# @mercphotography on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DKh9VzvyrQT
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/32662587-mercphotography-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/07aededfe2.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-06-05T19:19:35.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** MERC (@mercphotography) — https://gondola.cc/mercphotography

## Caption

We recently have had another terrifying chapter in our journey. Elias began showing symptoms we’ve never seen before—slurred speech, unsteady steps, euphoria, and his eyes rolling back as if he were slipping away. We called hospice for guidance, hoping for direction in such a scary moment. Their options? Either “wait and see what happens” and keep him home and comfortable—which didn’t sit right with us at all—or take him to the ER for a scan to try and understand what was happening.
Of course we chose the ER which is never a preference. After hours of waiting, we were met with more uncertainty—and painful questions: If he stops breathing, do you want us to perform CPR? Would you want him intubated? Panic and anxiety consume our minds wondering if this is goodbye?
By God’s grace, the brain scan showed no signs of cancer or a stroke - an incredible relief. But the overwhelming nature of the symptoms and the unknowns surrounding them left us shaken and exhausted. We also discovered that a medication commonly used for nausea in hospice care, haloperidol, was actually contributing to some of Elias’s most severe symptoms. Although the doctors and hospice team were adamant that it wouldn’t cause these effects, we trusted our instincts and decided to stop giving it to him. Since then, he has improved so dramatically that it’s undeniable, our gut as his parents was right.
While we were relieved to learn that his brain scan was clear, we unfortunately found out that the cancer has now spread to another area of his spine, causing a second compression fracture. It has also progressed in his lungs, kidney, and bladder, and the existing tumors are growing.
It’s been incredibly hard to watch him struggle. He’s becoming weaker, but somehow, when he finds even a small moment of strength, he uses it to create more memories. I find myself constantly staring at him, doing everything I can to capture every detail desperate not to miss a single second.
Through it all, Elias continues to amaze us with his strength and unwavering faith in Jesus. Even when he’s angry with God for the suffering, he still clings to hope.

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 200
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## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| MERC | @mercphotography | https://gondola.cc/mercphotography | Photographer |

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