2013 - Page 13 of 18 - Forever In Mom Genes

Seizures and Todd’s Paralysis

Apr 22 2013

Our daughter had her first seizure the summer of 2009. She stopped breathing and her heart raced out of control. There are times, even years later, that I stand in her room reliving that night, imagining all the what ifs in painful detail. What if the ambulance hadn’t made it in time? What if, what if, what if… After starting meds, the seizures continued, but lessened in severity. Each occurred during sleep. The neurologist believed the transition from one level of sleep into another was some sort of trigger. Then Avery had her first seizure while she was awake. It lasted a few minutes and stopped abruptly, leaving her left side limp, temporarily paralyzed. We thought she had possibly had a stroke. We later learned she had experienced Todd’s Paralysis — a focal weakness in part of the body, occurring after about 13% of seizures. It’s amazing how easy it is to mask your panic when you have another child to consider. Our son witnessed the seisure. “Oh no, oh no, oh no.” he repeated. “She’s fine,” we told him in an absurdly casual tone. “We’re going to take her to the doctor just to be safe. There’s nothing to[…]

Apr 21 2013

Do you ever think to yourself, “Self, why are you such a dork?“ I do. Like last week, as I enthusiastically waved at a friend across the vast veggie section the Super Store. The “friend” looked at me with one brow raised. This made me smile bigger and wave harder, as though by upping the ante, they’d recognize me. Well, it’s hard to recognize somebody when you’ve never met them. I was waving at a total stranger. How embarrassing though not quite as embarrassing as greeting someone’s wave with a toothy grin and happy return wave, only to realize they’re not waving at you, but the person directly behind you. My friend and I were discussing this humbling situation the other night and exchanged stories of past salutation humiliation. For the rest of the night I waved at her from across the room and when she smiled back, I shook my head and pretended to point to someone over her shoulder. It only took about 3 or 4 of these faux waves before she caught on. She’s one of my prettiest friends. Yesterday as I was returning from an appointment with my daughter, I decided to[…]

Apr 17 2013

When we asked our kids to name their absolute favourite Disney World ride, they unanimously agreed… The Hollywood Tower at MGM Studios was the winner! If you think our six year old would be terrified and far too little for such a ride, think again. She was the dang ring leader. When we up rode the rickety elevator for the first time, we did so together as a family. When the ride came to a stop, and the shrill screams of the riders (mostly my husband) subsided, it went silent. People were obviously catching their breath, and possibly swallowing down bile. And then amid the dark quiet a tiny voice cried out, “AGAIN!!!” My husband’s response to our daughter’s passionate plea was a solid, “Nope. Never again.” So we ditched that nauseated chicken and lined up and rode again. Several times. Yes, I felt queasy. In fact, I lost all blood flow to my upper body and my organs jellified at some point. But, I’d do it again. I love that my kids are fearless. That’s one of the most glorious benefits of childhood. Adventures aren’t obstructed due to pragmatic reasoning. Exhilarating experiences aren’t missed because of “what ifs?” or “maybe[…]

Apr 15 2013

The trouble with having a child with an astounding threshold for pain is…they have an astounding threshold for pain. Sure, there are times like during vaccinations or minor scrapes and bumps when it comes in handy, but mostly it’s just scary. If my daughter should ever cry out in pain, we know it’s serious.* Take the time she sidled up to the gas fireplace. Though it had been turned off for some time, the glass was still very hot and she burned a loonie sized section of her calf. Even a tiny burn is agony for most, but she didn’t even feel it. A few days ago Avery seemed slightly under the weather — unusually tired and very pale. She had a low grade fever and not much of an appetite, but she didn’t complain. When she woke up the other morning, weeping, I knew something was wrong. She told me her neck hurt (I’m sure she meant her throat), and her tummy, and her ankle too. Who knew “the ankle bone was connected to the ear bone” because an hour later, her ear drum burst. Our doctor confirmed the yellow liquid oozing from her ear was the result of[…]

Ladders and Dadders and Bros

Apr 14 2013

As I sit here at my desk, gazing out the window deciding what to tackle next—update my resume, answer emails, work on our taxes—my eyes fall upon my neighbour who is perched high upon a ladder; clearly taking advantage of the mild weather, he’s taking down his Christmas lights. Naturally this reminds me of the battle my dad fought and lost with an unruly ladder. Forget the taxes, I’m going to share this story instead. My parents live near by and I pop over often. On this particular day I had stopped in without the kids for whatever reason. I was in the kitchen putting on the kettle for tea when I happened to glance out the bay window. It was at this exact moment that I witnessed my father riding a ladder from the crest of the roof, down to the pavement. Wearing slippers instead of sturdy shoes was his first mistake. The second was neglecting to ask someone to hold the ladder securely on the sloped driveway while he strung the Christmas lights. The bottom of the ladder slid away from the house on the slippery pavement and my dad plummeted face first to the ground. He[…]

Archive - 2013

Seizures and Todd’s Paralysis

Salutation Humiliation

Our Favourite Ride At Disney World

The Little (Ear) Drummer Girl

Ladders and Dadders and Bros