A Good Week

The GREAT news is that Soren has remained seizure-free all week!

After that, everything else is gravy. And the gravy has been pretty good as well. Part of the UCLA Intervention Program is that Soren is evaluated by a developmental pediatrian every six months. He had this 6 months ago and then had his second evaluation yesterday. What this means is that the doctor tries to see what progress Soren has made since the last visit. And I tend not to look at that kind of thing, so it was nice to have someone else put in in perspective.

Six months ago, Soren was still on Zonegran, and thus, still very drowsy at times. Now he is off it and MUCH more alert. Six months ago, Soren hadn't turned to his side. And while Soren still won't follow objects with his eyes or hold a toy in his grasp, there is one thing he does that ALWAYS impresses people.

He eats. He eats well. And he tends to sing and talk when he does it. And since we started feeding therapy (about 5 months ago), he is now taking bites of crackers, can drink thick liquids from a cup, and can negotiate a piece of food from one side of his mouth to the other (he prefers to chew on the right). These are skills he didn't have 6 months ago. And the doctor was HUGELY impressed.

It made me feel good. I forget that all these every day little things add up to a lot. Now we're working on him using a spoon (with our hand holding his hand) and him holding the cup (again, with assistance). I feel that if anything will motivate this boy to hold onto something, it's if it's food.

So, a good week. And over last week, I'll sure take it.

Amy