I've been going to see my epileptologist every two weeks or so to have my VNS adjusted—and for other epilepsy stuff—since, um, December? (Maybe since sometime in November. Please excuse my imprecision; I'm going to go ahead and use the "bad memory for neurological reasons" line, but really I'm just too lazy to scan through … Continue reading Two Weeks to Two Months: A Tangible Sign of Progress (Yay!)
I organized a Purple Day party for the weekend before Purple Day—timing that would have made a lot of sense. I ended up spending that particular Saturday in the hospital, however, so my husband and I were left with two choices: cancel the party or reschedule it. Since I'm writing a post with "purple party" … Continue reading Purple Party: 2018 Edition
My friend Regan recently agreed to indulge me by allowing me to virtually interview her (i.e., I sent her a document with questions, and she answered them). She even drew a self-portrait to go along with it. You may notice that the quality of her stick-figure picture is much, much, much higher than the "quality" … Continue reading (Virtual) Interview with Regan: A DMS Exclusive!
I was discharged from the neuro ward last Monday evening (appropriately, I guess, the date of my release coincided with Purple Day [for epilepsy awareness]). Except for an appointment a few days ago and a ten-minute walk yesterday afternoon, I've been more or less chilling ever since. I hate chilling. Although I'm super happy to … Continue reading I’m Home, Getting Better, and Really Cranky
Note: I wrote this blog entry yesterday and only got around to posting it today. Some of the content is slightly outdated. This will be short, for a reason that will soon become evident. It might also be sloppy, but not as bad as the garbled text messages that I was sending a few … Continue reading Crushed Dream: An Unexpected and Unwanted (Obviously) Hospital Stay
As of last Thursday, and after two rounds of treatment, I'm officially finished my neuro day-hospital program. It feels super good. Time to reflect! Given my tendency to worry that I've plateaued or am plateauing in my recovery, I've found it important, especially over the past month or so, to keep reminding myself that I've made … Continue reading Graduation!
I'm currently prescribed five anticonvulsants. Five. Some are better than others, but each is its own special flower/beast, in terms of side-effect profile. That said, I'm grateful that I've found a combination of medications that's kept me out of the hospital since the summer.* Among the drugs currently inhabiting my blister pack is phenytoin (Dilantin), … Continue reading Dilantin, ER, Vomit: A(nother) Scattered Blog Post
I've never consistently tracked my seizures. Here's where, before continuing with this blog post, I make excuses for my shortcomings as a seizure diarist. First, there's the memory thing. If I have a partial seizure before bed, when they usually occur, I sometimes have to be told the next morning that it happened since I'm … Continue reading Above Average
Yesterday at neuro rehab, I received the results of a (very long, multi-part) memory test that I completed with my occupational therapist last week. I'll cut right to the chase and reveal that I didn't do incredibly well. My OT was careful to sandwich the news: "You have lots of strengths; this test showed that … Continue reading That Elderly White Dude: Reflections on a Memory Test
Deep within the hospital at which I receive the majority of my care, there's a hallway featuring terracotta plaques bearing the names of individuals and organizations who/that donated to a fundraising campaign sometime in the 1980s or 1990s. The exact date slips my memory, but the style of the installation suggests that it wasn't in … Continue reading A Grateful Patient: Thanks in/for Retro Terracotta
De Morbo Sacro: Life and/with Epilepsy 