What's a hydrocephalus surgery like?

Many people ask me what Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus is and how one gets it and how to cure it, and, and, and... It's as if I had Google stamped on my forehead. It's a syndrome. A syndrome is something wrong doctors haven't found the etiology for. Some other syndromes are: fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, irritable bladder, and so on and so forth.
If doctors know not the reason for syndromes, that means they know not a cure for them. NPH is a chronic accumulation of spinal-cerebral fluid in the skull. This fluid compresses the brain. The brain slowly shrinks to give space to the fluid.

How do doctors deal with this condition? First of all, the diagnosis is extremely difficult to get. You'll need an MRI of your brain, which means having a referral. I don't know how long I have had this. Maybe since 2003, when I got peripheral neuropathy of my  left hand. Or since I had bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction in 2001-2002. What I do know is that I have had had writing problems since 2005. NPH impairs both your muscles and your brain. Another possibiliy may have been lithium, which induced a hypercalcemia in the summer of 2007.

I started falling in 2006. At first I could pick myself up. Then I fell in the bathroom of the Arpoador Inn. I shuffled my feet, and I couldn't walk. My friends said I was obese. I led a sedentary life. I went to see a great doctor. Neurontin was to blame and I had myasthenia as a diagnosis.

Finally, at the beginning of December 2007, I had an MRI of my brain. I was falling a lot and emotionally unstable. The NPH was diagnosed. Nicolas and I found the UCLA-Westwood Hospital and the Big Kahuna, Dr. Bergsneider. My appointment was scheduled for sometime in March 2008.

Towards the end of January 2008, I had lost control of my movements and my mood. There were a few problems of breach of trust in Blogsville. There is a guy addicted to flame wars, and I didn't want him to be aware of my problems. Oh, vanity! His friend now accuses me, the professional flamer uses his friend's blog to diss me and I am  getting comments that are absolutely estúpidos (please click for meaning in español) in my other blog, Universo Anárquico.
I was brought into the E.R. of UCLA-Westwood on February 3, 2008. I was dragged into here. On February 7, I got a spinal tap, great mockumentary band - just joking! The little amount of fluid removed, 43 cc,  made me dance a samba! The trio of neurologists who took care of me made a video of before and after for me to bring to the Big Kahuna on February 15, my new appointment with Dr.Bergsneider. Unfortunatelly the internal medicine doctors decided I had something wrong in my pituitary gland. I had cortisol shots. They triggered a more severe diabetes. I left the hospital on two injections of insulin. Kewl,really. By golly, thanks a bunch.

After meeting the Big Kahuna, we called the hospital every day. Then I got fed up. I fired the neurologist, who was still thinking of sending me to a Dementia Clinic, when there was no other solution than putting a shunt in my brain. My psychiatrist sent me to a really great neurologist, Dr. Shimizu, who took his time to answer every single question I had.

After three weeks waiting for EconoAir to fix our solar panels and central air, I went on a Bush diplomatic skills rampage, aka ballistic. I called UCLA, left a message I wanted all my files to find someone else to operate on me. We got a call back that same day. After this coup, we communicated thru e-mail. We got schedules for more doctors' appointments. We met the Big Kahuna. He explained to me I would get three holes in my skull. One where the shunt goes in, and where the valve can be regulated; another behind my right ear, and the last one in the back of my head. Except for the one by my ear, the others don't hurt that much. But I have a headache as I work on the computer, maybe it's the C3-C4 in my neck, who knows?

Mommy passed away on April 28, a Monday roughly two weeks ago. She lived with us for sixteen and a half years. Most of those were the best years of her life. I am glad she overcame her prejudice against cremation. Her memorial pink rock will come later. We will have an ecumenic service celebrating her life.

This blogger who accuses me says I am suffering karma of bad deeds. The other adds nails to my coffin. They say they are atheists. I don't care if they call me old, crazy, none of this offends me. I have always been generous to a fault. I feel hurt but must shrug my shoulders and move on. I know my former Universo Anárquico was invaded when I was with BlogSpot. We tricked the blogger behind the only flame war he lost to call his father on the phone. I shut down eight versions of his boards with InvisionFree. How? I used my  constitutional rights, under the Civil Rights Act, and showed their breaches of their TOS and TOU. They have a new board but are never satisfied. When his father received some of the stuff pubished on the Net, this guy got scolded. And later, his own pack turned against him. He is over 23!

In addition, another idiotic hypothesis is that I inflict harm to myself by thinking about these things. Well, that is called Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. II hope to regain my life back. That is very little to ask for. Fer shure.
Another really foolish hypothesis was from a psychologist justifying each illness as a result of some stressor. Gee, whiz, Louise. I believe in genetics and in Nora Volkow's studies on addiction - there is no cure for it - and neurotransmitters.  However, some people can dish it but cannot take it. I don't butt in anyone's life, and wish people do the same about mine. I'm fine wth my writing, my husband and beauiful son.

The faintly underlined phrases are links. If you click on them, they will take you somewhere you will learn about the link. Then just go back to this post. Either use the history of your reading or ask your kid how to open a new page when clicking on a link.