Coping With Encephalitis

My name is Mary and I am now 32 years old. I am Blessed to be alive today.

At 4 years old I had my first Grand mal seizure in a shopping cart at a major shopping store in Michigan. I was rushed to the hospital for the first time. Not the first time the doctors could not figure out what was wrong with me as I quickly developed into a vegetable. I wore a hockey helmet to protect my head from the violent seizures I was on so much medicine I dont even know how I walked around.

After being treated by many doctors, Clinics, and major hospitals in Michigan with no results my mom and dad made a choice to remove me from the current hospital I was in. The doctors however had different ideas of what my parents should do. They told my mom and dad they would call the police and that they could not take me out of the hospital and that they were killing me. (even though I was not getting any better there) My parents called a lawyer and he told them the doctors could not stop them from getting me help somewhere else. Without a second thought they had an ambulance waitin for me and it would take me to the airport. From there a plane was waiting for me to take me to Philadelphia airport where I would be transported to the childrens hospital.

after some more testing and blood and spinal fluid they found the problem. Herpes simplex encephalitis. I was kept on many meds until I was 16 years old when my doctor weaned me off my meds. I am 32 and I have scar tissue in my brain from the encephalitis and now I have been Diagnosed with epilepsy Being back on meds has been a nightmare but now I can see the future.

Mary