Chiari Malformation

This has been quite a year already. Victoria has really struggled with some things. Things that were so easy before are now a challenge to get through. She is learning to not take anything or anyone for granted. Finding out about the Chiari Malformation was a blow. Almost knocked us off our feet when we were waiting the 4 weeks for them to decide whether she was going to have to have brain surgery or not. We had so many people praying for her. 

She had been upset with her self that she couldn't get anything done due to the Post-Concussion Syndrome and what if the Chiari was worse that she was thinking. 

I called up medical records and asked for a copy of her MRI so she could see what her head looked like to put her mind to rest. I am disappointed that both neurologist never showed her the pictures. I think it would have made so much more sense if she could have seen it. It helped when she sprained her MCL. That was the first thing the doctor showed her was what the MCL looked like sprained and what it was supposed to look like. That made a world of difference.

Sometimes, Moms just need to step in and do it themselves.

 Seeing this picture was a bit of a shocker. When they tell you that her cerebellum is sticking down through the foramen magnum, you're like, yeah, okay. I got it. We have looked at pictures of other people's chiari but seeing Victoria's was a reality check. It's pretty obvious. 

We are so thankful that she may never have to have brain surgery. She has plenty of space around the brain stem and the opening is big enough. The second neurologist we saw said it was okay for her to ride horses, snow board and ice skate. So obviously when the concussion is no longer an issue, she can get back to that active life that she strives for every day. For now, it's working through school at a much slower pace, getting everything done that she wants to do, when she can do it. Sleeping tons.....

Saying it's okay that she switches from Algebra (which she previously excelled in math) and resort to listening to Dave Ramsey CD's for the remainder of the year for math, watching the online video for her Ag Class three times before she can remember what she saw so she can write two paragraphs about it, and having enough energy when the boys get home after work so she can visit with them. This head injury has changed her life and who she is right now. 

The Chiari Malformation has changed her life and who she sees herself as right now. 

It has affected all of us as well. When she can't reason, we have to tell her to just go lay down and watch a movie if she won't go to bed. It takes all of us to help her manage her life to not over do it with too much stimulus, too much noise, too much light, don't flick your hair, go lay down, take your vitamins and herbs, are you okay???

We are constantly telling Jared to NOT TURN HER UPSIDE DOWN!

Look What I Did!

Victoria and I were doing school. She was learning how to sew stitches on a fake skin pad for Animal Science. She had learned the surgeon's knot and running stitches too. I told her to leave it out so she can teach Kaleb how to do it too because he will want to know. 

And then my phone dings.....

Look What I Did?

 My boys love to freak me out. 

They love to rattle my cage.

They both get excited over emergency type situations. 

I think they get it from me being a PICU nurse...retired.

Anyway, I see this, the phone rings and Kaleb is saying he is okay but he is having a really hard time telling me what happened. His Apraxia is kicking in which only happens when he is really tired or frazzled. I'm looking at his forehead and I'm thinking CONCUSSION!!! NO NO NO!!

I told Kaleb to hold on, I'm coming to his work to look at it myself because he didn't think he needed to go to Urgent Care. 

 So I found out that the grinder he was using on metal...he works at RC Welding as a welder, kicked back, cut through his leather glove. He and his boss was washing it in the sink and he blacked out, and hit his head against the wall. It was a good thing his boss was there, because he said where he was falling was much worse than where he fell.

So, off to Urgent Care, where his forehead got glued, and his hand stitched up because it went down and knicked the tendon! We are all so thankful that he was wearing leather gloves....like he always does. We tell the doctor that we were just at home practicing surgeons knots etc. I video taped him stitching Kaleb's hand for Victoria to watch (she went home with Kirk and Kaleb's truck), and the doctor totally narrates everything he is doing and pretty much gives her a personal demonstration of what to do and why. It was awesome! 

Covid-19 Quarantine

Victoria feels like we have been under quarantine since November when she officially had her sprained MCL properly diagnosed...and then that led into a concussion.....and then that led into Covid-19 Quarantine!

She is literally climbing the walls!

 She voices her opinion constantly of how she is so sick and tired of being cooped up in the house. We have homeschooled for 22 years and have never felt this cooped before.

We were living a way too fast, paced life. It is actually perfect timing to have to stay home alllll the time! Victoria barely made it a week of returning to her Ag Science Class at Green Canyon High School. Her head couldn't handle the commotion and stimulus of being in a class of 30 kids. We were making arrangements with the school for her to come only MWF and get the work to do at home on T,TH. And then the quarantine happened and the schools closed. It was kind of perfect timing. 

She wants to roll her eyes at kids who say....Oh yeah, I had a concussion. It lasted a whole week. 

She is on month 4. 

We have heard that if you go past 10 days with concussion symptoms, then you will probably have Post-Concussion Syndrome for 3 months. If you go beyond 3 months, then you will probably have it for a year. I guess we are looking at a year.

At least she isn't missing out on anything. Nothing is going on for her to miss out on!

I'm trying to make dinner, and she is roping in the kitchen waiting for her Mind Warriors seminar to start in a Zoom Meeting. She pulled up her little roping calf she named "Whiplash" in honor of her concussion to use as a seat. And drinking Chocolate Milk, the drink of Champions....

so I've been told.

Sweet for the moment

Don't they look cute with their little toesies touching. 

This is a rare moment when these two siblings are in the same space and aren't annoying eachother.

It is usually Lightning on the right who is annoying. He is always bothering his sister, Thunder. Winter was like quarantine for us. So now that it is Spring, the snow is melted, these two are happy to be out climbing trees and prowling through our neighbors yard and go where we have no idea where!

Bunny Fight!

Bunny Fight!

It is very disturbing to watch bunnies fight.

Now at least we know how they both ended up over the fence last Fall with a ton of fur left in the goat pen. Blossom and Ezmerelda got into it. We thought Ezmerelda had the bad end of the stick but we were wrong. Poor Blossom had a 4 inch tear on her shoulders plus a few other little ones. $200 dollars later for stitches, antibiotics and pain medication, Blossom is doing much, much better. She is now ready to go back outside but we have to wait for her to grow fur. She isn't thrilled being in doors.