Here are a few pictures of how Jessie is enjoying her Home Therapy...or playing.
An update on the Saebo Stretch Arm splint. It is working pretty well, but a little harder to adjust than the one that was cast for her at KKI. We're still trying to figure out all this AFOs, splint, etc..etc.. to get the best results for Jessie. Please feel free to post comments or email suggestions for those of you with experience.
BTW, I took an Adderall today to see what the effects would be on her. OMG!! I weight over 200lbs, and I felt like I drank 20 cups of coffee...I can't imagine what that would do to her at 50lbs. And it did NOT help my concentration and focus. I couldn't focus on ANYTHING! We are watching her closely to see how she is on the medication...but I'm having my doubts.
OK, before you start slamming me. I know that I shouldn't take medication that is prescribed for someone else. But give me a break...it is my little girl.
It is so great to have Jessie back home. She smiles more and more each day, and recovers more and more each day. It is a miracle to watch and we are so thankful for the results we see each day.
We hope to see all of you on August 16th at 6:00PM at Bearcat Park in Aledo.
Cooling Off in 105 degree Texas Heat !!
Googlie Eyes - Every kid loves goggles in the pool !!
Chewing on a rubber rat ... at least I think it's rubber. It came out of the skimmer! Yuck!!
The watch on her left arm vibrates and beeps every hour to remind her to look at her arm and use it. Hemiplegic (hemiparetic) kids have neglect on one side of their body, and they forget to use that part. Notice the GREAT walking.
What can I say? The girl loves her dog.
Awwwww!!!
This is a very difficult move. She just bent over and picked up a nerf dart....
....to throw at Mommy!!! Ha Ha Ha Haaaaaa!
15 comments:
It's so great to see your family enjoying some good ole HT. Jessie you are looking like a champ. Keep up the hard work. Where did you get the watch. Syd could use one to help remind her to use her right hand. Sounds really neat! Syd has also done some botox injections in the past. She had them when she was around 5 years old before she had her leg surgery. We used it to help her hamstrings. She was doing lots of W sitting and unable to sit any other way. It helped until she had cutaneous hamstring lengthening in 2005. She wasn't happy to get the injections and Tony had to practically lay on her when they did it because she is so strong. Other than that part the botox wasn't bad and worked about 4 months at a time. Take care.
Your Friends,
The Joyce's
I am so glad to see you doing so well Jessie! Keep going girl, you are amazing everyone.
Best Wishes,
Rita in Mineral Wells
No slamming here at all - I would do the same thing (or my husband would be the more likely one)! LOL! Jessie looks great! Her stance is so straight and the watch is such a great idea. Look at all that has happened in just the past one year and look to all that is going to happen in the next one year! It is going to be great. Love the doggie pics (we are doggie people too) - we are heading out on a weeks' vacation to our local beach town, Ocean City, MD! Looks like Texas is heating up and Baltimore is finally cooling down a bit - only a high of about 82 today! Take care and will be checking in when we return!
Cris and Kristi,
I know you are glad to have Jessie home. She is an inspiration to those of us who still remain to have the surgery. But she gives me hope that when we do things will be as they should.
Paige
Addie Kaye's Mom
PS. Give Jess a big hug from her friends in MS.
I'm so glad she's at home and getting into a routine. All the equipment that comes with the hemiparesis is tough to get used to for both family and kid. Hollis has been wearing AFOs, SMOs and splints for most of her life, and it's still challenging to get them on. The best advice I can give about AFOs is to have her sit down, knees bent, and then have her (or you helping) really "jam" her heel to the back of the AFO to get the best use of it (and most comfort). And no criticism here from seeing what the meds side effects are personally: I took some of her Topamax to understand how she felt, a tenth of the dose she takes in a day, and I thought I was going to vomit all day!
YAY!!! She is doing so well! My comment on the medicine is I've heard that drugs tend to affect kids and adults in an opposite manner. I'm not a doctor, just something I've heard.... might want to ask a professional.
I am so glad you guys are all home and on the path to recovery! On the Adderall thing, The major difference is that you probably did not need it for concentration so it had the opposite affect on you. My friend who is a nurse told me that older kids take this as some kind of upper drug and have the same reaction because they don't need it to concentrate. So that is why you did not concentrate but it might have the opposite affect on Jessie because it is made to stimulate the brain.
Hi, i've been following Jessie's story since i saw her on the news. I wanted to address your concerns about the adderall. keep in mind that if you do not have any adhd tendencies it will feel like you just drank 20 cups of coffee. For those that do have those tendencies, it works the other way and allows them to focus and slows them down a little bit. It's a weird medicine, but very beneficial.
My name is Brande Juber and my sister's friend did your daughter's blog design and she told me about Jessie. My son also had a hemispherectomy/hemisphereotomy a year ago last month at 3-1/2 months old. I know what you are going through. They don't have the same condition, but they are affected in the same way because of the surgery. Jessie is adorable! I hope she has a speedy recovery and she continues to perform miracles on a daily basis. These kiddos in these situations are amazing! My son's website is www.caringbridge.org/visit/tysonjuber if you want to check it out.
Much love,
Brande Juber
I must also follow suit and tell you that I have followed your blog since I saw Jessie on TV. As for the drug Adderall, my son is on it for distraction and as someone else told you it affects people differently. For someone without issues keeping on task it works like "Speed" and for those who need a little help staying on task, it helps their thoughts come together. If I remember correctly it works on the frontal lobes of the brain and causes the fires in you brain to be constant as oppose to sporadic. Hope this helps. I know you can tell right away if my son takes it or not.
Not that you need another opinion just like the others, but taking Adderall when you don't need it would be the same as taking Insulin if you aren't diabetic, or a heart medication if you don't have cardiac disease. You'll get all the side effects and none of the benefits, because that you don't have the lock that key fits into.
Adderall is a life-saver for those of us who do need it. My son turned his life around when we discovered that he had undiagnosed ADD (no hyperactivity component), and several months later the doctor prescribed it for me, as well, for undiagnosed Adult ADD. It doesn't work like "speed" for us, it gives us the ability to focus without becoming distracted, to follow through and complete tasks, to access our thoughts more readily and to learn easier.
Best wishes to Jessie ... she's a miracle!
my prayers go to you for continued improvement in Jessie's recovery .... FYI if you do not have ADD or ADHD Adderal/ Ritalin or any other stimulant based ADHD medicine would in fact act like a major dose of speed. But if you suffer from neurological brain patterns that cause ADHD the same medicines do calm the brain without the symptoms you suffered.
Much love and prayers to Jessie and your family.
I am a doctor and I can confirm that the commonly prescribed "ADD" type drugs like Adderall etc do infact produce the opposite effect in adults (even sometimes adults with AD/HD or ADD). A pharmacist friend of mine said it best-children are not miniature adults-their bodies process things differently than ours do.
And I must admit that I have taken things that my kids have been prescribed. And I really know better lol.
Bex
Louisville KY
This has been my favorite and most encourgaging, inspirational [by my opinion] blog to date. wow that was a long sentence. lol anyway,
it shows that no matter what people go through, what hard tasks people go through pain and misery, one day you will be able to live a normal life again. this is the most amazing girl ever!
The part where you took her Adderall, made me crack up. even though it's not funny because its dangerous. But it just makes me think back to times my mom would try my dads food before the kids had some just incase we passed out from being so 'disgusted' hahaa,
or anything small like that.
you guys are truly an amazing family, and will forever stay in my hearts. i wish i could have made the party tonight. there isn't really an excuse. but i just know when i get my own car, i wont even make a mistake like that again.
Love you all
Whitney
Hi Hall Family
I am a pediatric speech pathologist and I've been working in the field for over 12 years. I've been reading your blog and want to comment on the adderall. For someone who doesn't need the medicine, it feels like a stimulant, but when you need it, it actually feels calm. I've worked with patients whose parents used "homemade" remedies, such a strong coffee for children with ADHD. It seems counter-intuitive, yet the results are there...increased focus and calmness using something that the average person finds to be stimulating. Continue to give it a try. Evaluate how Jessie responds to it, not how you think she will respond to the medicine.
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