hydrocephalus in the news

Read two stories this today about hydrocephalus:

The first, is about a woman who was denied healthcare coverage because she was attempting to get care out of her state: Insurance denies woman with hydrocephalus

The second, is about one of my favorite authors, Roald Dahl. He had a family history of hydrocephalus: Roald Dahl and hydrocephalus

About Empathy

Well, my theory about the scalp pain may have been off...There was some throbbing on the left side of my scalp today and yesterday after not feeling anything there over the past month. Not sure what that means....it's weird.

I read an article today about the differences between empathy, compassion and sympathy and how doctors need to learn more about using empathy with their patients. I mentioned in my film, Shunt Chronicles: My brain, art and school (2015)  how my previous neurosurgeon lacked empathy in regards to my situation.

Link to Article: Why Doctors Need to Show More Empathy. 

Scalp Adventures

About a week ago, I discovered I had an abscess on my back and it was drained at my doctor's office. Once the abscess began healing, the throbbing pains I've had on the top left front side and back right corner of my head are gone.  I'm convinced I had the abscess since 2014, as I was in a wheelchair for a month while I was in rehab.  I still have pain issues with my shunt interacting with everything in the area: weather, magnetic fields.

The throbbing pains in my scalp had been there since my brain injuries in 2014. I was told the abscess had developed over months and could take months to fully recover.