It's a pretty normal Saturday in hospital land. I've eaten many things and drunk many Ketocals. I've socialized a little (something I wasn't doing much of when my postictal psychosis was at its worst) and considered building a new LEGO set. I've had a seizure. My seizure frequency means that I wake up knowing that … Continue reading A Glimmer of Hope for “a Challenging Case of Very Intractable Epileptic Seizures”
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
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
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
I’ll begin by acknowledging that despite having had the best of intentions to write at least a post a week throughout January, I’ve instead continued to more or less ignore this blog. I’ve had legitimate reasons for falling short on my WordPress duties, but the guilt nonetheless remains, so I’m just, you know, putting it … Continue reading Check In/Check Up
I'm back in Toronto after a few mostly nice weeks in BC with my parents. For suspension-building purposes, I'll start with the good. The trip was pleasant in that it was, on the whole, relaxing, a great opportunity to see friends and family and to take care of myself while recovering from my recent concussion. … Continue reading Christmas CheER and Another Surgery Countdown
... let them cut into your brain anyway? My attitude towards the procedure I'm supposed to have sometime over the next month or two (I'm still waiting for a date, which is its own kind of stressful) seems to have entered a new phase that I'll call "full-blown fear." Or, I guess, fear mixed with … Continue reading Feel the Fear and …
This morning my husband and I woke up early (well, early for a Sunday) and went downtown to the starting point for the inaugural Purple Walk for Epilepsy, which took place in conjunction with BuskerFest in support of Epilepsy Toronto. Before continuing, I'll say that Tristan Thompson, a famous NBA player, was there, and I was … Continue reading Purple Tears (of Gratitude)
One night last week, I had just finished brushing my teeth and was heading to bed when I stopped dead in my tracks, paralyzed by fear. “What’s wrong?” my husband asked. “I feel a SENSE OF IMPENDING DOOM,” I replied, in exactly those words. As per my recent explanation/tirade, the period after a tonic-clonic seizure can … Continue reading Sense of Impending Doom
De Morbo Sacro: Life and/with Epilepsy 