Editor's note: Jake and Nancy Jensen lead the Five Valleys Church of Christ in Missoula, Montana. Their family's story was recently featured by Kare11, a news station in Minnesota. Watch the video coverage here.
Experimental surgery changes man's life
MINNEAPOLIS -- Seventeen years ago Friday the Jensen family added a third child. "My wife and I adopted Jesse when he was five," Jake Jensen explained talking about his son.
Jesse, the brown eyed boy had a smile that melted your heart, but just two years later it was wiped away by something sinister.
"He came down with an incredible case of the hiccups that would not stop," Jake said. For two weeks those hiccups went strong until a doctor confirmed the problem was much bigger, Jesse had severe Tourette syndrome.
"Lots of compassionate doctors were just trying to stop this monster in his body that had taken over," Nancy Jensen, Jesse's mother, explained. For a decade the tics became so violent in Jesse he nearly broke his neck when he convulsed.
"I couldn't do all of the things a normal teen could do, so it was definitely hard," Jesse recalled of that time; he is now 22-years-old.
Hope came when the family learned the Mayo Clinic performed a high risk experimental surgery, deep brain stimulation. Jesse knew if he wanted to live, he would risk dying he said, and do it. "I was just tired of the way I was living," Jesse said.
His family was scared, but on his side. "We as a family decided we would follow Jesse. We didn't feel like we had the right to say no," Nancy said.
In February of 2010 Jesse got that surgery and to say it was a success would be an understatement. He's tic-free.
Implanted in his chest is a Medtronic device that operates 24-7, stimulating his brain to stop the tics.
He's lost nearly 100 pounds, is off all medication, as fit as a fiddle and you would never know his body once betrayed him. He now works full-time and lives like he didn't get the chance to his entire childhood.
"If you have a chance to go somewhere, you might as well try and take it, even if it's hard," Jesse said with a smile.
Jesse's mom co-authored a book about her family's experience called Resurrected Mind. It is available on Amazon.
Read more about the Jensen's story here.