One of her many tics is a constant leg jerk. She snaps her legs out at the knees in a way that my husband describes as "kick-starting a dirt bike". I have gotten many bruised shins from fixing her hair in the morning. She has been doing it for years, but I always seem to forget when I am standing right behind her, brushing her hair and putting in bows.
This morning was one of those mornings. I was almost completely finished when she kicked me, extremely hard, right in the shin. It is actually funny now that I think about it. I was just about to slide the bow into her hair when she tic'ed, first the top of her body, and before I could move, she snapped her leg. It kicked me right on my skinny little shin bone, causing me to slide my hand through her pony tail, messing up everything that I had done. I screamed, of course, which startled her, and she started crying.
"I am so sorry, Mommy! I am so sorry! Are you ok? Did I break your leg?"
I laughed uncontrollably through the pain, and re-fixed her hair. I explained that she was going to have to kick me a few more hundred times to actually cause a break.
I wish all of her tics were that funny. That leg jerk has caused her to trip, fall, kick people, kick walls... The people that are closest to her have learned to stay clear of her back side like they would stay clear of the back of a horse.
The specialist that we met with yesterday was amazing. He answered alot of questions, eased alot of fears, and most importantly, he talked with my very nervous little girl like they had been best friends her entire life. She doesn't like seeing new doctors. She becomes very stiff and quiet. Even getting her to talk louder than a whisper is a challenge.
At the end of the appointment, the doctor hugged her and said "Your life is going to be so much easier now that we have met."
I wanted to cry and BEG him to make that a promise.
He prescribed her a new medication to take in addition with what she is already taking for tics. He said that it would calm her down enough to be able to suppress the tics easier through out the day. It should also help with her panic attacks, and her obsessive need to rub and scratch her skin away.
I didn't give it to her this morning, though. I was suppose to, but I was so afraid that she would fall asleep in class or that she would have an allergic reaction and I wouldn't be there to help her. I have crazy anxiety of my own when it comes to her. Probably because we have been through so much already, I just want to protect her from anything else going wrong. So, she will start the new medicine on Saturday, when she will be with me all day and I will know if any side effects or allergic reactions occur.
She will see the specialist every 4 weeks. He will monitor the tics, make sure the medication is working, and make adjustments as needed. He will also teach her how to suppress her tics better when she is away from home. I think she already does that pretty well, but he says that he can show her a way to handle that so that it doesn't stress her out.
I pray that this doctor helps her. I am so ready to see her happy again. I miss her.
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