Hi Mishae,

Congratulations!!!! Boys are great...I know because  I have 4 of them!!!   I also know how you are feeling because I remember oh so well how overwhelmed I was when my 3rd son (1st with CAH) was diagnosed.  I was so worried about him and how he would do. I was so worried that he would never be "normal".  I worried about what I maybe did or didn’t do that could have caused this.  I worried ALOT!!!!!!!! I was fortunate enough to find this website and Cares (www.caresfoundation.org) .  I met a wonderful bunch of people who really helped me those first few weeks!  I emailed back and forth with a few moms who were so wonderful in helping me understand what CAH was and how to "deal" with it.  Now since 2001 when my son was diagnosed I have a new baby boy (almost 6 months) and he also has CAH.  My 4 boys, although they drive me batty some times, are the joy of my life!!  CAH or not, they are all great, NORMAL, boys.  My 3yr old CAH son has had stitches on his forehead from a fall at my older son’s baseball game, stomach bugs, colds, chest colds...and he is doing GREAT!!!!!!!!  We knew the  new baby had CAH before he was born. I was about 14 or 15 weeks along when the test came back saying that he did have CAH. I won’t lie to you, I was hoping that he didn’t have it. One mom described "feeling like you were hit in the stomach" when you hear the diagnosis for a second time. I totally agree with that. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. I cried....even though I already knew what to do. No one wants anything to be "wrong" with their kids.  Once I got over the shock...again...I am happy to say that life is as "normal" as anyone else. Yes, Janet is right...when the boys are sick...I jump into high gear but I don’t panic so much anymore (I did that the first few times). I guess as time goes on, you get a feel for how they do when they are ill and you start to be able to read them better.

Both of my CAH boys are on Cortef and florinef and both are doing great. Jackson goes to a mothers day out program 2 times a week for 5 hours. I leave him with friends and babysitters. I even leave the baby with a sitter to go out with my hubby.  Your son will do fine too. You are fortunate that he was diagnosed early on and with proper monitoring he will be fine. It is harder at first while they are growing because the meds have to be adjusted quite a bit. 

My advice to you is love him, be an advocate for him, learn about CAH and most of all enjoy him. They grow way too fast!...I want to write more but the little one is needing me!!!!

Take care and email me if you ever need to chat!!

Sandra