Drew has a very severe neck twitch. It causes pain. He has given himself whiplash several times and pulled muscles in his neck. When we saw the neurologist at Children's in January, she gave us a new option beyond medication. Today, Drew underwent botox injections in his neck.
Drew was a bit apprehensive. We did find out the hard way that he is allergic to the adhesive used to hold the numbing patches in place. That was the worst part for Drew. But the cream did what it was supposed to. The injections were administered without pain - all but the last one.
We were advised that the injections would not take effect today, tomorrow, or even the next day. But hopefully by the end of the week we will see some improvement. In two weeks we will see maximum effect. If it works then Drew should have relief for up to three months.
We know there can be side effects and we explained them to Drew. He decided it was worth it to at least try this.
This is just one treatment. We know not all treatments work for all patients. All we can do at this point is wait and watch and hope there is some relief for Drew.
Showing posts with label botox. Show all posts
Showing posts with label botox. Show all posts
Monday, March 04, 2013
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
medical stuffs
Everyone who reads my blog knows about Drew and his Tourettes. It has been a source of frustration for him. We had a great doctor in San Francisco who Drew loved. Moving to Colorado meant a new doctor and building new trust. Not something easy for Drew.
Drew and I met with Dr. C on Monday. First thing we learned she trained under Drew's doc in San Francisco!!! As much as I liked the doc in SF I like Dr. C for other reasons. She is younger and has embraced new techniques that might help Drew. Week after next Drew will be getting a small amount of botox injected into the back of his neck. The hope and theory is that it will relax the muscles and decrease the neck tics. Drew was not too happy about the thought of shots but when asked which would be worse Tourettes or injections every 3 months that could stop the tics. He decided the injections would not be so bad. We are also adding Magnesium to his diet as this been showing signs of helping decrease tics as well.
Dr. C also suspects from what Drew is describing that he may be having seizures again. So next week we will be doing a sleep deprived EEG. If that doesn't show anything than he will be admitted for several days to the epilepsy unit for observation.
He is also being evaluated for his sleep. It has been proven that kids with Tourettes don't sleep well because their bodies don't shut down and they tic in their sleep.. This leads to an increase in behavior issues as well as decreased learning. Drew wakes up exhausted every morning no matter what time he goes to bed.
We are currently waiting for blood work to come back. Drew has lost 10% of his body weight in the last 17 days. That has me and everyone else pretty worried.
It appears that Drew also has ADD but we knew that. he can't be put on meds for it because they will aggravate the tourettes. He now carries a water bottle at all times because dehydration can increase tics.
Next week Drew will be giving a presentation to his class about having Tourette's. They will watch this video and then do a Q&A about the condition. I will be with him but this is his to talk about.
right now all I can do is have
Faith Trust and Pixie Dust.
Cathy
Drew and I met with Dr. C on Monday. First thing we learned she trained under Drew's doc in San Francisco!!! As much as I liked the doc in SF I like Dr. C for other reasons. She is younger and has embraced new techniques that might help Drew. Week after next Drew will be getting a small amount of botox injected into the back of his neck. The hope and theory is that it will relax the muscles and decrease the neck tics. Drew was not too happy about the thought of shots but when asked which would be worse Tourettes or injections every 3 months that could stop the tics. He decided the injections would not be so bad. We are also adding Magnesium to his diet as this been showing signs of helping decrease tics as well.
Dr. C also suspects from what Drew is describing that he may be having seizures again. So next week we will be doing a sleep deprived EEG. If that doesn't show anything than he will be admitted for several days to the epilepsy unit for observation.
He is also being evaluated for his sleep. It has been proven that kids with Tourettes don't sleep well because their bodies don't shut down and they tic in their sleep.. This leads to an increase in behavior issues as well as decreased learning. Drew wakes up exhausted every morning no matter what time he goes to bed.
We are currently waiting for blood work to come back. Drew has lost 10% of his body weight in the last 17 days. That has me and everyone else pretty worried.
It appears that Drew also has ADD but we knew that. he can't be put on meds for it because they will aggravate the tourettes. He now carries a water bottle at all times because dehydration can increase tics.
right now all I can do is have
Faith Trust and Pixie Dust.
Cathy
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