Sophia, Sophia

Sophia has had a lot of action this week.

She went to the Neurologist at Rady's Children's Hospital in San Diego. Dr. Lewis said she has a classic Coup Contre-Coup head injury. Basically it is like shaken baby syndrome except it went side to side instead of front to back. We are very lucky she didn't have any brain hemorrhaging that is often associated with these injuries.

When she fell and hit her head her brain smashed the left side of her skull, bruising her speech center and word finding skills. Then it smashed the right side of the skull and bruised the math center finally grazing the frontal lobe affecting olfactory (taste and smell...hence her loss of appetite) and smashing one last time just above speech and hitting reading.

All 3 of these areas have been effected in school. We see daily progress in these areas that is more noticeable with more rest. We have put together a team of teachers and people who can help her so that when we move to MI we have a plan in place.

The Neurologist expects a recovery in 6 months although there is no way to tell if there will be any permanent loss of academics. Daily progress is good, the days we slow in daily progress or stop is what will indicate she won't recover any more.

She is only allowed to slowly build physical activity over the next 6 months. Golf is fine. Basketball will have to wait. The doctor recommends tennis in her future. She will never be allowed to play contact sports again. Apparently, your brain has a certain about of reserves that it dips into during crisis. Sophia has had her crisis and her reserves are gone. This does not rebuild. Any future head injury, even mild could permanently affect her for life. I worry that if she's ever in a mild car accident she could suffer severe damage.

And, some good news....
After 2 years of Orthodontics to move her jaw forward and then pull her teeth back she is finally done for a bit. She had her final retainer cemented into place last week. She is now free to loose all her baby teeth so that her adult teeth can come in. In a couple years she'll have braces and hopefully that is the end of her jaw problems.