In case any of you did not know, this is my brother's former
girlfriend. She now is an attorney living in San Francisco.
For months I heard nothing from her. Then I got the following shocking
news, which I am posting below. I have telephoned her, and she is now
doing fine.
>Hi, John,
>
>As I told you previously, I have been through a
>lot of stuff recently. Here's the deal.
>
>In November I found out I had an AVM. See
>http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/cerebro/AVM.html.
>
>In December I had an angiogram so they could get
>a better look, see
>http://www.heartcenteronline.com/myheartdr/common/articles.cfm?ARTID=560,
>but I suffered a stroke during the procedure.
>(I had to go to a lame hospital thanks to a spat
>that my insurance carrier was having with USCF.)
>
>I was off work until March. The stroke hit the
>outgoing language area, so I have had problems
>speaking and writing what I'm thinking. I am
>totally recovered according to the stroke
>doctors, but I feel like I am still really
>damaged. I can't always say what I'm thinkig.
>I also have problems with names. That is really
>annoying. For the most part, I'm back to normal.
>I do better under pressure, so presenting to
>judges has not been problematic. That is good.
>
>In July, after the insurance problems were over,
>I had gamma knife radiation done at UCSF. See
>http://www.ucsf.edu/gammakf/.
>Basically, they zap your head, and it takes a
>couple of years to get rid of the avm. It beats
>surgery!
>
>They put me on anti-seizure medication
>afterwards, which has been very difficult to
>adjust to. First, I was really tired. Then,
>when I adjusted, they raised the dose, so I got
>tired again. I adjusted. Then recently, I have
>been feeling dizzy and been having problems
>concentrating, which SUCKS in my line of work. I
>think they are going to change my medication, but
>I have no idea how long it will take. It is
>frustrating.
>
>Of course, this is THE job to have during all of
>this. When I had my stroke, people donated their
>leave hours to me, so I kept my check and my
>insurance. The people here are really wonderful,
>and I am good at my job, even with my problems.
>Sadly, I can only work here for 5 years. I have
>a year and a half left to go. By then, I think
>I'll be ready to move on.
>
>So, that's my story. Feel free to pass it along.
>
>Cel
Received on 2003-10-02 10:32:00