Milestones

On this very day there are parents of 11 month old babies everywhere celebrating their baby’s next developmental milestone. Today, we are acknowledging Pepper’s 100th seizure.  Over the last 24 hours, Pepper had another cluster of seizures which put us right up to 100 in total. What does that mean, you ask? Well, it means that during a period of 24 hours, Pepper had a total of 8 seizures. Each seizure lasts anywhere from 30 seconds to 3 minutes. During those seconds, Pepper is unresponsive, with dilated pupils staring up and to the side. Her limbs are stiff and usually her hands are in tiny fists, twitching with the seizure. She is not breathing during these seizures. Her lips are blue, and her face starts turning blue. Once the seizure stops, Pepper takes a deep breath in, relaxes her limbs and closes her eyes. She is in this “post-ictal” state for anywhere from 3 minutes to 20 minutes. These seizures wipe her out and she usually sleeps for a while after having one. The key to monitoring these seizures is in the timing. I need to make sure that she does not go over 3 minutes, or have more than 3 seizures in 30 minutes. So, Pepper and I are never separated for long. How do you sleep, you ask? Well, we co-sleep with her. It’s the only way to be certain we catch her seizures at night. To answer that question more accurately, check the dark circles under my eyes. Having not slept much in the past few nights, I have also succumbed to a cold that was on the cusp of attacking me. I am now a tired, achy, grumpy mess. Having said that, I still have a family that I adore more than anything in this world, and a husband who takes great care of me. So really, I am blessed. Bring on the cake and balloons. We’ve reached the 100 club.