Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Response to Primetime Outsiders Kids getting shocked


DSC04029
Originally uploaded by jippyjabber.

In response to Primetime The Outsiders, "aversive stimulation" skin shock therapy on autistic and other special needs kids. Please tell people about Zachary' s success story. I want people to know that kids that hurt themselves might be in pain. My son gets helped from the MAGIK clinic. He stops hurting himself. He isn't a zombie everyday.
It's a miracle in my life. He still has autism and other problems. It still happens. But we can manage it. I am sure that shocking him would not help him get over this in any way. I am sorry for those kids and the families that need help. I worry that people saw the Primetime and think it' s horrible but their only hope. Please tell them to check out 20 seconds of pain. Tell them it's nothing compared to how far it went. To being bloody and breaking doors and windshields. Tell them we are better.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Zachary doing a three day EEG study at Children's Hospital Los Angeles


DSC03863
Originally uploaded by jippyjabber.
This is Zachary doing a three day EEG study at Chlidren's Hospital Los Angeles. He has partial frontal lobe seizures and maybe bigger seizures at night. They are hard to catch. The neuorolgy department set us up for this study. Thankfully, Dr. Joseph from the MAGIK clinic came to check on Zachary. He had figured out how much of Zach's meds to scale back on so this test would have a chance. I wish I could raise enough money to do some of these studies in a more home like setting and in combination of other tests. What a mother wouldn't ask for....

Zachary in the hospital with laptop for distraction


Zachary in the hospital
Originally uploaded by jippyjabber.



He is so cute. I try to make him do something educational. He often watches movies and playes games on his laptop to distrac him from pain, panic, and boredom. This picture is actually from a dental procedure he had done. I never know how Zachary's body will respond.

It was after a dental procedure that Zachary had his first rabdomyalosis. Basically, his muscle protien is released into the blood stream and it damages the kidneys on the way out. It was also hard on his liver. The second time it happened, it was triggered by the flu. Both times he spent two weeks in the hospital. Because he has had it twice, we were referred to the genetics clinic, to look into the mitochondrial disorder.

The good thing about belonging to a regular clinic like the MAGIK clinic is that I knew Dr. Joseph would stop by to check on Zachary. He would interpret the medical information for me. He also knew Zachary so well he could rule out things that were being considered and validate things other doctors weren't at first willing to accept just at my word. Now, everyone is gettting to know that Zachary is one medical rubiks cube. Especially when it comes to pain.

Monday, February 12, 2007

Why Zachary Wins Again!

Michael H. Joseph, M.D.
Department: Department of Anesthesiology Critical Care Medicine,Division of Anesthesiology
Anesthesiology; Pain Management

Jeffrey I. Gold, Ph.D.
Department: Department of Anesthesiology Critical Care Medicine
Clinical Psychology; Pain Management


I will put more medical information up soon. Although, Zachary has many issues that are not well understood. Starting with Autism but that was the easy one for us. My brother was autistic. Zachary developed out of order as an infant. He screamed from day one. He walked/sort of ran from one place until he crashed into another at seven months. We started seeing doctors early on. Zachary was in an infant program through the march of dimes. I have been with him every step of the way. I had a hard time finding doctors that would treat Zachary for pain. Even though they would tell me that he was in pain. I was so relieved to find the MAGIK clinic at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. I was completely ruined by the time I got there. I resorted to showing them a video of one of Zachary's pain episodes. If you watch my You Tube video 20 seconds of pain, magnify it, add blood and open wounds to his head and hands. You'll have some idea of what I showed them. The only thing I could do was wrap us up in sheets and hang out in my homemade padded cell. You can find a picture of that here too. If that is not enough to show how terrifying this was to live with. Email me and I'll tell you the story about Zachary busting the windshield of my car twice. None of that mattered because he was suffering so much. I was so scared. To call Dr. Joseph and Dr. Gold heros is an understatment. They gave us a life. This is just the story of how we got to them. Next I'll post about what they do for him. I don't know how to thank them. Perhaps this will at least show them that I have the desire too. I hope to post more about the MAGIK clinic and what they do for other children. So this is why Zachary Wins Again!

Friday, February 9, 2007


Animal Assisted Therapy
Originally uploaded by jippyjabber.
It's a photo of a poloroid picture. They give it to you when you get a vist from a therapy dog. Imagine being in the hospital or a clinic and you get a visit from 'Valencia" or another sweet dog. This is the exact type of dog that Zachary loves. Imagine how happy he was even though he was at the hospital. The MAGIK clinic gets creative! MAGIK

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Finally Out of the Closet


DSC04052
Originally uploaded by jippyjabber.
This is the closet that I lived in with Zachary wraped in sheets with pillows nailed to the wall. My own padded cell. We used it before Zach was treated for a pain disorder. He had a large egg like contusion on his head that he would reopen when he would hit his head against the wall. We used to call him a unicorn. Later we used this closet for puppets. I supose it's time for a new door. You can see it's filled with toys and games now. You can barely see a prayer taped to the door. Probably why I still have that door.