Not All Adventures Are Fun!

I get to have a lot of fun adventures, but not all adventures are fun. 
     The past year has been full of surgery and long hospital stays. It started last September when my shunt stopped working. (I have a VP shunt that drains the fluid out of my brain. This just happens naturally for most people, but my fluid won't drain without the shunt.) I was at school when I got a really bad headache. My dad took me home from school and called the doctor. While we were waiting for the doctor to call back I started having really bad seizures. My big brother called 911 and an ambulance took me to Primary Children's Hospital. I was taken right into surgery to replace the broken shunt. After surgery I couldn't remember much. I didn't know who I was or who my parents were. It took about four days before my brain turned back on. Honestly, I don't remember much about those four days. I remember that I thought my friend Kyson was shooting me with something and I thought I was hanging on the wall. I'm glad that's over!  
     In February, my little brother had a muscle flap surgery at Primary Children's to repair a super bad pressure sore that caused bacteria in his spine. He had lots of infection symptoms and he got really sick. I don't know much about the surgery, but he was stuck in bed for three months and he is still taking antibiotics to prevent infection. Now he has a new awesome scar on his bum. We all call him Franken-bum!
     In March while my brother was recovering, my turn came again. My spine has had a curve that has been getting worse for years. I've had back pain since I was little, and I've never been able to sit up straight. It was a BAD curve! My mom and dad let me decide if I wanted to have a surgery to fix it or not. On March 31st, I went to Shriners Hospital where an awesome team of doctors spent over 12 hours straightening my back. I kind of had two surgeries in one; first the doctors took out one of my ribs on the left side, then they flipped me over and used my rib to help straighten my back.
     When I woke up it SUCKED! I was in tons of pain and I was on a ventilator to help me breathe. I didn't like that at all. I was in the hospital for almost three weeks. My parents stayed with me the whole time, like they always do. After I got home from the hospital I was stuck in bed for a long time. My little brother was still stuck in bed because of his surgery, so we hung out and watched lots of movies. As we improved, our friends in Shriners Hospital Seating and Mobility department got us new wheelchair seating to help prevent future problems. Those guys are great. 

    We're back to normal now and back to having fun. Our family is grateful to all of the awesome medical professionals at Primary Children's Hospital and Shriners Hospital for Children for the great way that they always take care of us. Without them we couldn't have the quality life that we have.

     Check back soon to read about my adventure swimming inside of a mountain.... I'm not kidding!

Until then, keep on wheelin'!