Breakthrough seizures have been rearing their ugly head again, so we're adding a new medication. So yesterday we started weening Teddy off the Banzel & starting him on Vimpat. The neuro thought that it wasn't worth upping the Banzel dose at this time--if it wasn't working, it wasn't working.
She also said that Teddy is becoming more of a likely candidate for surgery. While Alan & I knew that this was always a possibility in the future, we really didn't think we'd be hearing about this so soon. Brain surgery for seizures can be a scary thing, but there are a lot of positives about it also. One is that I've heard that after the surgery many kids report finally having the "white noise" of seizure activity gone & can better concentrate & be less irritable.
We don't know when we would start to seriously start talking with doctors about the surgery, but it will be when we've exhausted all the medication options. We're getting near the end. But in the mean time, Teddy can swallow the Vimpat, so we're excited & proud of him for being able to do that--it's something very hard for him. But he knew he was ready!
On another note, Teddy & I went to the Apple Store yesterday morning to look at iPads & see if they would be a good option for Ted to use at school as an assistive device. Chris was great & even came in early to work so that he could be there to help us before the mad crush of customers when the store officially opened at 10. The first thing Chris showed Teddy was the game Angry Birds. I thought Teddy would only be mildly amused. But he was not. He was addicted! He played the game almost the whole time we were there, with only one whining break when I made him try out the word processing & drawing apps. When we left I made the mistake of telling him that I could download that app onto my iPod touch. So after getting home, I was badgered into doing just that & then Teddy took over my touch & played the game for the rest of the day! He didn't go to bed until 10 pm because he kept playing! And he's pretty darn good at it too!
I know other parents might think it's crazy that I'm happy & excited about Teddy getting addicted to a video game, but this is the first time he's taken any interest in technology. I've tried to get him to play games on the computer & was able to get him to play one game on my touch before, but this is new & exciting. I'm hoping from here he can learn to use some other apps on my touch & then maybe eventually use a tablet of some kind in school. I owe it all to Chris!
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