Some Positive VNS News in the News

Yes, I mean news news, not news of the personal-and-complainy variety. Yesterday I ran across this article about five-year-old Emma, who's the first patient in Canada to have the most recently released VNS model implanted. When she was seven months old, Emma was diagnosed with the seizure disorder infantile spasms (IS); her parents are hosting an … Continue reading Some Positive VNS News in the News →

Epilepsy in the News: GO Transit, Questions of (in)Accessibility, and an Angry Blogger

This video and article about a young girl (Pepper) with epilepsy whose parents were told that she couldn't ride an accessible GO Transit car popped up in my social media feeds a few days ago. As you might imagine, it made me so, so angry. In the interests of encouraging you to click this link so … Continue reading Epilepsy in the News: GO Transit, Questions of (in)Accessibility, and an Angry Blogger →

A Short, Self-Congratulatory, and Poorly Edited Post (I Went on a Trip and Didn’t Die!)

As I write this, I'm on my way home from the vacation in British Columbia that I had to reschedule last month. As I actually post this, I've been back in Toronto for several days. This means that I made it to my departure date without needing to reschedule for a second time; made it to … Continue reading A Short, Self-Congratulatory, and Poorly Edited Post (I Went on a Trip and Didn’t Die!) →

Some Frozen Treats I’ve Eaten This Summer, Most of Which Were Delicious

In my last post, I promised that the next one would be about ice cream. Since I’m a woman of my word, here are ten paragraphs about ice cream. Count 'em. I began writing this post as I greet each new day: by making a list. Since along with being a woman of my word … Continue reading Some Frozen Treats I’ve Eaten This Summer, Most of Which Were Delicious →

July in Two Words (So What?)

On this first day of August, I've been looking back over the last month and realizing that a major part of my doing-my-best-to-shrug-off-all-the-stuff-I-feel-powerless-about-and-thus-resent strategy in July was to repeat a simple phrase to myself, usually, but not always (being the awkward person I am), in my head. I've grown to appreciate the power of these … Continue reading July in Two Words (So What?) →

Postponed Trip, Surprisingly Positive Attitude

I slowly worked on a post about a then-upcoming solo trip to Victoria and about how much it meant to me and about how significant it was, etc. etc., for over a week but didn't manage to finish it because I kept having health setbacks that made it difficult both to articulate what I wanted … Continue reading Postponed Trip, Surprisingly Positive Attitude →

It’s Officially Summer, and I’m Not Sure Why I’m Not Dreading the Next Few Months

Friday was the first day of summer, the summer solstice, and my husband's birthday. It was one of the first truly warm and sunny days of 2019, my wonderful mother-in-law was visiting, and even though I was/am still slowly emerging from a pretty rotten couple of weeks, the cause(s) of this rottenness likely triggered by … Continue reading It’s Officially Summer, and I’m Not Sure Why I’m Not Dreading the Next Few Months →

Redefining Productivity (Again)

Though I set myself the (completely arbitrary) goal of writing two blog posts in May, for various reasons, most of them medical, I wasn't able to follow through. It's not as if I forgot or didn't make an effort to get the job done; it's just that every time I sat down to force myself … Continue reading Redefining Productivity (Again) →

Endocrinology Appointment for the Weak-Boned and Strong-Willed

My bone health has been an ongoing concern due to my anticonvulsants, several of which can cause decreased bone density, and to my eating disorder. My dread of this year's bone scan and endocrinologist appointment was not, then, entirely irrational, though it was admittedly a little extreme. Unsure whether or not I could handle the … Continue reading Endocrinology Appointment for the Weak-Boned and Strong-Willed →

Awareness of a Different and Very Uncomfortable Variety

I’m nearing the end—I think; fingers crossed—of an episode of postictal psychosis that began a day after a cluster of seizures I had on Thursday night, continued through the weekend, and seemed to get worse Monday afternoon, perhaps because my brain decided to surprise me with another seizure cluster on Sunday evening. Of all the … Continue reading Awareness of a Different and Very Uncomfortable Variety →