that Jess has not been at her computer lately, either to update the web site or to answer her IMs . She asked me to tell you that on Valentine's Day she had a severe back pain and that she hoped it would subside with time and it hasn't, so she has an appointment with her G.P. on Monday to find out what the problem is. She doesn't know if this is related to her hardware store of pieces to keep her spine aligned or possibly a missed kidney stone. But the pain has not been intolerable just that she has had to go back to taking more pain meds more often and that is not the best thing in the world to do. We'll keep you informed as best as possible about what the outcome to this new occurrence will be. Thanks for all the good wishes and love you all. February 9, 2007 I hope everyone had a great day! My day was amazing! I did my first Motivational Speaking Event today. I spoke with a classroom full of 3rd graders at my former Elementary School. At first the kids were very quiet and reserved until I finally told them it was okay to "Get Loud". Needless to say they liked the idea of using their outdoor voices indoors! From that point on I gave my speech. I started out by saying "IF YOU BELIEVE IT, YOU CAN ACHIEVE IT!"I couldn't believe how smart and receptive the kids were! After my speech we then started doing a Q&A Session back and forth. Every time I asked a question it seemed like everyone's hand shot up. We ran out of time for all of the questions the kids had, so I've been invited back one day next week! I'd say it was a very productive session. To top it all off before I left one of the young girls smiled at me and said, "You've taught me if I believe something I can achieve it." On that note I say MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Hopefully this will be the start of a Brand New Career! Love, Jessica February 8, 2007 Woo Hoo!!! I just got invited to do my first Motivational Speaking Event. I just received a call from my former Elementary School teacher. She wants me to speak to her class tomorrow morning! I will give my speech and then do a Q&A session!!! I hope it goes well! I've been wanting to make this my career for a while now. Hopefully tomorrow will be the start of many great things to come! I will post an update to let everyone know how it went. Wish Me Luck!!!!! Love, Jessica February 3, 2007 Hello Everyone! I hope you're all having a great weekend! It's finally sunny and warm again! I think we've had enough rainy, cold weather for awhile, I hate being cold! My family and I are doing pretty well. Aside from a bump or 2 in the road, the beginning of 2007 has been good to us.
Another thing I will be doing this year is volunteering at the hospital on the pediatric floor spending time with the kids. I will be doing anything from just talking to them or playing board games. I have spent so much time in the hospital myself, I know how lonely and bored you can get. This is my way of giving back to the patients and staff who treated me so well when I was a patient. One of my most important goals that I want to achieve this year is becoming a Motivational Speaker. I can speak anywhere I am invited. I want to tell children and adults alike that if you have a goal in life that you want to achieve go for it! My motto is "IF YOU BELIEVE IT, YOU CAN ACHIEVE IT!" I've had a lot of people tell me "I Can't" in life. I just prove them wrong! Hopefully people will like my message and want me to speak at their events. My family and I hope 2007 will continue to treat you well! Please check back for updates. Thank you for all you’re continued love and support! Love, Jessica & Family December 24, 2006 Happy holidays! I hope this finds you well, I am doing better each day and I am getting very excited because Christmas is almost here.
My sister and brother-in-law were able to join me on this amazing adventure. It was approximately an hour ride. We went over the ocean and were able to see dolphins jumping in the water. We saw kids playing in man-made snow at an elementary school, and we experienced a grand view of the south bay of San Diego. I would like to take a minute to thank the "Believe In Tomorrow Foundation" for the fun filled, once in a lifetime experience. I would also like to thank our pilot, and the crew of the Sanyo airship, for their wonderful hospitality. I am thrilled to tell you that I am able now to get rid of the hospital bed that I have been in for four years, and now I have moved to a recliner. Being out of the hospital has been so great I have been able to do a lot of fun things
I also want to take a minute to congratulate Eve Selis and her husband Tom Gulotta, who are expecting a baby boy in May! I hope you have a joyous Christmas and New Year. Thank you for the continued support. Love, Jessica and family November 22, 2006 Hi everyone, I am finally home! I am doing better each day, but recovering slowly. I am still pretty weak due to what my body has been through, and all the medicine I am on. Thank you for taking the time to send me your good wishes. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. A very special thank you to Doctor Shoemaker and all of the wonderful staff at Kaiser, I couldn't have gotten through this without you. Love, Jessica Smith and family November 17, 2006 The doctors have started her on a semi-solid diet, mashed potatoes, yogurt, etc. The latest report from the G.I. Doctor is that if everything goes according to the plan she can be released Monday. She will graduate to more solid food on Sunday and if she handles everything well she can go home the next day. The hip surgery incision is healing properly and the pain from having the kidney stone blasted has subsided. As of Friday she still has the PICC line in, and is getting several different solutions by I.V. Again, thanks for signing the Guest Book when visiting and keep the prayers and good wishes coming. November 14, 2006 She had the NG tube removed yesterday and she was able to eat some broth. She has full blown illius, that is where the intestines shut down and gas is generated by the remaining material. As a result she feels painfully bloated in addition to the other pain from two different procedures. The doctors are thinking that if everything progresses as it has before that she may be able to come home by this weekend. She is still being fed intravenously by the pic line as well as receiving other pain medications. Jessica wants to thank all of the people who have expressed their good wishes and prayers and would like anyone who visits her site to please sign her guest book. Also if people would like to send get well or other correspondence, she is at this address: Kaiser Permanente Hospital, 4647 Zion Ave., San Diego, CA, 92120, room # 4103. November 7, 2006 Jess had her kidney stone shattered this morning, she had a nurse escort her to the operating area and stayed with her during the procedure and took her back to her room afterwards. The doctor decided that the stent wasn't needed because the stone was pulverized. Jess's comment after waking up was that she felt like she had been run over by two trucks, one from each direction. Still no word on when she could be released. November 6, 2006 Jessica is recovering from her hip surgery, she had to have her NG tube reinserted because it curled out of position and ended up in the back of her throat instead of in her stomach. Jess is in good spirits even though she is on drip IV pain meds, she can administer a small dose of pain medication every few minutes by pressing a button that puts a small dose into her pic line and into her blood stream without anyone having to give her additional injections. Jess is going to have her kidney stone blasted with ultrasound to break it into smaller pieces. This is scheduled for the 7th if all is ok'ed by the doctors. She will go under twilight sleep to have the stone shattered and then the doctor will insert a stent to allow the pieces to exit without doing any damage. No good idea of when she is expected to be released from the hospital, first she will have to be able to eat solid food. This evening they are planning on giving Jess IV food so that she can keep her strength up and speed up her recovery. Again thanks for all the prayers and good wishes. November 5, 2006 Jess went into surgery on Friday at 1:00 pm. She was having pain in her hips if she sat too long and Dr. Shoemaker decided to see if he could go in and relieve the pain. Nothing showed up on the x-rays that would have caused the pain she was experiencing. Dr. Shoemaker thought that it could be where the muscles were placed in the previous operation. After one hour in surgery Jessica was in recovery until 5:30 pm. Dr. Shoemaker said that he removed a calcium growth and drained fluid from the hip area and that should resolve the pain problem. Prior to the surgery she had to have a pic line installed in her chest rather than a normal IV due to the problem with her small and difficult to find veins. The doctor inserted an NG tube to prevent Jess's stomach from being stressed during the operation. Because of her tolerance for anesthetics they try to keep her digestive system quiet but it usually reacts by shutting down and causing her to have to stay longer in the hospital so this time we'll have to wait and see if it repeats. She is also going to have an ultrasound treatment on the 7th of November to break up a kidney stone, since she is already fitted with the NG tube and the pic line this should go off without any hitches. Jessica wants to thank you for all your good wishes and prayers and will update this site with any additional news as soon as possible. October 23, 2006 Hi Everyone, I hope everyone's week started out on a good note! First off I want to thank all of you who came to the UCP/Rainforest Benefit back on August 26! It was definitely an amazing night. We raised over $8,000 for both charities! I have to thank a few people who helped pull the night together. My great friend Eve Selis and her amazing band (including Ms. Kim McLean all the way from Nashville TN!) Our wonderful emcee for the evening Ms. Kimberly King from NBC 7/39. Our great stage manager Anita York. My hero, the one and only Dr. Scott Shoemaker, his wife and his kids, Amanda, Kate, Sydney, and Jack, my Physical Therapist, Megan Heinrick. Dennis Driscoll and all of the other amazing Volunteers. Feel like you missed out? You're in luck. The whole inspiring evening was caught on DVD by Mr. Rick Lakin and the amazing students of Hilltop High School's I-crew. Do you want a copy? It's only $25 and all of the proceeds go to the wonderful charities. Email me for more information. And last but most certainly not least, thanks to my wonderful family! Now I have to apologize on behalf of my family and myself for not updating in awhile. I've had some health issues but we didn't want to say anything until we figured out what we were going to do. I went to see Dr. Shoemaker for some hip pain I was having. He took some x-rays and he has scheduled me for surgery on November 3rd. He is going to remove a staple and trim off some of my upper right femur. During review of the x-rays and more doctor's appointments it was determined that I have one of those fun things called a Kidney Stone. It is too big to pass so the Urologist will go in and blow it up on the 7th of November. So I will be in the hospital over a week. I will have all of the necessary equipment put in while I am under with Doctor Shoemaker. For example, my NG tube (The tube that rests my stomach). I will also have a central line put in (so I won't have to worry about getting my blood drawn or blowing veins). During the time I am in the hospital my Uncle Dave will be writing updates to keep you informed so please check the website often for updates. Please keep Eve's friend Mattie Mills in your thoughts and prayers as she is going through Chemotherapy right now. If you have time please sign my Guestbook. Your messages make the hard days seem a little easier. Remember to check back frequently for updates. Thank you for your continued love and support, Jessica & Family September 4, 2006 Happy Labor Day! I hope everyone is doing well. It's been a very long time since I've updated my News Page. I am a year older now I turned 19 back on July 17th. We had my birthday party at a local park here in Chula Vista. I want to thank everyone who came out to The Cerebral Palsy/ Kaiser Rainforest Renovation Project Benefit on August 26, 2006. We have raised $7,500 as it stands right now. Eve and her band rocked the Immaculate Conception Church Hall. They did a fabulous job. People who hadn't heard the band before thought they were terrific. Eve, my angel, we make an awesome team! Kimberly King of NBC 7/39 News and Streetside San Diego did an amazing job. We couldn't have asked for a better Emcee. I want to thank Kimberly for letting me plug the benefit on Streetside San Diego and for all the kind words she said after the event when she mentioned it on the Morning News. Dr. Shoemaker spoke about what Cerebral Palsy is. I also got my chance to honor him and his family by speaking, then presenting him with a plaque. Also, I would like to thank Anita York for being an amazing stage manager. Also thank you to all of the Volunteers who arrived at Noon to help us set everything up! Feel like you missed out on something? Do you wish you could see an amazing night full of surprises? You're in luck… DVDS ARE FOR SALE! $25.00 Proceeds of the DVD sales will go to the different charities. Email me or call me at (619) 426-3931. Special Thanks to the students who belong to Hilltop High School's iCrew Digital Productions - Mr. Rick Lakin (Teacher), Sophomore Marina Inserra (Photos), and Junior Brion Kennett (Video). You guys were amazing. Thank you for all you did. Mr. Lakin thank you for all the continued support! I will update next week to let everybody know how my Botox Injections go on Friday. Thanks for all the love and support! Jessica & Family June 24, 2006 Hello Everybody, I hope this update finds all of you happy and healthy. I am doing exceptionally well. I start physical therapy on Wednesday and I will be going twice a week for 30 minute sessions to start. I am so glad the surgery was so successful. I've found myself going somewhere just about every day which is pretty amazing since I'm only 3 months out of a major tailbone surgery.
My family and I had a very Happy Father's Day, we spent it at Santee Lakes with a group of friends. I also went to my friend Eve Selis's last concert before She and her amazing band head off for a 1 month tour of the UK. Right now I find myself working closely with my family and my big group of angels who are helping put on the Cerebral Palsy/Kaiser Kids Pediatrics Floor Rainforest Renovation Benefit on Aug 26. Let me know if you would like tickets and I will put you on the reserved list. Click here for information. I also want to remind you to check my website often for updates. If you have a minute please sign my guestbook, I love hearing from you! Love, Jessica Smith & Family June 2, 2006 Hello Everyone, I hope all is well with you. I am doing better each day. I am so happy I can finally sit up again! I saw Dr. Shoemaker on Wednesday, he is very pleased with my progress and he says everything is healing well. I went and got fitted for a new power wheelchair last Wednesday it will tilt so that I can get the pressure off my butt when I need to. I should get it in about 5 weeks. My friend Eve Selis and I are putting together a Cerebral Palsy dinner benefit concert at the Immaculate Conception Church Hall in Old Town on August 26. We are looking for people who want to help. We are also doing a silent auction. So if anyone wants to help or donate items for the auction email me at Jpooh3754 at aol dot com. We can use all the help we can get! I will post a flyer when we get them made up. I will post another update soon so please check back often and if you have an extra minute please sign my guestbook I really enjoy hearing from you! Thank you for your continued love and support! Love, Jessica & Family May 12 Hello. How is everyone? The surgery was a complete success, and a major milestone for me because I was able to sit upright in a chair for the first time in a number of months. I am doing a little better each day. On Saturday May 6th I participated in the Walk For Hope for breast cancer research with my best friend and angel, Eve Selis. So far I surpassed my goal of $2000.00 and I will continue taking donations until June 6th. Click here if you would like to donate.
Before I was released from the hospital I had the opportunity to meet and play with Josie, Jamie, and Maggie. These were therapy dogs that come to visit with children who are in the hospital. I will post pictures of them on my site. I really enjoyed playing with them, they really lifted my spirits. I have a new doctor who will be my primary physician through the summer and I really like her. Her name is Dr. Cantrell. We went for a post surgery check up and she said that I am doing very well given the complexity of my surgery. But I have to take it slow and try not to do too much too fast. She was proud but a bit upset that I had sat upright for 3K in my wheelchair for the Breast Cancer Walk. I would like to thank all of the wonderful doctors and nurses and volunteers who participated in my surgery and in my recovery. Thank you for all your continued love and support. Love, Jessica Smith and family. PS:Happy Mother's Day to all. April 28th Jessica was even better today than yesterday. She got really excited about viewing the webcast of Sunday's concert on her laptop. She also says that she is almost ready to start pounding out some emails soon. April 27th Much, much better today. Jessica had a really good overnight rest and was napping nicely today. She was in good spirits. Jessica's stay in the hospital has been extended to at least this Sunday. April 26th When Jess was taken in for surgery they established 2 IVs one in each hand. The first IV lasted untill monday and the second IV went out yesterday. They had to install a pic line in Jess's arm in order to continue the IV and this one was needed to give her food as well. After 5 attempts and an x-ray taken after each to determine where the line was located they got it to go to the right place and now they could start feeding her. Jess had a problem possibly due to her blood chemistry being fouled that caused a hamstring tendon to spasm, as a result her leg is now in partial traction with a weight to prevent spasms from reoccuring. Mary Ann said she would probably be glowing in the dark from all the x-rays but she said she is doing ok and can't wait to come home. Thanks to all the friends for the good wishes and prayers. April 25th Dr. Shoemaker visited and he thinks that Jessica should be able to go home this Friday. He wants her to start sitting up now. He said it will hurt at first but she should try anyway. April 24th Jess is doing a little better today. Her tummy is about the same but she is resting nicely and napping out frequently. She wants her digestive system to settle down because as soon as it does, she can go home. A big thank you to everyone who contributed to the City of Hope Walk. We happily told Jessica today that she reached her goal of raisinng $2,000! She went nuts. It was just the boost she needed for this afternoon. Eve Selis reaching her goal was frosting on the cake for her. It just made her day and that made Mary Ann and Joe really happy too. April 23rd Jess was able to converse a little today. Her tailbone is healing nicely but she is having a little trouble with her digestion just like she had after her previous surgery. A portable x-ray machine was brought in and the x-rays showed that part of her intestinal tract was swollen. She'll have to stay in the hospital until the digestive thing is under control. But she is so glad that the surgery itself was successful. April 20, 2006 Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a good evening! I just wanted to touch base with you before the big day. My sprits are high and I'm ready to tackle anything that may come my way. I went out to dinner at Vini Vedi Vicci or VVV for short. Yes I took pictures, feel free to take a look. I will say I am nervous but I have more confidence in Dr. Shoemaker than ever! My Uncle Dave will be writing updates to keep you informed. Please don't forget to donate to my City Of Hope page. Thank you for your continued love and support! Keep all those prayers and positive thoughts coming! Love, Jessica & Family April 17, 2006 Hey All! Today starts a very long week. There’s no question in my mind I'm excited and ready for anything that may come my way! As most of you know already, getting a surgery date this soon is a joyous surprise. My family and I want to thank you for all your prayers and support. I have many goals set for this surgery. The number 1 goal is of course to get out of pain, so I can resume a normal life. I need everyone's help with my second goal, Please make a donation to my City Of Hope donation page. Please help me reach my goal of $2000.00 I know with the walk on May 6th I may be cutting it a little close but, believe me no matter what I will be wheeling for a cure alongside my friends, family and angel Eve Selis on the 6th of May. If you have already donated you can help by passing this along to your everyone you know and get them to donate as well! Just because I'm having the surgery the LAST thing I would want is for people to stop donating. I know meeting my goal of 2k will be a challenge but I'm sure if everybody comes together, we can do it! So what do you say? Let's do it! Please Remember: NO DONATION IS TOO SMALL. Also check back for updates frequently! Thanks Again! Jessica & Family April 14, 2006 Hey Everyone! Just a quick note to say Pre-Op went really well! Everything is good to go for next Friday! We were able to look at the Bone Scan and map out a plan. I truly feel like I have the best doctor on my side! I would like to take a minute to thank everyone for all of the good wishes and prayers you have sent my way, I really enjoy reading each and every one of them! Please check back often for new updates. On behalf of my family and I we would like to wish you a Happy Easter and all that other good, old stuff! Love, Jessica & Family March 31, 2006 Hey Everyone! Are we ready for the weekend? T.G.I.F! I hope all of you had a good week. I went to see Dr. Shoemaker yesterday. We talked about it and we decided it is in my best interest to go ahead and move forward with the surgery to carefully take off the sharp part of my tailbone. Dr. Shoemaker also thought it would be a good idea to get a Cat Scan of my tailbone to see how much bone he can remove. We don't know exactly when the surgery will take place, it usually takes a few months. I am very confident that with Dr. Shoemaker and his wonderful team on my side that everything will work out perfectly! I also wanted to take the time to thank everyone who has contributed to my Walk For Hope fundraiser for The City of Hope. I am already over the $1000.00 mark. My new goal is $2000.00! With your help I'm sure I can get there! If you would like to make a donation click here. If you don't feel comfortable doing it online but, still would like to contribute, email me and I will send you my address. I would really like to thank you for all your love and support as I start to climb another mountain. I think I'll reach the top sooner than you think. I always enjoy hearing from you so feel free to sign my guestbook and drop me a line! Thanks again for all your help! Love, Jessica & Family March 12, 2006 Hello Everyone! I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend! How has everyone been? I'm sorry I haven't written an update in awhile. Last time we spoke I believe I was going to see Dr. McBeth. I went to see him and he tried giving me a few different types of shots in my tailbone area. They unfortunately didn't work as well as we would have liked. That's OK though I wanted to get everything a try, and since they gave me botox in the butt, at least my butt won't have any wrinkles… I am scheduled to see Dr. Shoemaker the end of this month; I'll let you know how it goes. It is time to start fundraising for The City Of Hope Breast Cancer Walk. The walk is on May 6th this year at University of San Diego Institute for Peace & Justice Plaza. My family, friends andI will be walking alongside my friend and angel Eve Selis whose sister and a great family friend of ours are currently in remission! Our team is called Eve’s Everyday Angels, last year we were the number 2 Top Fundraising Team. With your help I am hoping to beat my goal last year of $824.00. If you would like to donate please click her to go to my my City of Hope Donation Page. If you would like to send a check instead please send them to me and I'll take care of it. If you need my address please email me. Also if you would like to walk with me on May 6th email me and I'll help you out. Please remember no donation is too small, every dollar helps! Have a wonderful week! Thank you for your continued love and support!! Jessica & Family January 28, 2006 Hi Everyone, I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend! I think I left off in the last update by telling you I had an appointment with Dr. Shoemaker at Clinic. I think I'll start there. Dr. Shoemaker discussed the bone scan report with us and he said that everything looked fine. Even though that was good news it was also very disappointing in a way because we still were not able to pinpoint where the pain was coming from. Dr. Shoemaker wanted to try numbing up the tailbone area to see exactly where the pain was coming from. So we made an appointment to see him in his office. We were able to get into see him early last week. He explained the shot was only temporary and would only last about 2 hours. He also was able to finally feel the bone that's poking out and giving me trouble. After he numbed it up I was pain free almost instantly! I actually sat up so fast that I made myself dizzy. I was able to sit up and I was the happiest I'd been since August. Unfortunately the shot only lasted about 1 hour 45 minutes. Then the pain came back rearing its ugly head. Dr. Shoemaker wants Dr. McBeth to try to go in and cauterize the nerves to see if that will help. If it doesn't, Dr. Shoemaker is willing to go in and take the sharp piece of bone out. We have an appointment with Dr. McBeth in about 3 weeks. It was so nice to feel pain free even just for that short amount of time. We finally know now that one way or another this problem will be resolved! That along with the support of my family and friends gives me the strength to keep going! I couldn't have made it this far without all of you! On an even better note it's almost time for The City Of Hope Breast Cancer Walk again. It is on May 6th this year. I would like to beat my goal of $865.00 that I raised last year. I will be walking with my friend Eve Selis whose sister was diagnosed with the awful disease and is now Cancer Free. Breast Cancer in some way affects everyone, whether it be personally or you know someone who has been affected by it. No donation is too small. If you would like to walk with us please email me and I'll help you out. If you would like to help us please send donations to: Jessica Smith 221 Inkopah St. Chula Vista, CA 91911 Attention: City Of Hope Have a wonderful Week! Jessica & Family January 16, 2006 Happy New Year Everyone! I can't believe it, another year has come and gone. Welcome to 2006! I hope all of you had a very Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year! I know my family and I had a happy holiday season. My top 3 gifts are a Charm Bracelet from my parents, that I can continue to add charms to, a special bracelet from my friend Eve Selis, and the wonderful person who gave me very special gift cards. I am very sorry about not updating this earlier, at this point my family and I know about as much as you do, which is not much. I have an appointment with Dr. Shoemaker this Thursday, so hopefully we will know more. Last month I had a Bone Scan and we are awaiting the results. The pain is still rearing its ugly head and I am on heavy pain medicine to try and help control it. I'll write another update after we speak with Dr. Shoemaker on Thursday. Thank you for your continued support, I couldn't do this without all of you on my side! Love, Jessica & Family December 20, 2005 I would like to take the time to thank some very special people in my life, who have helped me through rough times. This is a special thank you to students at Mar Vista Middle School. They have sent me cards, letters and on-going support for a few years now... Mrs. Garrison (Teacher)
November 14, 2005 Hello Everyone! I am very sorry it has taken me awhile to write an update. The hip surgery went incredibly well! I can't thank Dr Shoemaker and his team of wonderful surgeons enough for all they have done! As all of you know all too well however, my body doesn't like doing things the easy way, it always likes to have a setback or two. I now have encountered more tailbone pain. Since we removed the top of my "stiff hip" and have very little padding back there, what is left of my tailbone is kind of poking out from under a thin layer of skin. So I am still in the hospital bed etc. We are not sure at the moment how we are going to fix this setback but, when we know something I will be sure to let you know. Since we got the Fun Pass In August we saw Eve perform at Sea World. In between sets I also made a stop at the Roxy Store to buy some more Flip Flops, us girls can never have enough! In September Eve and the band opened for the country music group SheDaisy.
In October I helped Eve with Project Warmth. With all of your help I raised over $300.00 not including the blankets, warm clothing and pet food. Thank you again to all who donated!! I will get past these new obstacles with flying colors. Thank you for your continued love, prayers and support!! Love, Jessica & Family August 10, 2005 Hello All, Well tomorrow is the big day! We are going in tomorrow at 9:15 am. I wish it was a little earlier but hey, what can ya do? I am going out to dinner tonight and we will try to take some pictures and get them posted but I really can’t promise anything. I talked with my Uncle Dave and he will be posting updates as to how everything is going, so please check back here often. Thank you to everyone who has taken time to sign my guestbook! It is absolutely amazing to receive comments from local people as well as from across the United States and even the U.K.! I really enjoy reading each and every one of them! I am completely confident in Dr. Shoemaker. I know he will do whatever he needs to do to make sure everything goes according to plan, which I’m sure it will!! Thank you again for all of your love, prayers, and support. It makes me feel even more confident when I know all of you are pulling for me!!! Love, Jessica & Family (Click here to see dinner pictures) August 2, 2005 Hello Everyone, How's it going? Everything is pretty good here. I had my Pre-op appointment with Dr. Shoemaker on Monday; I'll tell you all that info in a second. Today I went with my friends Cheryl and Lindsey to get our nails done. They had given me a gift certificate for my birthday, they are going out of town from August 3-23 so we decided to use the certificate today. The color I chose is like silvery lavender. We also went to Starbucks, after all every girl needs their coffee! I hope you enjoy looking at pictures of my day at the spa!
These pictures were taken with my new digital camera I bought. I figured this will help us better communicate how I am doing in the next few weeks, with both pictures and words. Okay now it is time to get down to the real important info regarding my surgery next Thursday August 11th. We do not know the time that I will have the surgery yet, we will not know that until they call us next Wednesday. I'll be sure to post it as soon as I know. The surgery itself will last approximately 5 hours. Dr. Shoemaker is also going to put an NG tube in so my stomach can rest for a day. He will also put a central line in so I won’t have to worry about blowing veins from IVs. Those are both very good things. He is also going to cast my leg for about 3 weeks to make it more comfortably for me while it heals. He said I could be in the hospital 2-3 days but you never know with me, maybe longer. The Surgery will be at Kaiser Zion. He also decided he will give me more botox in both arms because it worked so well last time. He may also lengthen the tenants in my feet but that depends how well my hip surgery goes. I feel very confident that this will go very smoothly with Dr. Shoemaker on my side. Please feel free to come by and say hello if you are completely healthy, I would love to see you. All of my family, friends and I make a great team. I couldn't do this without your love and support. Don't worry you will get updates while I'm in the hospital please check back often. Thank you again for all of your love & support!! Jessica Smith & Family (Click here to see more Day Spa pictures) July 20, 2005 Hello Everyone, Wow, July is flying by! I am sorry I haven't posted in awhile, these past few months have been pretty busy. This will be a pretty long update so please bear with me. Here we go! June was a fun month but it seemed like I had something going on every day with all of the Senior activities at school, Senior picnic, banquet and all the other fun stuff. We had a Senior awards assembly where I received The Presidential Award for Academic Achievement & a pin to wear on my cap & gown. Pictures of the award and me in my cap & gown are up on the About page. Amazingly I also found time to write an article about my friend Eve Selis and submit it to The Southbay Review and it got published in the June issue!! Click here if you would like to read it!! June 17th was graduation day. The ceremony itself was pretty long and boring but every important event tends to be that way.
We also got a call from Surgery Scheduling and we have a date for my surgery. It will be on August 11th and my pre-op appointment with Dr. Shoemaker is August 1st. The plan again is to do a femur resection on my right hip. I'm very confident in Dr. Shoemaker and his team that everything will be perfect and that important thing is soon I will be pain free! I will write another update after my pre-op with Dr. Shoemaker on the 1st. Please check back often as I will be continuing to write more updates leading up to my surgery as more things unfold in the coming weeks. I think that is all for now though. Please take care and check back soon for another update. Also please feel free to look around my site and sign my guestbook. This new site is possible because of 3 very special people, Eve Selis, Tom Gulotta and Anita York who built the site! Take care! Thank you for all of your love and continued support, Jessica & Family July 4, 2005 The article I wrote about my friend, Eve Selis, appears in the June issue of the South Bay Review. Click here to read it. It's a PDF file so you must have Adobe Reader on your computer to see it. It's a free program so if you don't have it, click on the button. 
Americana Music Queen by Jessica Smith May 4, 2005 Another Surgery Hello Everyone, Well the title pretty much sums it up. I have to have one more surgery. I am however confident that this will be my last one. :) My other hip has decided it wants to go bad. We have talked with Dr. Shoemaker and he said we should go ahead and do the femur head resection, "the same thing we did with the other hip." He has put the surgery request slip in for some time this summer, after graduation hopefully sometime in early to mid July. The hip has become painful, but is being controled with pain medicine. Some of you are probably wondering if this happened all of a sudden, my answer to that is no. We have known for a few months now but decided to wait until we felt it was the right time to announce it. I wanted to be able to graduate with my class and go to school without anyone trying to tell me differently because everyone has it in their mind that they know what would be best for me, which I do deeply appreciate. My family and I just knew that I wanted to be back at Hilltop for my senior year and I wanted to graduate with my class. I am thankful to Dr. Shoemaker for allowing me to do this. It is now close enough to the end of the year, so we felt it was the right time to tell people. I know by now you may be kind of feeling bad for me but please don't. I never give up and this is just something else I have to overcome. :) I was never a quitter and I am certainly not going to start now. Dr. Shoemaker also said he would fix my toes at the same time as he does my hip so that I can wear flip-flops. My family and I deeply appreciate all of your love and support. Love, Jessica & Family May 4, 2005 Hello Everyone! How are you all doing? I'm doing pretty good. On May 1st my family, friends, and myself went on a 3 mile walk in support of Breast Cancer Research. The walk was put on by the local chapter of the City of Hope. My friend Eve Selis has a sister who is currently in remission! She asked my family and I if we wanted to join her team and take part in the wonderful cause, and of course we said we would be more than happy to! Our team name was Eve's Everyday Angels. Our team motto was "Breast Cancer can take a walk"! I set up a donation page, and sent out emails to everyone asking if you wanted to donate. Thank you to everyone who donated!!! With all of your help I managed to raise $824.00!!!
I was on the channel 5 news with Eve as we walked across the finish line! Eve also did a small concert after the walk. Thank You again for all your support! Love, Jessica The article I wrote in Blurb Magazine. A magazine for the Sweetwater Union High School District October 19, 2003 A Call For Tolerance And Understanding My name is Jessica Smith. I am a 15-year-old student from Hilltop High School, and I have Spastic Cerebral Palsy. For those of you who don't know,the words "cerebral palsy" are used to describe a medical condition that affects the control of the muscles. Cerebral means anything to do with the brain and joints in the body. You usually develop cerebral palsy by having a brain injury at birth. For example, I acquired cerebral palsy because I was born prematurely. I only weighed two pounds, four ounces, and I had a very small brain bleed which caused my C.P. Since I have a lot of tone that makes my muscles very tight. Sometimes my muscles have spasms that cause them to move unwillingly. I can't do certain things that people without cerebral palsy can do, like walking without thinking about it. Because of this, I have spent most of my life in a wheelchair. Most of you can get to school by walking or riding your bikes or skatesboards. I, on the other hand, have to take a special handicapped bus that has a wheelchair lift. Even though I have my own attendant at school to help me through the day, when the bell rings for lunch, we have to fight our way to the lunchroom. Sometimes we are late because people give me strange looks and don't move out of the way when I say, "excuse me". When I am at school or other places, I notice that people give me weird looks. I think it is just because they are curious. Our lives may be different, but just because my legs don't work, doesn't mean that I don't love doing stuff that my peers do. I like going to the movies, talking on the phone with my friends, or listening to music. My favorite thing to do is to go to amusement parks and ride roller coasters. I went to Disney World a couple of years ago, and my favorite ride was the Aerosmith Rockin' Coaster because you go upside down. I also liked the Tower of Terror because you go six stories up, and then it drops you back down. I do have to do some things differently, but, if you stop and think about it, we are actually not that different after all. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to ride roller coasters for a while because about a year ago my hip came out of its socket due to my disability. The doctors tried to put it back in, but it didn't work. I am awaiting another surgery. I have been in a hospital bed in my family room since last March. I have a teacher that comes to my house, and we cover all six units I need for the semester. She only comes to my house about one or two hours a day, and by law you have to do school work six hours a day, so I have to make up the other six hours in homework every night. You may think its a fun way to go about doing school, but I'm here to tell you, it's not. It may seem silly to you, but I can't wait to go back in school. To be able to wait in line at the ASB or to eat lunch in the cafeteria with my friends is something I truly miss. It has always been my belief that there is always someone who is worse off than I am. I am also sure that you don't know what you have until it is taken away. I really miss being with my friends at school. |
