Avery was a healthy, rambunctious, and very opinionated 5 year old getting ready to begin kindergarten. She loves unicorns, slime, gymnastics, LOLs, meatloaf, YouTube, and her family. She has a mind of her own, and when she disagrees with you, she doesn't keep it a secret!
The week of August 5th, she began complaining of headaches. These typically coincided with when she was tired or when she was asked to do something she didn't want to. We treated them with Ibuprofen as needed, but they were very sporadic and didn't seem to interfere with her everyday activities. As the week progressed though, we started noticing that she was walking funny. Her balance seemed off at times, but any 5 year old walking to the car in flip flops while trying to watch YouTube would likely walk in the same manner.
As we approached the weekend, we noticed the headaches and balance issues to be a little more prevalent. We started to worry that her ear infection from the previous week was returning. We decided to watch and wait as she had no fever and didn't complain of ear pain.
We spent the weekend getting ready to begin a new school year. Everyone got haircuts, bought new school clothes, and we ended Sunday with Avery's Meet the Teacher. She was so excited about the coming week and following in her big sisters' footsteps.
Monday, August 12th
The day started just like any day. I went for a run and began work while the girls enjoyed their last few free days at home with me. That morning Avery was particularly grumpy and begin crying/screaming about her head. I decided that it was better safe than sorry, so we made an appointment at 11:30. Our regular pediatrician was off that day, so we were scheduled with one of the other pediatricians at the office. He performed a myriad of tests and determined that her ears were not the problem. Based on what we explained and his examination of her balance, he recommended we schedule an MRI as a precautionary measure.
Later that day, we received a call scheduling our MRI for the next day at 12. Shon was scheduled to go out of town for 2 nights and was struggling with whether or not to go. I reassured him that everything would be alright, so he left for his trip. The girls and I continued with our normal Monday routine of soccer, supper, baths, and bed. At Shon's insistence, I let Avery sleep with me that night.
Comments