here is a happy story...
Angiogram
So: I no longer have an AVM. After three years of worrying when I might have the next stroke, whether it would be a bad one or "just" another small one, I'm done.
It's gone.
I'm cured.
(I feel like I should randomly shout "Praise JAY-zus!" but that ain't how I roll.)
They went in through the femoral artery. I was drugged and given local anesthesia, so I didn't care what they were doing. The feeling of having a tube going up through your artery is pretty weird. It wasn't painful, but I could feel it...kinda freaky. They took some shiny pictures of my brain and told me the AVM was gone, then closed me up. I had to lie flat on my back for two hours, but I swear, UAB's Heart and Vascular Center nursing staff are like a real-life sitcom, so I had plenty of entertainment, plus the nurse checking every 15 minutes to make sure my legs weren't going to fall off or anything. (They were actually concerned about hemorrhages and clots.)
I'm in some pain now--not excruciating, but Tylenol isn't touching it. The only way I'm semi-comfortable is lying flat on my back, which is irritating as piss because then I can't *do* anything. Walking hurts, but sitting hurts more because of the way they did the incision. So right now I'm lying on the bed on my left side (the side they didn't cut on), propped up on my elbows so I can use the computer.
But dude. The AVM is gone.
In other news, Sam's offered to take me to the beach before I have to leave for Massachusetts.
congrats!
read her stuff here!
Friday, April 18, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
My Story... a avm story
My Story...
Everybody has a story to tell. I suppose that is why blogs are so popular; it can be liberating to tell a tale. But what about food blogs? They might be about sharing recipes, from my table to yours, but they are also about the story behind the cook.
In this month’s issue of Natural Health there’s a story all about my life in the kitchen. Why would they ask me, a regular old food blogger to write a story for their magazine? Well, I have an unusual tale to tell and, in the interst of complete disclosure, here it is:
When I was 21 years old, just finishing up college, I suffered an arteriovenous malformation (AVM). Similar in nature to a stroke, it left me completely paralyzed on the right side of my body. The next few years were a blur, of doctors, of therapists, of rehabilitation, and of frustration.
So what does this have to do with food, or blogs for that matter? I am not going to say that a cake came in and sweetly solved all of my problems, but cooking did come in to solve some of my problems. While dealing with physical therapy and all the challenges it involved, I began to spend more and more time cooking. It was lovely to escape into the petty business of the kitchen: chopping, watching a pot boil, or tossing a salad. The kitchen grew to be my place, a warm nook for experimentation, and unlike therapy, there was no one to reprimand me for trying out that failed recipe.
I cooked, and I cooked. And then I cooked for other people, starting with family and friends, and later, clients in a small catering company that I started. I did this all the while rehabilitating. I never got back to where I once was, but I’ve learned to be fine with who I am, each step of the way.
When I started this blog, I was still wobbly like a custard, unsure of who this new me was. I would sit down to tell you all about the latest soup that was simmering on my stove, or my triumphs with a fiddlehead fern. Blogging was liberating for both the new cook and the new me. There is a certain anonymity to blogging, a faceless name behind the computer monitor, and I relished my little secret. No one could watch me fumble to peel a clove of garlic one-handed, they just hungrily saw the final product.
But as I continued to blog one-handed, there was an elephant in the room sitting right next to me. And that proverbial elephant was whispering in my ear that there was an entire other story that I needed to tell, a story of food, of loss, of work, and of joy. So, over the past year and a half, I’ve sat down each day to write that story. I know, I know, a memoir at less than 30 years of age; it doesn't seem quite possible to me either, but as I began the process, the words came, filling up page after page.
Well, one things leads to another, and a proposal leads to an agent and finally a publisher. I have written a food memoir, tentatively titled Cooking and Screaming. As for the manuscript, it is due in my editors hot little hands May 1!!! That's soon. The book will be published by Simon Spotlight Entertainment (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) and is due out Spring '09. That seemed so far off when all of the paper work was signed and the contracts drawn up, but let me tell you, the days are simply flying by.
What does this have to do with the magazine article? I was approached a few months ago by the editors at Natural Health to write a story, based on the memoir, for an upcoming issue. (Now you might be saying to yourself, Natural Health? Did they even read my paen to Easter candy a few weeks ago? I don’t know, what can I say?) Fitting a life's story into 2,000 words, plus recipes, was certainly a task. I had to leave a few things out.
If you are curious to know more about my story, you'll just have to wait for the book, and in the meantime, pick up an issue of the magazine. The article also has recipes for a slow roasted chicken with a fennel-apple slaw, a springtime hash with poached eggs, and a chunky watermelon sorbet with coconut tuilles (for those of you who are just hungry!).
So, that's my story.
Everybody has a story to tell. I suppose that is why blogs are so popular; it can be liberating to tell a tale. But what about food blogs? They might be about sharing recipes, from my table to yours, but they are also about the story behind the cook.
In this month’s issue of Natural Health there’s a story all about my life in the kitchen. Why would they ask me, a regular old food blogger to write a story for their magazine? Well, I have an unusual tale to tell and, in the interst of complete disclosure, here it is:
When I was 21 years old, just finishing up college, I suffered an arteriovenous malformation (AVM). Similar in nature to a stroke, it left me completely paralyzed on the right side of my body. The next few years were a blur, of doctors, of therapists, of rehabilitation, and of frustration.
So what does this have to do with food, or blogs for that matter? I am not going to say that a cake came in and sweetly solved all of my problems, but cooking did come in to solve some of my problems. While dealing with physical therapy and all the challenges it involved, I began to spend more and more time cooking. It was lovely to escape into the petty business of the kitchen: chopping, watching a pot boil, or tossing a salad. The kitchen grew to be my place, a warm nook for experimentation, and unlike therapy, there was no one to reprimand me for trying out that failed recipe.
I cooked, and I cooked. And then I cooked for other people, starting with family and friends, and later, clients in a small catering company that I started. I did this all the while rehabilitating. I never got back to where I once was, but I’ve learned to be fine with who I am, each step of the way.
When I started this blog, I was still wobbly like a custard, unsure of who this new me was. I would sit down to tell you all about the latest soup that was simmering on my stove, or my triumphs with a fiddlehead fern. Blogging was liberating for both the new cook and the new me. There is a certain anonymity to blogging, a faceless name behind the computer monitor, and I relished my little secret. No one could watch me fumble to peel a clove of garlic one-handed, they just hungrily saw the final product.
But as I continued to blog one-handed, there was an elephant in the room sitting right next to me. And that proverbial elephant was whispering in my ear that there was an entire other story that I needed to tell, a story of food, of loss, of work, and of joy. So, over the past year and a half, I’ve sat down each day to write that story. I know, I know, a memoir at less than 30 years of age; it doesn't seem quite possible to me either, but as I began the process, the words came, filling up page after page.
Well, one things leads to another, and a proposal leads to an agent and finally a publisher. I have written a food memoir, tentatively titled Cooking and Screaming. As for the manuscript, it is due in my editors hot little hands May 1!!! That's soon. The book will be published by Simon Spotlight Entertainment (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) and is due out Spring '09. That seemed so far off when all of the paper work was signed and the contracts drawn up, but let me tell you, the days are simply flying by.
What does this have to do with the magazine article? I was approached a few months ago by the editors at Natural Health to write a story, based on the memoir, for an upcoming issue. (Now you might be saying to yourself, Natural Health? Did they even read my paen to Easter candy a few weeks ago? I don’t know, what can I say?) Fitting a life's story into 2,000 words, plus recipes, was certainly a task. I had to leave a few things out.
If you are curious to know more about my story, you'll just have to wait for the book, and in the meantime, pick up an issue of the magazine. The article also has recipes for a slow roasted chicken with a fennel-apple slaw, a springtime hash with poached eggs, and a chunky watermelon sorbet with coconut tuilles (for those of you who are just hungry!).
So, that's my story.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
heres one... Stupid AVM
Hmm..been to my medical review last Wednesday, didn't get to see Dr.CN, but another doctor (his student I believe). He told me more about my condition (AVM) and mentioned there's no way to prevent or stop it since the option for surgery is out. It’s like a timebomb.
Then yesterday at my pre-employment medical check-up, while asking if I have any pre-existing medical condition, and I mentioned about this, the doctor also used the word "timebomb". Okay, this had an impact.
Though this is something I have known since 2004, it still affects me. C’mon, who wouldn’t be affected if someone had told you, “You have a timebomb inside your brain..”
I guess it is quite scary? I am only turning 24 this year, still considered young right?
Everyone might know the phrases: Live your life to the fullest; Cherish every moment; but who really does it? Someone once told me, “there are bound to be regrets in life, it’s how you live your life to avoid having deepest regrets..” (ok, it’s translated from Chinese)
I guess I really need to “re-think” about my life and make plans carefully. Study/Work/Life…everything? Probably I need to try to forget/don’t think about the avm to start planning. Yes, I need to get over it.
Stupid AVM.
from...
Thursday, April 10, 2008
BRAIN
BRAIN
Arteriovenous Shunt Visualization in Arteriovenous Malformations with Arterial Spin-Labeling MR Imaging
R.L. Wolfa, J. Wanga,b, J.A. Detrea,b, E.L. Zagerc and R.W. Hursta,c
a Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
b Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
c Department of Neurosurgery, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
Please address correspondence to Ronald L. Wolf, MD, PhD, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Section of Neuroradiology, Dulles 219, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA 19104; e-mail: Ronald.Wolf@uphs.upenn.edu
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A reliable quantitative technique for measuring arteriovenous (AV) shunt in vascular malformations is not currently available. Here, we evaluated the hypothesis that continuous arterial spin-labeled (CASL) perfusion MR imaging can be used to detect and measure AV shunt in patients with arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: CASL perfusion MR imaging was performed in 7 patients with AVMs. Semiquantitative AV shunt estimates were generated based on a thresholding strategy by using signal-intensity difference ({Delta}M) images to avoid potential errors in cerebral blood flow (CBF) calculation related to abnormal transit times and nonphysiologic blood-tissue water exchange in and around the AVMs. The potential for measuring CBF in regions distant from and near the AVM was explored, as was the relationship of CBF changes related to the size of the shunt.
RESULTS: In all 7 cases, striking increased intensity was seen on CASL perfusion {Delta}M maps in the nidus and venous structures draining the AVM. Shunt estimates ranged from 30% to 0.6%. Mean CBF measurements in structures near the AVMs were not significantly different from the contralateral measurements. However, CBF in adjacent ipsilateral white matter increased relative to the contralateral side as the percent shunt increased (P = .02). Cortical gray matter CBF {Delta} (contralateral-ipsilateral) values demonstrated the same effect, but the correlation was weak and not significant. Thalamic CBF decreased ipsilaterally with increasing percent AV shunt (P = .01), indicating a possible steal effect. Basal ganglia {Delta} values showed little change in CBF with the size of the AV shunt.
CONCLUSION: CASL perfusion MR imaging can demonstrate AV shunting, providing high lesion conspicuity and a novel means for evaluating AVM physiology.
from...
Arteriovenous Shunt Visualization in Arteriovenous Malformations with Arterial Spin-Labeling MR Imaging
R.L. Wolfa, J. Wanga,b, J.A. Detrea,b, E.L. Zagerc and R.W. Hursta,c
a Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
b Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
c Department of Neurosurgery, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pa
Please address correspondence to Ronald L. Wolf, MD, PhD, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Section of Neuroradiology, Dulles 219, 3400 Spruce St, Philadelphia, PA 19104; e-mail: Ronald.Wolf@uphs.upenn.edu
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: A reliable quantitative technique for measuring arteriovenous (AV) shunt in vascular malformations is not currently available. Here, we evaluated the hypothesis that continuous arterial spin-labeled (CASL) perfusion MR imaging can be used to detect and measure AV shunt in patients with arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: CASL perfusion MR imaging was performed in 7 patients with AVMs. Semiquantitative AV shunt estimates were generated based on a thresholding strategy by using signal-intensity difference ({Delta}M) images to avoid potential errors in cerebral blood flow (CBF) calculation related to abnormal transit times and nonphysiologic blood-tissue water exchange in and around the AVMs. The potential for measuring CBF in regions distant from and near the AVM was explored, as was the relationship of CBF changes related to the size of the shunt.
RESULTS: In all 7 cases, striking increased intensity was seen on CASL perfusion {Delta}M maps in the nidus and venous structures draining the AVM. Shunt estimates ranged from 30% to 0.6%. Mean CBF measurements in structures near the AVMs were not significantly different from the contralateral measurements. However, CBF in adjacent ipsilateral white matter increased relative to the contralateral side as the percent shunt increased (P = .02). Cortical gray matter CBF {Delta} (contralateral-ipsilateral) values demonstrated the same effect, but the correlation was weak and not significant. Thalamic CBF decreased ipsilaterally with increasing percent AV shunt (P = .01), indicating a possible steal effect. Basal ganglia {Delta} values showed little change in CBF with the size of the AV shunt.
CONCLUSION: CASL perfusion MR imaging can demonstrate AV shunting, providing high lesion conspicuity and a novel means for evaluating AVM physiology.
from...
"Idol" inspires
from...
Tonight is the second annual Idol Gives Back special on American Idol, and it promises to be a celebrity-studded event. Due to the success of last year's event, it is going to be longer, it has brought in even bigger performers and more corporate sponsors. Idol producers have set a goal of $100 million in donations and pledges — $25 million more than last year's total.
But I'm getting ahead of myself, because there were performances last night, to the tune of “inspirational songs.” And I have to admit that for the first time all season, I don't have any major complaints!
Syesha Mercado got things started for the ladies by singing former Idol winner Fantasia Barrino's first single, “I Believe.” Randy may have thought she got in over her head on the performance, but I begrudgingly agree with Paula Abdul's grammatically correct yet awkward statement, “I just think hands down this is one of your most shining nights.”
get the rest....
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