Ryan Dickerson's Blog

 Hello All,  We have been home almost two weeks now.  Everyone seems to have settled back into their “normal” routine.  We continue to observe Ryan’s behavior in hopes of seeing some dramatic improvement.  However, reality seems to move at a much slower pace.  Several of his therapists and teachers have commented on Ryan’s “better head control and he seems more aware of his surroundings.”  These are extremely subjective opinions and I worry about our influencing their assessment.  We are still looking for something completely new and clinically significant.  Ryan continues to take better quality steps.  He is still having trouble with his feet getting caught on the opposing heel and turning outward.  Although he is sometimes able to clear the foot and continue, it is still a major problem with taking steps.  His spasticity in his arms today seemed much lower than usual.  In my opinion at this point, his oral motor, epilepsy, bowel/bladder control, vision, and general intellectual state all appear unchanged.  The better steps and subjective observations of his awareness are the only two changes noted since the treatments.  Congratulations to my sister, Diane, on the birth of her son Parker!  Take care.  Dan, Suzanne, Ryan and Sarah

Hello All, We have been home for a few days now and are slowly readjusting to Texas time and home life.  Ryan had his first day back to school and therapy today.  He is also returning to his monday night horseback riding sessions.  There have been no significant changes to report in his condition since returning.  We will continue to observe him and hopefully have some good news in the near future.  Until then, I will update this site on a weekly basis with any relevant notes.  This will allow everyone, including me, to track changes over time.  Good luck to everyone considering this treatment option.  As always, thanks for your thoughts and support.  Take care.   Dan

Hello All,We are finally home in the great state of Texas!  Our journey home was the most challenging experience of the whole trip.  To start, Hangzhou was snowed in on our day of departure.  The month we were in China was the worst winter since my grandfather was there in WWII.  The scene at the Hangzhou airport was crazy.  People were pushing each other out of the way trying to get on airplanes.  We had to carry Ryan, his wheelchair and all our stuff down stairs, to a bus and up an air-stair to get on the plane.  Everyone pushed in front of the wheelchair leaving us, with Ryan, out in the snow for several minutes.  The airport personnel did not help in the least.  When we asked about getting Ryan down the steps, the gate agent just shrugged her shoulders.  Although we pre-arranged with both Air China and Continental for assistance in Newark, Beijing and Hangzhou (for both directions, even having our Chinese contacts calling ahead), we were never met nor assisted anywhere!  The patients who flew through Hong Kong and Shanghai told us fantastic stories of how well they were treated.  Perhaps we were the exception, but be forewarned if you travel through Beijing.  There will be no help and you will have to go up and down airstairs, no exceptions.  So, after a 5 hour delay in Hangzhou, we left for Beijing.  We missed our connecting flight by 2 hours, but a very nice Chinese man helped us carry Ryan’s wheelchair up the stairs and then made a reservation for us at a Beijing hotel, through his secretary (he even wrote out the name of the hotel in Chinese to give to a taxi driver).  After a night in Beijing, we went back to the airport and made our flight to Newark.  Due to missing our first flight, we were sent back to coach for the trip from Newark to San Antonio.  To make matters worse, our plane had mechanical problems requiring a change of planes and another several hour delay.  We finally made it home at 3:30 a.m. last night, over a day late and after over 30+ hours of travel.  Ryan was a real trooper for the whole journey.  If he had not been so good, the trip could have been much worse.  When we woke Sarah up to see her, she hugged and kissed all of us in turn, making much of the bad go away.  Ryan smiled when she spoke to him and kissed him.  I can report that both Sarina and Shawna have observed Ryan walking this afternoon and were very surprised at the changes in his steps.  He has regained the walking abilities he showed during Carol’s wedding and just before (about 18 months ago).  We will have to wait and see how long this lasts and for additional improvements, but it is starting to look promising.  For those who have asked for information, please give us a couple days to catch up and I will create an extensive list of hints and such.  If you are leaving immediately, leave me a reply and I will email sooner.  Thanks to all for reading, commenting and praying.  Take care. Dan, Suzanne and Ryan rejoined with our beloved Sarah!  We love the U.S.A.!!!!

Hello All,This is the first time in days the server has allowed me to access this site.  We have been having lots of trouble talking to Sarah over the internet as well.  Ryan had his last treatment via IV on Friday and has done very well.  We are packing everything up and saying our good-byes to all of our friends here in China.  At the end of 8 treatments, neither  Suzanne nor I can definitively point to any significant changes in Ryan.  However, we both think he is walking and seeing better than before we came.  Although we have seen him make temporary improvements in each of these areas in the past, we are hopeful that these resent improvements will remain.  The next few months will tell the tale.  The sun finally came out yesterday, after almost 30 days of consecutive dreary weather.  We saw the sun for two days when we arrived and the last two days (hopefully) while in China.  Note to self:  ”don’t come to China in the winter!”  Tomorrow we join the almost 200 million other travelers in our attempt to get home.  Another note to self:  ”don’t schedule your trip to China when the number of Chinese people traveling is over 1/2 population of the U.S.”(stupid!)  Thanks to everyone who has written in their support.  Your comments have helped us get through a very difficult time.  I will keep posting on Ryan’s progress for as long as they keep the site up.  For anyone considering this treatment option, feel free to contact me through this site or by email and I will give you whatever information I can.  Thank you all for your love and support.  I hope to update this site from the comforts of Texas in the next several days.  Wish us luck! Take care.  Dan, Suzanne and Ryan