left v.s. right

Since my brain injuries in March 2014 I've been having occasional pain on the left side of my brain and in the back of my head by my cerebellum. The pain in the back of my head I've been told is from the type 1 chiari malformation I have, a result of my shunt over draining.

I figured out the pain on the left side of my brain and tingling sensations on the top two corners of my head are because my nervous system is ''looking'' for the shunt to be on the left side.  The tingling feeling I have is from what I suspect is body believing it's still about to have a stroke again....

Prior to all of this, I've always slept on my right side where my shunt was, it's a comfort thing.  Yet I noticed I've been sleeping on my left side. I believe this is because the shunt was on that side of my brain which led me to sleep on that side.  Because of this, I've decided to get used to sleeping on the right side again because that's where my shunt is now. I feel once I've convinced my body the shunt is where it's suppose to be, the pain I've been feeling on the left side of my brain and tingling sensations should stop.

I've tried this for about two weeks now and I've noticed the pain on the left side of my brain is less.
Much better solution than being given various medications which don't work and alter my mood.

Mirtazapine

Saw two neurologists on Tuesday. It was a marathon. I had an appointment with one in the morning, then learned upon returning home at 11am the doctor who I was suppose to see on Wednesday at 5pm wasn't going to be available and they had rescheduled me for Tuesday at 2pm.

I had told the 1st neurologist I've been having pains and throbbing in the left, right and back of my head.  I also have tingling sensations at the top right and left corner of my head.  This has been going on since before March 2014.

He prescribed me an anti-depressant, Mirtazapine to help with sleep.

In the afternoon, I went to the 2nd appointment in the city. The doctor I saw told me the pains I was feeling was from depression, even after I had mentioned how the pain is related to what happened to me in March 2014. I feel it will take some time for the pain to go away.

Apparently no one (besides myself) wants to talk about the elephant in the room. In my case, the elephant is wearing sun glasses and a shirt with palm trees. (I'd rather be somewhere warm)

I went home and took half a Mirtazapine before going to bed.

As a result, I had severe mood swings and became extremely depressed right away after taking half a pill.

Before taking the prescribed medication, I wasn't depressed. If anything, my mood has been getting better depending on the pain I feel during the day.

Over the summer, I was prescribed Celexa by a neurologist. It made the room spin around.

No more drugs.

I haven't had a CT, MRI or X-Ray done of my shunt since 2014.  I'll need to find a doctor who will agree to do one.  I'm suppose to have one once a year. The two neurologists whom I saw this week told me an X-Ray, MRI and or CT scan wasn't necessary, just take prescribed anti-depressant.

November

I have an appointment with a new neurologist in the middle of next month in the city. The social worker I saw with from September 2014 until May 2015 said she would speak to him/her prior to me my appointment. I had expressed my concern about being ignored by various doctors from 2009-2014 and as a result I have trust issues.

From what I was told I'm not going to have any more shunt revisions, yet it was never explained why. I'll have to inquire about this when I see him next month.

My last doctor withheld information from me regarding what was going on with my shunt.

This will not happen again.

Since I'm not having surgery I don't need to see a neurosurgeon. My new neurologist will have to acknowledge what happened to me as no medical professional has done so yet.

I believe some medical professionals don't understand this concept.

September

September is Hydrocephalus Awareness Month. Millions of people are affected by this chronic medical condition.

Several organizations are dedicated to spreading awareness, below are some examples:

Pediatric Hydrocephalus Foundation

Hydrocephalus Association

Remember September

Hydro Bears

Radio

Last week, I was on a local radio station discussing my film, Shunt Chronicles: My brain, art and school.  There are many different types of Hydrocephalus. Some examples are mentioned in the interview below:

Right eye in third month

Right eye as of June 3.

The redness is completely gone from my right eye.  As expected, it took exactly three months for my right eye adjust to the surgery I had in March. I still have some double vision when I move my head to the right. Driving is a lot easier than it was when I started in April. I hadn't driven in 1 year and 13 days.  It was an adjustment getting used to operating a vehicle and all the multi-tasking involved.

Now in June, I feel I'm driving the same way I was a year ago.  Not as disturbed by the concept of the physical space between me and the steering wheel. In April, I would see more double vision when I looked in the car mirrors on the right side and at the blind spots on the right. Now, I don't have double vision as much in the car as I used to. It's fascinating how the brain and the eyes are able to auto-correct.

Eye Update Part II

My eye is getting less red with each day. I'm sure by the end of June the redness will be completely gone. Still have issues with double vision  when my head is in different positions, when I'm laying down or turning my head to the right.