How special of a last day.

I'm so thankful Jayen's teacher suggested a little get together with Jayen on his last day of school. I guess my mind was just a little too occupied to even put together anything like this. We came to school and had lunch with Jayen, even brought him his favorite Taco Bell! The class had a little going away party for him. After lunch we went back to the classroom to pack up and were met by some of our amazing friends form school. Jayen's teachers, nurse, and helpers put together these AMAZING baskets for us. There was one basket for Jayen to take to the hospital and another for Dalan and Brilyn to help at home. How amazing is that? They thought of our entire family. They were even sneaky enough to call our social worker from Minnesota to ask for some nearby food places and got gift cards for those places. I can't thank them all enough! We LOVE LOVE LOVE our Bellevue Elementary family. You don't know how truly awesome you all are. You are forever in our hearts and forever a part of our family!

Ms. Shank is even wearing our Jayen ribbon!

Ms. Shelby doesn't like taking pictures but we want to make sure we always remember her. Even is Jayen seems to think she doesn't exist anymore ;)

Jayen wanted to dig right in.

 

Everywhere I looked there was something else to see. The baskets were so full! I'm just so overwhelmed. This was so heartwarming. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Proven wrong again and again! What a puzzle!

Of course as soon as I say anything or write anything about how good he is doing, he has to prove me wrong. Last night was back to being up 1000 times, waking up at 4 am and not wanting to go back to bed, then to top it off he decided to poop while standing up to pee. The poop thing was just the icing on the cake. (Even though it didn't look or smell nearly like icing!) Literally as I'm on the phone with his teacher, two minutes before the bus is to pick him up, he decided he has to go to the bathroom. I tried to have him sit but he wanted to stand. After he was done peeing he stood there and finished the rest of his business. I tried keeping my composure on the phone and continue the conversation while cleaning up his pants, legs, shoes that he decided to step in poop with, the toilet, myself, and keep Brilyn out of it all. Then the bus pulls up! What a great start to the day. I'm not sure I should be writing about his triumphs anymore!

He is like a million piece puzzle!

I've really started seeing Jayen as a million piece puzzle lately. Sometimes I find a piece that fits and other times I think I find a piece, make it fit, then realize it I just squeezed it into where I wanted it to go. We have so many hurdles to overcome in this journey. Some days I only see the hurdles in between me and the finish line. Those are my days of most frustration. Other days I feel like we make it over a few hurdles, but then the rest knock us down and we scrape every knee, elbow, shin, nose, knuckles, wrist, chin, forehead, shoulder, stomach, (yeah, some days we scrape EVERY body part!).

We have been struggling with Jayen getting out of bed at night. I was past the point of frustration with Jayen. I felt like a horrible mom every night because of the yelling that occurred after the literally hundredth time putting him in bed. I felt bad for Dalan who shares a room with Jayen. He is often kept awake. I struggle finding rewards and consequences for Jayen, he is interested in everything but nothing in particular. I knew candy would be an easy and somewhat exciting reward. I grabbed a Ziploc bag, permanent marker, napkin, dry erase marker, and a piece of candy. I told Jayen that if he got out of bed I would put an X in the box. If he had any boxes left when he woke up then he would get the candy. The first time was a fail, the second time was a fail, the third time was a fail, the fourth time was a fail, the fifth time was a fail, the sixth time was a fail, but I'm happy to report that after a couple weeks Jayen started getting the idea. Nap time is more of a struggle than night time, but I think we are starting to get somewhere. The last three nights he has earned his candy in the morning, two of them with no X's at all!!! I hope this is a true fit puzzle piece and not something I am making fit!

 

We have also been struggling with potty training with Jayen. He has got the pee part down. He is in underwear all day long but at night when he is in a pull-up he sometimes poops in the pull-up rather than the toilet. Quite a few times it is in the middle of the night and wakes him up, sometimes screaming. We have noticed his stomach often seems distended and his b.m. is very hard. We recently started miralax. I think I overdosed him the first time. After two days of the miralax we had, what Renee calls, soup poop! We backed off the dose, then during the kitchen remodel misplaced the miralax and stopped giving it to him. Once again his poop hardened and his stomach distended. We have gotten back on the medicine and have been waiting for things to kick in again. I started it at a slower pace. Today, when we were waiting for the bus, Jayen informed me he had to go to the bathroom. He went #2 in the toilet! I really hope that getting this issue under control will help with the potty training. I think he understands but can't always control it. Hopefully this will help with a few puzzle pieces. Maybe he will eat better because his stomach feels better, maybe he will stay in bed longer, maybe!

Mayhem strikes again!

Mornings are always so hard for me. Jayen's seizures usually occur first thing, so I am hovered over him until I know he is in the clear. When I finally feel he is ok then I can run to the bathroom and start getting ready for the day. Well, today Jayen proved once again that he needs CONSTANT supervision. He wanted a milk in his cereal just like big brother, but didn't want to ask for help. He went to the fridge, grabbed the milk, and poured himself, the table, and the floor some milk. It looked like spilt milk!!!!!

 

When I finally had it all cleaned up, Brilyn decided she wanted some too. She took Jayen's bowl and tried to drink out of it. Once again, it looked like spilt milk. Mornings are tough around here!

F R U S T R A T E D!!!!!!!

Jayen has earned himself the nickname Mayhem time and time again, but today took the cake! Mommy was ready to scream from the mountains, drink everything we have in the house, and ship the kids first class to Indiana. (Dalan's request. Not sure what is in Indiana.)
This weekend we had people over to celebrate Matt's graduation. After everyone left we noticed that someone had gotten into the fish food and fed the fish. They fed them enough food for an entire year. Today I took out all the water and rocks and cleaned the tank. I filled it back up, put the conditioner in and waited until it was the right temperature. This process literally took all morning. I finally put the fish back in shortly before Jayen got home from school. The kids played for a little bit then it was time to lay down for naps. Jayen was having a hard time sleeping, as ALWAYS, but when I went to lay him back down the 100th time I noticed the water was cloudy again. I went to look a little closer and once again I found enough food for the next two years. The entire bottle of fish food I bought yesterday was now in the bottom of the tank. I JUST put the fish back in there.

I am nonstop running after this kid and as I am cleaning up after the mess he just made, he is getting into something else. I can't ever keep up with him. I am so frustrated trying to get through the days. Some days I feel like I just have to keep going through the motions until it is over.

 

 

This is a picture Dalan brought home from school today. Made me cry! We have talked about the surgery and he understands as much as I want him to. Hope he understands why we have to leave again. Wish we didn't have to!

What a great role model!

Today was daddy's graduation from Bellevue University! We are all so proud of him. He is such a great role model. Great job daddy!

 

So thankful to have our Thursday nights back! Tacos anyone?

(inside joke, but if you want to join us some Thursday let us know!)

Unforgetable journey!

I won't say I got permission or even her blessing, but I did ok this with my mother first. Matt and I have talked about getting tattoos together for a long time, but never knew what to get. We finally came up with the perfect idea. We took the epilepsy awareness ribbon and turned it on its side to form the J in Jayen's name. We really wanted to get them before we left for surgery. We scheduled the appointment and scheduled the sitter and drove to the tattoo parlor.

 

 Mommy had to go first or she might have chickened out!

 

 

I wanted mine on my foot. I was told this and your ribs are the worst places to get a tattoo for pain. We both knew what Jayen was going to have to go through and decided it meant a little more for us to have to go through the pain too. I wish I could take all his pain away, but I konw that isn't possible.

Daddy went for the ribs. OUCH! He sat much better than mommy did.

 

I know someday soon the other two will ask where their names are and I have already come up with my response. "When you have brain surgery I will get your name tattooed on me."

Keeping Busy!

With all the things going on in our life right now we decided to add a little more. I was trying to find things to keep my mind busy and not focus on the upcoming surgery. I guess I bit off quite a bit. I have wanted to redo the kitchen cabinets for the past 10 years and FINALLY convinced my husband to do it. I'm so happy with the outcome!

 

Now I need to find another project. Surgery is quickly approaching and my mind is racing. Decided to do a little shopping therapy and came across this picture. Thought it was too perfect for our family. Jayen's crazy journey has taken us on this amazing roller coaster ride. Not only is he chaos, but this jouney is chaos. Always something. I am hoping and praying that surgery changes things for the better!

Unofficial water boy!

Matt and I have coined Jayen with the title "Unofficial Water Boy" for Dalan's basketball team. Matt's boss, Mark, is the coach for the team and is very supportive of Jayen being involved. This past weekend Dalan dressed Jayen in a purple shirt just like the team shirts. Jayen was so excited!!! During the game Jayen wanted to sit on the team bench instead of with his boring mom and dad! He did A M A Z I N G! He wanted to go in a play when the players switched out, but was reminded to sit back down and didn't put up much of a fight. I was so amazed and proud.

 

 

At practice today, Jayen was once again front and center. When I turned around to see what he was getting into, this is what I found him doing.

 

He was stretching with the team, doing exactly what they were doing. We had never showed him how to do this, he just did it. It was so cute. My heart grew a few sizes!

Thanks Coach Mark for allowing Jayen to be a part of the team. He enjoys every second of it!!!

As the days get closer, the nights get longer

I think my mind is finally figuring things out. I've been trying to keep it busy, but it's pretty smart. I've been questioning things lately and really starting to worry about whether we are making the right decision for Jayen. Are we really going to let them do this to our baby? Am I really going to let them cut open his skull and possibly his brain? My mind just keeps racing. I know we are going to go through with it, but is it really what is best? Praying this all goes well.

Note

 

I was very excited to get this note from Jayen's teacher today. Apparently she noticed! I've been very hesitant about this Ritalin stuff, but I do see a benefit. I hope this helps him more than it helps me! I just don't want to feel like we are ever doing anything to make it easier for us. We are supposed to do everything to make it easier for him!

Oh the changes you will see!

Got to see our favorite doctor today!!!! But couldn't have planned it any better. While we were in the room talking about Jayen, none other than the doctor from Minnesota called. Apparently the date they previously gave us did not work with all the doctors, so they needed to reschedule. I don't understand why I had to wait over a week for them to check with the doctors and give me a date only for them to call back a week later and tell me it didn't work. AHHHHH! At least it is a little earlier rather than later. We are now scheduled for surgery on February 12th. We will still have to be there two days earlier to do some labs and testing.
I'm glad we were in the room with Dr. Toth. He could see first hand the craziness of these doctors. I had everything lined up as far as where everyone was going to be, who they were going to be with, and how they were getting there. Now I have a lot more work to be doing.

We have also learned that the Air Force is allowing Matt to stay for the surgery. He was originally supposed to leave on Valentine's day and be gone for three months. They have allowed him to push back school until SEPTEMBER!!!! This will give Jayen enough time for a full recovery. However, this makes for a lot of changes for the rest of our family too. We are now supposed to be in Arizona by the end of January. We have tossed around the idea of the rest of us staying here until the end of the school year. Mommy isn't sure about this idea, three months without daddy at the end of this year and five months without daddy at the beginning of next year.

So many changes our heads are still spinning. I guess we just need to find something sturdy and hold on.

Not so drugged!

I think I am ok with how the ritalin is going. This weekend we met up with the Loftus' at the zoo. We wanted to all go to the Imax but weren't sure how it would go. Jayen and Brilyn are not good at sitting still for more than 10 seconds, so movies are usually not an option. The movie actually went great. Beyond great! Brilyn was in love with her NeNe and sat with Renee and Mallory the entire time. Jayen was so intrigued and sat through the entire movie. I think he even understood and liked the movie. That has never happened before. It was such an enjoyable day.
Things have been going pretty well since then too. I have noticed on seizure days that the ritalin seems to make him a little foggy. Not sure if ritalin and diastat are too much together. The other days seems to be going well. The therapists at PTC noticed his attention span was a little better and he wasn't as distracted. I'm excited to see what his teacher thinks on Monday.

We have a date!!!!

FEBRUARY 26th, 2014! This is our D-day! We will probably have to go up a few days prior to do a History & Physical and some labs, but this is the day they are scheduled to do surgery. Matt is scheduled to leave us February 14th, so we are working on begging the Air force to keep him here a little longer. Now we just have to start working on a schedule for everyone; who is going where with who and how long!

My biggest ally or biggest critic?

I'm really struggling with this one. For a second time now, I have heard through the grape vine that someone I think should be one of our biggest allies thinks we are failures as parents. Apparently all we do in this person's eyes is yell at Jayen. We are constantly correcting him and he/she feels this will affect our other children. I don't even know where to begin with this information. Of course this affects our other children. There may be some negative, but there are so many positives as well. They will be affected by Jayen and his disability for the rest of their lives. They are loving and more understanding about others around them with disabilities! They are less judgmental. They understand the work and patience it takes to have a brother like theirs. Someone I feel should be on our team, on our side, is talking behind our backs and thinks we are bad parents. I was so furious. I really think a sit down is in order. I would like to be able to share a day in the life of the Hochstein house. Please walk a mile in our shoes before you start to beat us down. Jayen is a handful!!!!! This is a understatement!!! We gave Jayen the nickname Mayhem because what can go wrong will go wrong with him around. I constantly have to keep an eye on him to make sure that he is not hurting himself or others. His pain receptors do not work the same as yours or others. He doesn't understand how hard he hits. I am also doing my best to teach him boundaries. He is not allowed to play with glass figurines that are left at a child's eye height. He is to respect other's property. He is not allowed to throw things when he is frustrated. And YES by all means to I get frustrated with him. Even the state of Nebraska believes that we deserve a break so that we can be a better parents. We are provided respite, but I am so scared to use it as Jayen will be left with a complete stranger. Will they be able to help teach him? Will they be able to watch him at the same time as my other children? Instead of criticizing, would you PLEASE stand up and help. I am not above advice, but I am beyond done with back talking and criticizing!

We did not ask for this gift, but we are doing the best job we can!

HEAVEN'S VERY SPECIAL CHILD
A meeting was held quite far from Earth.
It was time again for another birth.
Said the Angels to the Lord above-
"This special child will need much love.
His progress may be very slow,
Accomplishment he may not show.
And he'll require extra care
From the folks he meets down there.
He may not run or laugh or play,
His thoughts may seem quite far away.
So many times he will be labeled
'different,' 'helpless' and 'disabled.'
So, let's be careful where he's sent.
We want his life to be content.
Please, Lord, find the parents who
Will do a special job for you.
They will not realize right away
The leading role they are asked to play.
But with this child sent from above
Comes stronger faith, and richer love.
And soon they'll know the privilege given
In caring for their gift from heaven.
Their precious charge, so meek and mild
Is heaven's very special child."

Increased Ritalin

Ritalin has been going well, I think. I haven't really noticed a huge difference. After talking with Carol from Dr. Frost's office yesterday, she suggested we increase the ritalin. I guess we will try it for the weekend and let her know on Monday. The first day didn't go so well. I was crying all day long. This really wasn't my baby! He was zombie-ish and just out of it. I don't think it helped that it was a seizure day. I promised I would give it a weekend so we will see how tomorrow goes.

Anonymous

When we were home last weekend, mom said there was a letter in the mail for Jayen. It looked like a Christmas card. She didn't open it. She just saved it for us. I wasn't sure what it was or who it was from. I opened it and was completely blow away. There was a beautiful card filled with beautiful words and signed Anonymous. Anonymous wrote that he/she was a retired special education teacher, had come across my blog and had been following our story for a while now. He/she felt that in the Christmas spirit it would be a great time to "pay it forward". I'm so overwhelmed with this gesture! I can't believe that someone would do something like this.
I just want to say from the bottom of my heart, "Thank you Anonymous!"
I have a sneaky suspicion we have actually met once before!

Happy Birthday DADDY!

Today is daddy's birthday!!!! We had a great day celebrating. We started the day at Bass Pro Shops. Daddy got to shop around while we waited for Santa. After our visit with Santa we took daddy to Hooters to eat. The wings were great ;)

We went home, took naps, then were ready for more fun celebrating with dad. Our favorite family activity...BOWLING!

 

 

Mommy beat everyone! But we all loved to play no matter who won. (Pretty sure daddy threw the game so Dalan would beat him!) We had an awesome time! I'm so glad we were able to spend the time together as a family!

I taught Jayen how to sign the Happy Birthday song! He wasn't so happy about doing it for the camera.

Should we or shouldn't we?

We have been really concerned about starting Jayen on ritalin. It just wasn't anything we wanted our four year old to be on, but we understood why it would be helpful. I think what finally tipped the boat and made us start was thinking about how calm and still he will need to be after surgery. We wanted to try it at home before we sent him out with others. Christmas vacation was the perfect opportunity! We started Jayen on 5 mg today. We'll see how this goes!

Silly little elf!

Our elf Blitzen was up to no good once we returned home. Only a couple more days then Santa has to pick him up again. What a great time we have had having him at our house.

It's Tuesday!

For months now, I have to share the same information with eveyone who asks how Jayen is doing...I'm waiting for them to call me back. Even once we get a little information, but I still have to wait for that next phone call. Well, once again Jayen was presented to the surgical conference. I really thought this was a waste of time. If there was nothing that showed up on the PET scan, then why would they proceed. I guess I was just waiting for the phone call so we could move on to the next option. At 5:08 last night, the phone rang and some differeing information was shared. Jayen was still a surgical candidate. My mind was blown. I'm sure the nurse was getting upset with me after asking over and over again if she was sure. I was overjoyed!!!! I knew that VNS was our next option and I was disappointed because it didn't offer much hope in seizure reduction, VNS would reduce the duration of his seizures. But surgery could give him such a better outcome!

The next step would be focus mapping Jayen's brain. This information from Children's Hospital Pittsburg lays out what and how it is done.

Epilepsy Focus Mapping

What is Epilepsy Focus Mapping?

Epilepsy focus mapping, sometimes called brain mapping, is a surgical procedure in which surgeons place subdural grids directly on the brain to “map” the precise location of the source of the seizure as well as functional areas that control speech and movement. Once the focus of the seizure is identified, it can be removed during a procedure called focal cortical resection.

What to Expect Before Epilepsy Focus Mapping

Children are given a general anesthesia prior to the surgery. To prepare for the surgery, part of your child’s hair will be shaved.

What Happens During Epilepsy Focus Mapping?

An incision will be made and a craniotomy will be performed (removal of a piece of the skull that will be replaced at the end of the surgery). A subdural grid, which is a thin plastic strip with a series of electrodes embedded in it, is placed directly on the brain. Once the subdural grid is in place, the skull is closed. The cables from the grids will protrude from child's skull so they can be attached to a portable video EEG.
Your child will be in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) overnight or until he or she is medically stable enough to go to the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU). While still in the ICU, your child will be observed continuously and blood pressure, pulse and respiration will be checked frequently.
Your child will then be moved to the Epilpesy Monitoring Unit, where his or her brain activity is monitored 24 hours a day. The epileptologist can then begin the brain mapping procedure. In epilepsy focus mapping, electrical currents stimulate portions of the brain via the subdural grids. The epilepsy doctor will monitor the child's movements and language to "map" the location of these important functional areas of the brain. The epilepsy surgeon then knows to avoid these areas during surgery.
The length of the epilepsy focus mapping process depends on how much brain tissue is targeted for surgery.

What to Expect After Epilepsy Focus Mapping

Once the epileptologist has enough information about the child's motor and language function from epilepsy focus mapping, the second part of this procedure, focal cortical resection, will be scheduled.

Potential Complications of Epilepsy Focus Mapping

Every surgical procedure has associated risks, including infection, bleeding, and accumulation of water in the brain, called cerebral edema. The main risk associated with epilepsy focus mapping is that a seizure may be triggered. If a seizure occurs, the epilepsy doctor will stop the electrical stimulation until the child has fully recovered.



This is going to be such a roller coaster ride for our family. This requires a three week stay in the hospital. This is also during the time Matt is to be deployed. We are unsure how our family will make this work, but we know we will. Thanks for your prayers! I know they work!!!!

Christmas card pictures

I was trying to get Christmas cards ready to send out and realized I didn't have any recent pictures of the kids. I found some cute letters at Target and thought it was the perfect opportunity! The kids weren't so thrilled, but I think they turned out pretty good.

 

Annoying enough?

Two messages yesterday, two today, finally a return call! Not what I was hoping or excepting to hear. Once again, another test for Jayen has come back freaking NORMAL. How in the hell is his brain normal but still having these seizures? These results are so painful. I really was so hopeful for Jayen and his future after surgery. I really thought this was his chance at a normal life.
Dr. Frost wants to present Jayen once again to the surgical conference. They are supposed to meet this Tuesday. I'm not sure if this will be the same as last time and he gets pushed off for weeks. I am not sure why the presentation is needed, but I guess we will continue to wait. Carol couldn't answer all my questions and continued to tell me that we would know more after the conference. Second option for Jayen would most likely be the VNS. Although this sounded like an ok option, I'm very disappointed that surgical resection is out. The VNS could help with the length of his seizures, but isn't going to stop them completely.
I will continue praying and trying to wait patiently, but am trying to be realistic. Very sad and upset mommy!

Bus Bus Bus

After so much anticipation and hard work, Jayen got to ride the bus today!! He was so excited. I couldn't stop smiling at the smile that was plastered on his face. He was grinning from ear to ear from the moment the bus rounded the corner to the second I saw him drive off.

What a big man. I can do this mommy!

I love that the bus has a seat belt!

Of course mommy couldn't just let him drive off. I had to follow the bus to school. I promise not to do this everyday!

 

Jayen was so excited to show daddy his bus. I see that smile again. I think this is going to be such a good thing for Jayen!

Santa Day Camp

I had always wondered if a day camp would ever be in Jayen's future; he is only 4, he isn't potty trained, he doesn't have any verbal communication, and his seizures are always a possibility. We came across this great opportunity for the boys to go to a Santa daycamp. I had to fill out a 14 page interview about Jayen to make sure they were prepared. I was so worried!!!!

When we got there, Jayen was so excited to play he ran away before we could say goodbye. Dalan was a little less thrilled about being there. He didn't want us to leave. I felt so horrible. We were just gone to Minnesota and now we were leaving him again.

I knew they would have a great time if they just gave it a little bit. When we went back to pick them up they were all smiles. They performed a Christmas song and we ate some goodies, then we got to see the big man again.

 

 

 

 Santa was so nice! He even laughed when Jayen pulled his beard.

 

I'm in love with this picture! How cute! I love my family!

Family and Friends Loftus Christmas

We weren't sure if we were going to be able to make it or not since our appointment got pushed back, but we were so glad things worked out!! Can't thank you enough Renee, Mike, William, and Mallory for inviting us to your Christmas party!

 

There was a special visitor at the Loftus house! Santa stopped by and handed out presents to each of the kids. I was worried Jayen was going to be a little hesitant, but he had no problems.

 

The kids loved their gifts from Santa!!! We had such a great night!

What a freaking day!

Last night we got a call from St. Paul Radiology about changing our appointment time. They wanted us to come in at 9:30 instead of 8:30 and they would be doing the scan at 11 instead of 10:30. I asked how the changed his eating orders. I knew he couldn't eat so many hours before but I didn't know what it would change. I was informed that Jayen could eat solids up until 6:30 AM. I asked again if she was sure of this. I was assured that they only needed 4 hours before the procedure.

We arrived at 9:00 only so we could keep Jayen away from the food in the hotel room and didn't really have anywhere else to go. We kept Jayen busy in the waiting room and stayed sane by switching off. Eventually EEG arrived and we were able to get the wires on.

 

 

After wires, the anesthesiologist came in to talk to us. He talked us through his portion of the test and made us feel comfortable with the sedation they were using. He went through his checklist and eventually came to the question asking us what time he ate last. When I told him he started eating at 6 and was done at 6:30 he stopped dead in his tracks and said, "You're kidding me!" Well apparently whomever told us that Jayen could eat 4 hours prior didn't consider the face that he would be put under anesthesia. We were informed that he needed EIGHT hours with no solids. We weren't going to be able to do the procedure. He left the room and was going to try to figure something out. I immediately started crying. I had the instinct that this wasn't right and I should have trusted that instinct. He eventally came back in the room and said they could do the scan at 2:00 since that would be the eight hours. I was so upset. We were really hoping to head home tonight. I miss my other babies. We really didn't have any other options but to wait.

We were given some pillows and warm blankets and a movie. Thankfully it was close to naptime and Jayen was able to take a quick nap to pass the time! When he woke up we did all we could to entertain him for the duration. He about destroyed the room. I think they heard him bouncing off the wall and came to get us a little early.

He was happy at first, but things quickly turned sour!

 

I wish we would have remembered his IV doll and had the Ipad lady we had last time to talk to him about the process. It wasn't as bad as it could have been. I'm so proud of him. He is such a trooper.

 

When it was time to lay down and start the injection, Jayen started getting very upset.

 

They actually had to start the sedation early since he was so upset.

 

This is my least favorite part. I cry every time. Nothing hurts more than watching your baby screaming then eyes rolling back and being out of it.

 

 

We were told the first 30 minutes were very important. As soon as they inject the dye, the room needed to be dark and quiet. Jayen was not supposed to have a lot of brain activity during this time so the dye is able to be metabolized. There were others in the room who didn't seem to think it was as important. I was very frustrated the entire 30 minutes. I at one point even shushed the professionals in the room. After the scan we had a few more issues with EEG trying to take off the electrodes. Mommy made them run to get solvent since they were just trying to pull them off.

Finally this was over and we could leave. Now we just have to wait for results!

I'm not good at waiting and being patient!