Notes

ILA

So, where do I begin? I guess these are the important parts.
2015
Late February
I was at the Eaglehawk badminton center, as I was selected for a team during a trial at primary school. I saw some of my friends there and talked to them before I started. A few minutes later I got called over. I had a shuttle thrown to me and I was instructed to hit it back over the net with a backhand. After 10 successfully in a row, we (the instructor and I) changed to a forearm hit. Another 10 and we would change. Around 5 minutes later, we changed to overhead. I had the shuttlecock hit above my head and I had to ricochet it back over the net. After around 5 I suddenly felt like something was wrong. I couldn't figure out what at the time but all I knew was that I needed to get out of there and get home. I rushed to dad in a swaying motion as I couldn't navigate in a straight line, and grabbed a water bottle near him, assuming it was his. In my head, I knew dad didn't bring a water bottle but my head was racing and I wasn't thinking right, so I grabbed it and could bearly take the loose lid off. We went home, with me not knowing what was happening, and I slept it off.

Next Day

The next day I got asked by mum if I was feeling ok and what happened. At the time my brain was thinking of 2 things. The first was that I was scared of what was going to happen in the future, but I tried to think positively thinking it was only a one off. I simply replied 'I'm fine' and shrugged it off, hoping it wouldn't happen again.

3rd of March

A week later I was with my friend Tom and we were out bowling to celebrate my birthday which was today. I got a hotdog before we started and he got a drink. We had a game that involved Dad, Tom and I. I remember my fingers were too small to hold a bowling ball properly so I had to get a structure that I could roll it down. I hit it in the gutter about 3 times! Tom got a strike and we ran off doing a lap to the door and back cheering the whole way. It was dad's turn so I went to go sit down. Just as he got up I started feeling the same feeling. I quickly yanked at him and told him I wasn't feeling well. He said to take a seat and wait a little bit. He asked if me if he needed to call mum and I proclaimed 'Yes!'. I went to the toilet because I felt I needed some space. I waited about 10 minutes and Tom came in, not knowing what was going on, and said he got a strike. I could barely talk (due to the fact I had no energy + because I just wanted to be alone) and I forced a 'Good job, Tom. That's great'. I was alone for a little while which I was thankful for until dad came in to give me to mum who had just arrived. She was fearful about it because it was the second time this had happened. She took me to the ER because she wanted to know what was happening, wanting a quick answer (Looking back at the sentence makes me laugh because this has been anything other than 'a quick answer')

Hospital for the First Time

We waited at the hospital for about 2 hours. I got a white wristband which I thought was cool and important so I kept it after. I wasn't feeling 100% so I went to the toilet. I locked the door and just sat there by myself, needing the quietness and space to myself. I didn't want mum to know I was doing this so I only lay there for 5 minutes and then got out after turning the tap on and off just in case she was outside the door. I took my time walking back to the chair we were waiting at for a while. A bit after I got back my name got called, and we walked through the door. A was put onto a single bed and got a medical assessment. The doctors first guess was that I had just had a stroke. I had to do a few things for the doctors, and after some of the doctors talked to each other, they said they thought I had epilepsy. Mum's face went blank and asked what we should do if it happened again. The doctor looking after us said it was best to take us back to here or just call an ambulance.

March | School Fate

Someday in March was the school fate. We had nearly everyone from the school and their family's come to have a good time. Mum was in charge of the P&F so she organized it and had to come 3 hours early to help set up. I tagged along so I wasn't late and to help mum set up. I was in charge of doing little things. like setting up the duck stall or making sure the basketballs were pumped up. When I walked over to my next job I felt a rush of something I knew all too well. It was the same thing that happened when I was at Eaglehawk and bowling with Tom. Was I having another stroke? Did I need to go back down to the hospital, or was I going to be loaded into an ambulance in front of all my friends and get embarrassed? After I told mum I stayed in the sick bay for a little bit and mum called my auntie to pick me up and take me home.

Mid-Year
About mid-year we got put under a peadiatrition doctor named Anne Dawson. She would be our go-to person for check-ups.

2016
(For this year we didn't have anything major happen, thus not a lot of dates were recorded.)

First Half
The first half of 2016 was just a lot of going down to the R.C.H (Royal Childrens Hospital) in Melbourne. We were put under the doctor Epi. She is a neurologist, they specialise in the nervous system and things liking to it like the brain. Epi had a very strong mindset after a couple of appointments that it was epilepsy. Even though this didn't have a clear fix, we talked about things such as medications, which could lower the seveirety and regularity of them. We also talked about how stress is a factor and that if I was scared about having them I would I was more likely to trigger one, even though this wasn't normal for an epileptic. That is what I was labbled, an epileptic. No more thoughts of party's with my friends, possibly not even being able to drive a car. That's what scared me the most. What if mum was in danger and I had to drive to her house? What if I needed to pick someone up? This is what I was worried about. Not the fact that I had epilepsy, but the fact that I could no longer run a normal life. I couldn't be like my friends and couldn't do some of the things they did. Anywho, enoguh of that.

Mid-Year
During the mid of 2016, we were told to focus on the path of cardiology. This was because when I had an episode my heart would be racing and palpitating. We started seeing a cardiologist from now to the end of the year. Andrew Davis was our doctor we would see for half a year. He didn't beleive it was anything to do with the heart so me and mum (who took me to a majority of my appointments), were very dis-hearted(hehe). We felt like we were wasting out time because of what he thought. Epi also thought we were going no where so we stopped it.

End of Year
With the end of the year coming close, didn't think I would be going into 2017 being any closer to being normal. And we had been told to focus on another thing, narcalepsi. We would focus more on this the next year, but at the time it was just an idea.

2017
So far, this year has had ALOT of experimenting being done. Just trying to eliminate different thoughts so we have a clear path on what to focus.
Start of Year
At the start of the year, our first focus was narcalepsi, which would explain why I have the need to fall asleep after and during an episode. We met up with ANOTHER doctor, Dr. Kate Simpsons. She was a profesional in her field, 'the best of the best' she was once called by another doctor. When any of the doctors were unsure of what was needed to be done regarding sleep, they would ask her.

We had found out that Epi had gone on maternity leave for a period, so we had a fill in for a little bit. We agreed this would be good as we had a fresh pair of eyes to take a look and a new viewpoint. She believed it was epilepsy, so we continued with that. We were also told to meet a new doctor who's name was Andrew Court. It would be a while till we meet him as he was very good, but also booked out.

Mid-Year
Recently, my parents and I met Dr. Andrew Court, who was a very good doctor. We first met him when we had a 3 night stay down at the R.C.H which was a video monetering, the doctors hoping they would capture and episode. He talked to both dad and I, and he seemed very nice and understanding. He shed the light on what he thought it was. Conversion Disorder. He told us, in summery, that it was 'a condition in which menatl stress converts itself into a physical form.' Symptoms can be shown as a trembling, a sudden fail of legs, or in my case, sleep.

Now
Because of what we are now going on, we have been seeing people like shrinks to be able to limit my stress and try to find the underlying problem of what made me so stressed in the first place. Andrew, who gets us to call him Andy, beleives that breaking my arm 2 times does contribute to my stress. I have been going to Headspace to talk to someone, and he also tells me things I can do to go back to a normal life.

And so after everything that everyone has gone though, not only me, it seems to be something curable which is great! But there is also a possibilty that this isn't what I have been suffering from for my whole teen years and a bit. I just hope that I will be able to have a semi-normal life in the future, wether it be 1 year or 10.