The Daughter Chronicles

Monday, February 28, 2005

Workin' for the weekend with Mia

Mia had a groovy weekend. Yesterday we went to the Celtic festival here in Mesa (at the Community College). When we lived in Oregon, we used to go to the Celtic festival (the "Highland Games," even though -- no highlands!) every summer, and we've been twice since moving here. They're not as fun as the one in Portland, however -- at least Portland could feel like Scotland, occasionally -- it's weird seeing people strolling around in kilts in the desert. I also don't think it's as big as the one in Portland. Anyway, Mia was out and about, checking out all the kooks in kilts and fancy shirts and carrying big-ass swords. I'm a comic-book geek, so I can call 'em when I see 'em. We were only there for about an hour and a half, but she had a good time. At one point she was sitting by a cage (a corral, more like it) full of collies and other sheep/hunting-type dogs, and she was fascinated by them. Krys claims she said "dog," which is possible, since it's a short word and her "d" sound is excellent (she still won't say "Dad," though). At one point two dogs got snippy with each other and barked, which usually sets her off on a crying jag. Since her accident she has startled much more easily, something we've been trying to fix. The oxygen therapy is helping, and yesterday, she looked surprised when the dogs yelped, but she didn't cry. Progress!

In our quest to find more food for her to eat, we tried funnel cake and meat pies yesterday. She wanted nothing to do with either. I am convinced the only place you can get really good funnel cake is at the Jersey shore. Perhaps that's my youth talking, but the funnel cake yesterday was just ... okay. Anyone know any other place with good funnel cake?

On Saturday, we went to the wedding of one of my former students. We were debating on whether we should take Mia, since the ceremony was at five and we knew we probably wouldn't be home before eight (her bedtime is at seven, more or less). We finally decided to take her, and we're glad we did. She was very well behaved, even though we dressed her up in stockings and a pretty little frock. She sat around in Krys's lap for most of the evening and, like she does, held court for all her admirers. There were a bunch of people there who hadn't seen her in a while, so they all had to come over and check her out, and she said "Hi" to them a lot (it's the only word she says with any authority) and waved and smiled. It was a very nice evening, and even toward the end of the night, when she was getting tired, she was still smiling and checking things out. She enjoys getting out and meeting her public, since they clamor for public appearances (okay, that might be a little hyperbolic)!

Tomorrow: the end of hyperbaric oxygen treatment and a breakdown of what I think about it. Pictures soon! I have no digital camera, so I must get things developed!

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

Mommas, don't let your babies grow up to be medicated

Mia saw her neurologist today. Her neurologist is Dr. Allen Kaplan, who apparently has a pretty good reputation around town. He's a very nice man, but he's a little overworked, and we had to get in to see him before he went on vacation for a couple of weeks. We went to the hospital and, naturally, sat around for a while. Mia is amazingly patient, and she just sat around screeching happily and drinking juice. When Dr. Kaplan came in, he checked her eyes to make sure she was following objects fine, and we told him she was having worse seizures recently. We aren't sure if it's because of the hyperbaric oxygen treatment she's been receiving lately (and I will have a long post on oxygen treatment soon), which is supposed to possibly increase seizure activity, and he said it's possible. So she has to get a blood test to check her Tegretol levels (Tegretol is her anti-seizure medication) and an EEG. Fun stuff. I hate medicating my child, and would encourage all you parents out there to try anything before doing it. If her levels are too small, we have to increase her medication. Blech.

Update on her vitals: she's 32 pounds and 37 inches long. A girl in the elevator going down after her appointment thought she was 4 years old and refused to believe us when we told her she was 2 1/2. I don't know if she's tall for her age, but some tell us she is.

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

The Saga of Mia

So why should I write a blog about my daughter? What's so great about her? Well, beside the fact that she is the most beautiful little girl in the world, I wanted to do this blog because she has a traumatic brain injury, and a lot of my friends, who live far away, want to know how she's doing. I also want to let other people who are raising kids with developmental difficulties what we do, because if it helps them, that's always a good thing. What's Mia's history, you ask? I'm so glad you did.

On 18 April 2003 (Good Friday), I was driving with my seven-and-a-half-month-old daughter in my car on Interstate 10 (eastbound). I got off the freeway on the Chandler Boulevard off-ramp and was almost immediately stopped by traffic (there's a light at the top of the off-ramp). While I was sitting there, not moving, my car was struck in the rear by a flatbed tow truck traveling at approximately 60 miles per hour. The driver had bent over to look for a map and didn't see the lineup of cars. He saw me at the last minute and tried to swerve, as did I when I saw him barreling down on me, but we both failed and he nailed me, spinning me around and knocking me about 200 feet. I broke my scapula and the driver's seat collapsed backward into the back seat. Mia was in her car seat, facing backward, and she wasn't moving and her eyes were closed. After freaking out for a few seconds, I calmed down and managed to get a few small grunts out of her. The ambulance came and took her to Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix.

She had to have surgery, because she had a subdural hemotoma -- a mass of blood between her skull and brain. The doctors cut her skull open and drained the blood. They weren't sure if she would survive the night, but she made it through. She spent ten days in the ICU, and was in an induced coma for about five of those. Eventually she was transferred to Phoenix Children's Hospital, where she recovered for a while. All in all, she spent exactly five weeks in the hospital. While she was at PCH, her head started to swell, so her neurosurgeon put in a shunt to drain the fluid from her head. It's still there, and you can see it in her neck, which is kind of freaky.

Since she got out of the hospital she has had physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, with music therapy thrown in recently. When she got out of the hospital, she was being fed through an NG tube threaded into her stomach through her nose, and she didn't move very much. Prior to the accident she had just learned to roll over, but now she didn't even do that. Since the damage was to the right side of her brain, her entire left side didn't work. She had seizures, and is on medication to help that.

Since the accident, she has made great strides. Her left side still does not work terribly well, but she can tummy crawl pretty well, and she can sit unaided, although she does tend to sit folded over her legs because her balance is poor. She has a frame that helps her stand, which she goes in every day to help develop her leg muscles. Her biggest physical problem is balance, which is keeping her from sitting up straight or standing, but we're working on that. She just learned how to drink through a straw, which was a big hurdle since she can't pick up a cup. She knows several signs and uses them pretty well, and her receptive language is far in advance of her expressive language. She understands plenty of what her mother and father say to her, but cannot tell us what she wants. It's frustrating.

She is now two-and-a-half, and is making wonderful progress. I just thought it would be nice to have a blog that chronicles her steps as she goes through them. As I mentioned, any advice is welcome. This is our first child, so it's all new to us!

Monday, February 21, 2005

Because one blog just isn't enough

I would like to keep everyone updated on the progress of my daughter, but I like to fill up my other blog with ranting about the world and comic book-related stuff. Therefore, this blog will be exclusively about my one daughter, and eventually, my other daughter (she's still cooking, and will be here in late June/early July). My wife, who's a bit skeptical about this whole blogging thing, will be posting as well (I hope -- she's much smarter than I am, and she is, after all, carrying Kid #2). If I ever figure out how to post pictures, I will. Comments are welcome, as is advice. More to follow!