9.25.12 An Issue of Mathmatics

Imagine yourself as a young child standing in front of a blackboard that is covered in complex mathematical equations. You can see the numbers and symbols sprawled across the board, but you do not see any pattern or order. At your age you are just learning to recognize the individual numbers or perhaps count to 10. As you look at the board, you recognize a number or two. Really though, you have just the tiniest bit of understanding of what the markings on the board mean, even though you can see everything on it.

I heard a similar example recently to describe the symptoms of CVI, the vision impairment that Aimee has. Her brain doesn't know how to interpret the information that it gathers through the camera of her eyes. For Aimee, this same scenario applies to not just her vision, but also to her hearing, physical movements, emotions, and communication. She has the parts and pieces, but doesn't have the ability to interpret how they relate to each other.

This understanding of Aimee's obstacles has helped me to come to a big decision. Namely, we will not be going back to traditional therapy. We are currently half way through our trial period with the Anat Baniel Method. No matter what, even if we are not able to continue with these sessions, we will not go back. I have come to realize that asking Aimee to sit up when she does not yet have the ability to hold up her own head is like asking a child who is learning to recognize numbers to add fractions. Balancing her on an exercise ball (one of the exercises done in physical therapy) is like putting her in front of that blackboard and asking her to solve the equations.

One might see the little progress reports that I have been posting as meaningless. Yet, from my perspective, these little steps are like learning that 2 comes after 1 and before 3. That little bit of knowledge is essential if one wants to eventually solve the equations on the blackboard. Aimee's little new movements are all essential to the bigger movements of grasping objects, forming words, expressing feelings, and even seeing faces.

Really, Aimee is brilliant. Despite major obstacles that her brain has, she is learning. Even though the world around her is in many ways like sets of complex equations that she cannot understand, she still works to learn how the pieces relate to each other. She values and delights in each tiny new connection that she learns. After seeing this, how could I ever again ask her to perform a movement before it's time?

Aimee on her first day back to school last week.

Excited for school.

We have noticed a slowing in the amount of new movements that Aimee has made over the past couple of weeks. It is hard to know how much this is due to her surgery, subsequent eye infections, and increase in seizures or even just the added stress of being back in school. We had been warned upon leaving the center in August that we would see regression. We instead have seen continued progress. However, in order to stimulate more progress, we have a trip to the therapy center in California scheduled for the 3rd week in October. We were able to schedule half of the lessons with a therapist who has worked specifically with Cerebral Palsy patients for the past 25 years. Although Aimee does not have Cerebral Palsy specifically, she does share many of the symptoms. Plus, Aimee's therapist that we see in Bellevue twice a week will be down at the center that same week and able to sit in on these lessons. We are really excited!

We have applied and been approved for a partial scholarship for this upcoming trip. We plan to drive down and stay with family on the road as much as possible. By initial calculations, it looks like the lessons, gas, food, and lodging will come to about 3,500. A daunting figure, but we are continuing forward. Please agree with us that the trip would be provided for over this next month.