William...

We don’t let the little things get us down

 

I remember feeling the happiest and most content that I had ever felt in my whole life. I was the proud new mum of a beautiful 10 weeks old baby boy called William.  I decided to spend the day shopping and showing him off.  After a couple of hours shopping I decided it was time to sit down and have a coffee. 

 

Sitting down to enjoy my coffee I looked down into my pram to check on my son and witnessed him having his first of many seizures.  Time seemed to move in slow motion.  I watched as my son’s eyes rolled into the back of his little head and his arms and legs jerked and shook.  I thought he was dying.  I had no idea what was happening, as I had never witnessed a seizure before.  I felt sick. It was like I was out of my body watching it all from above.  I  grabbed him out of his pram and ran with him in my arms to the medical center.  I could not speak but the look of utter dread and fear on my face told the whole story.  The nurse took my son from me and the doctor came running. 

 

They told me that he was having a seizure and called the ambulance.  I felt numb.  This event started what  can only describe as a roller coaster of hospital stays, tests and doctors….. so many doctors.  After a week of tests my beautiful son was diagnosed with a rare brain condition and an outcome of this is complex epilepsy.  We spent 20 weeks in his first year of life in the hospital.

 

Epilepsy has changed our lives and our dreams. My son is now 2 ½  and still has seizures.  He probably always will.  Medication controls them most of the time but some still break through.  It is a hard, frustrating road that we are traveling.  He is developmentally delayed and we are trying so hard with the help of different therapies to help him walk and talk.  Despite all of this he is a very happy gentle little soul who is always smiling.  He is our world.  We wouldn’t change him for anything. 

 

Even though the journey is hard, it is very rewarding.  We see life differently now.  We have grown so much and have a tolerance and understanding that we didn’t have before.  We are better people.  We have learnt so much and are so grateful for even tiny milestones that William reaches.  We have  learnt not to let the little things in life get us down.