Miracles from Heaven Page #5

with Christy Beam, please?

Yes, this is... This is she.

I'm calling from Dr. Nurko's office.

We just got an opening

at 7:
00 a.m. tomorrow.

Can you make it?

Yes.

Yes, ma'am.

See you tomorrow, then.

Thank you.

Excellent. Good.

There you go.

Anna, I need you to relax,

take deep breaths and don't move.

Hey, somebody there?

Now, let me hear your thoughts.

Really?

Okay, lie down.

So, tell me,

do you prefer Anna or Annabel?

Well, my friends call me Anna.

Annabel's too formal.

Yeah, I understand.

My real name is Dr. Nurkobel,

but I prefer Nurko.

Why do you wear an Elmo tie?

Oh, I lost a bet to him.

If I had won, he'd be wearing

a Dr. Nurko tie right now.

And when can you take it off?

When my next patient gets better.

So, do me a favour, get better fast

because my wife pretends

she doesn't know me when I wear it.

So, what I'd like to do next is

a motility test and an endoscopy.

Uh, I want to put a camera

inside and look around.

Okay.

- Will it hurt?

- Not a bit.

You'll be sleeping.

Please.

Again, picture, please.

- There.

- Got it.

Heart rate is 73.

She's holding steady at 115/74.

Mrs. Beam, I didn't take

her medical history at face value.

As you know, we ran

an extensive battery of new tests.

And unfortunately,

the testing confirmed that she is very ill.

And in a tremendous amount of pain.

Okay? So, look.

I'll show you.

This one shows normal function.

The other side,

it's what's happening to Anna.

It's called Pseudo Obstruction

Motility Disorder.

Her condition is akin to a...

To a paralysis of the GI tract.

The top part of the stomach works,

but the bottom doesn't.

The nerves don't fire correctly,

so the intestines can't pick up

the messages the neurons are sending.

Well, what about the pain she's in?

Well, I have to say,

pain is one of the most

complicated things to treat.

Dr. Nurko, we came all the way here

because everyone told me

- you were the one person who could help.

- Yeah, I know.

That you were the person

- who could help me.

- Listen...

That you were the person

who could help my daughter.

Mrs. Beam, I see this every day.

And although there is currently

no cure for Anna's condition,

our treatments are focused on

improving quality of life

and controlling the pain.

There's hope.

Now, the good news.

Our center is one of the very, very few places

that's been granted permission by the FDA

to prescribe a drug

that can help Anna digest some foods.

If it's successful,

the distension in her stomach

would be reduced

and we could end the tubal feeding.

This would give her

the semblance of a normal life.

A normal life.

That would be wonderful, Doctor.

I mean, however,

there's potential side effects.

Headaches, diarrhea, swelling,

and some that are more dangerous,

like cardiac arrhythmia.

Because of that, I am required to see her

every six weeks for monitoring.

I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't believe

it was worth the risk.

$1,000 for plane tickets to Boston

every six weeks.

$2,000 more a month

to increase our yearly cap.

All the non-covered procedures,

the new medication,

the out-of-network doctors.

Our co-pay is going up across the... Kevin.

- I'm listening.

- I don't know how we're gonna afford this.

Well, I'd say sell the house,

but there's no money in it.

Oh, I know. It just makes me crazy!

I just never thought

you needed such a big place!

Oh, man. Okay.

Here we go. So now it's my fault?

I need to know how we're gonna do it.

Well, we'll figure it out.

No, no. You can't say that.

I hate when you say that!

Well, I'm sorry, babe, but I don't have

- any answers right now.

- I need an answer!

- I can't give you an answer, but...

- I need an answer!

I cannot operate under the assumption

that it's all just gonna be okay! I...

It's called faith, Christy!

I don't have faith about anything.

I can't even pray, Kevin.

- I'm sorry.

- No.

I hear you.

But I can't help you with your faith.

But I tell you, I'm gonna do

whatever I have to do.

Okay? I'll open this place seven days a week.

All right? I'll work double shifts.

I'll get a second job if I have to.

Okay, whatever it takes, I'm gonna do.

I really appreciate you coming by.

I got to say, I miss having you here.

Mmm. Kevin put you up to this.

Well, he's worried about you.

Yeah.

I'm a little worried about me, too.

Well, Kevin told me

what those ladies said to you, and I...

I have to say, I sure wish

that I could give everybody

a spiritual IQ test

before they walk in the door.

But, um...

We can't choose our neighbors.

We're just asked to love 'em.

Well, I'm gonna have to try

and love 'em from home,

'cause I'm not going to church with 'em.

Christy, that's not the reason

you stopped coming, is it?

What can I say or do to help you come back?

Well, you could tell me why a loving God

would let Annabel suffer the way she has.

- I'm sorry. I don't have an answer for that.

- Mmm-hmm.

But just because she's sick

doesn't mean there's not a loving God.

Let me tell you,

at the lowest points of my life,

I've tried it both ways,

doing everything I can

to connect to God or walking away.

And in my experience,

one feels a whole lot better than the other.

"...he seemed more interested

in the potted plants

"in the courtyard than in

coming in to tune the piano."

"...there's also always..."

Let me hear

Your words

Above all other voices

Pink.

Above all

The distractions in this world

For your words bring life

And your voice speaks promises

Do you know him?

Lord, your love offers more

Than anything else in this world

Your words give us life that's never ending

Your words bring us love that never fails

Anna, he loves you.

Angela, look, she's coming over!

Everything else will fade away

But what will remain are your words

Let us speak your words

The crazy thing, I thought we were good.

Good years.

More than ours, more than ever

Let us share your love with all the world

I think I'll use this one.

I like this yellow one.

Which one do you want?

That one? Okay.

Your words give us life that's never ending

Your words bring us love that never fails

Everything else will fade away

They just got her going from

one test to another to another.

But what will remain are your words

Okay.

We can't do anything?

The grass will wither and the flowers will fall

But the word of our God will last forever

Your words give us life that's never ending

Your words bring us love that never fails

Everything else will fade away

But what will remain are your words

Your words give us life that's never ending

Your words bring us love that never fails

Everything else will fade away

But what will remain are your words

Ho, ho, ho, ho!

I am a healthy pirate.

Ho, ho, ho, ho!

Okay, let's take a look.

Let me see.

How's the tummy?

Hurts.

Nurse tell you I threw up and it was green?

Yeah.

That's why we're gonna do some more tests.

Okay?

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