Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Jinxed again.

This morning I woke KayTar up, got her dressed, and proceeded to brush her hair.

I sprayed it with water, as I do everyday, to loosen the curly mop it becomes in the night. I brushed it. I put in her butterfly. I put on her glasses.

She said, "My eyes feel sick." and pulled her glasses off. Or maybe, she pulled her glasses off and said, "My eyes feel sick." Either way, she wasn't opening her eyes.

I said, "KayTar, can you open your eyes?" It looked like an episode.

"KayTar, do you need to go to bed?" Yes.

She mumbled, "I'm all shaking."

I tried talking to her, asking her a few questions, gauge what was happening. She didn't respond. I left her to rest in her bed.

Maybe ten minutes later, I was calling Josh to let him know and I heard her, "I feel all better!" and went to check on her. She sat up. Her eyes were open. I asked her what happened and she told me, "You sprayed water in my face. My eyes feel sick. I shaking. Now I'm feel better."

Later she said, "I feeled spinny sick. Twirl around, twirl around. I'm feel better now!"

What happened? Was it an episode? A freakishly short episode on the heels of another? At the very least it was a severe reaction to something innocuous, something she experiences daily. I spray and brush her hair daily. When we leave the squirt bottle within her reach, we find her sopping wet, as she can't resist spraying herself in the face. When we swim, she begs to be splashed in the face (BubTar is all too happy to oblige). It is something she typically likes and seeks out regularly. She's never reacted negatively to it. To my knowledge, I didn't even squirt her in the face, what she felt might have just been cast off, peripheral spray...but WHAT A REACTION.

It reminds me of this, specifically this portion:

Yesterday, we had something else happen. KayTar was sitting with her daddy on the couch, and she tried to sign "Daddy", but she poked herself in the eye instead. She didn't do it very hard, in fact I can show you how hard it was.

Take your hand (whichever you would like) hold it in front of your face, thumb pointing towards your face, fingers fanned out, and tap it on your forehead. There! You signed "dad". Good for you!

Well, that is what she did, only she missed her forehead and caught her eye. She fussed a bit, and kept her eyes closed for a few seconds. When she reopened them, the eye she had poked was pointing inward to her nose and drifting. Her other eye was properly aligned. She blinked a few times, but it continued to point inward and move slightly. It lasted 1-2 minutes, and then she started gagging and almost vomited. We ran her to the bathroom, and then suddenly everything went back to normal. It was very strange, but strange doesn't necessarily mean anything...it is KayTar we are talking about.

The reactions themselves are entirely separate and unique, but the intensity of the reaction to something so innocuous is similar.

It was just so strange. Unexpected. Bizarre. It has left me scratching my head in puzzlement. Did she just have an episode? If not, then what in the world was it? Why did she describe it the same? React the same? If so, then why in the world was it so short, triggered by something so normal? Why was it so close to the last one?

She's fine now, coloring at the table while I write this. I'm keeping her home from camp today. If a little water caused THAT, we're going to play it safe, thankyouverymuch.

This is what I get for listing all those anomalies yesterday, isn't it? Another anomaly. When will I learn?

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hoping it means they are lessening in intensity and length because they are going to go away ... but wishing she didn't have them at all.

PJ said...

Wow! She really does break all the patterns...always. The fact that she verbalizes now though is a real improvement. No way to know if she's experienced these mini-episodes before and just was fussy or cried. Bless you!!!

Thanks for stopping by. The new header is a photo from July of my younger son and younger granddaughter in Chicago at the Taste of Chicago.

kittenpie said...

This is reminding me of the way babies keep switching up their sleep habits, just to keep you on your toes... Like you should just be reminded now and again that you never really know anything when it comes to kids!

I can only hope, though, that this heralds a change to tiny mini-episodes in the order of petit mal seizures, rather than having her suffer the longer ones which seem so much worse.

S said...

poor love.

i wonder, though, if as her language skills keep improving, she will offer you more and more clues to whatever is going on.

Girlplustwo said...

what Sarah said..its amazing to see how the journey is unfolding, conspirators in figuring this out rather than you alone, trying so hard.

flutter said...

she is a complicated little puzzle.

Mimi said...

Just catching up ... 95 days! That's really something. Even if today's reactions were kinda ... weird. You just keep watching, I guess.

Anonymous said...

Well with insurance now not an issue, maybe that MRI will help provide some insight, or perhaps another EEG? I know that sounds like a totally lame place to go, but with the frequency of these things it might be a good time to catch it "on the record". I'm so relieved for you that you have coverage for her now as the puzzle pieces begin to change shape.

painted maypole said...

although she, and you, associate it with the water that may not be what caused it at all.

either way, I'm sorry to hear that it happened.

Amy Y said...

Just a thought... I wonder if her blood pressure took a dip unrelated to the water? My blood pressure is very low, naturally, and when I'm standing and getting ready in the morning before I've eaten or had something to drink especially, I occasionally get light headed. I wonder if it could be something similar?

motherbumper said...

I'm with kittenpie - she's keeping you on your toes (that a girl, KayTar).

Andrea said...

Wow....I'm sorry that these are keeping you on your toes. that has to be Very frusrtating to not know what is going to trigger one. Hugs!

Ben and Bennie said...

Kyla, there is a theory now making it's way around Ben's docs that he possibly has "stomach migraines." I was really skeptical about it but things are adding up right now that those might be happening.

In Joan's research she has found that children with chronic migraines also have symptoms of the stomach version as well. I have had migraines and the descriptions Kaytar is giving you sounds way too familiar. I'm just fortunate that I've never had the stomach issues others have to deal with.

Hey, my friend. It may be nothing but I just threw that out there for you.

natalie said...

Kyla, that is an odd response to water (mist, spray) in the face. Could it be just that she's still so sensitive after her episode?

As usual, I'm baffled along with you.

BTW, have you ever discovered any little discipline tricks? Last winter/early spring, that was something you posted about a lot.

~aj~ said...

I'm stumped, Kyla. At least it didn't turn into a big one.

I think her descriptions are so cute though. :)

InTheFastLane said...

Kay-Tar is a mystery. How hard it must be to try to unravel the puzzle.