My Challenge

Well. Unfortunately, according to the tests I'm not a genius. Danny was thrilled by the results, but I was pretty disappointed.

I'm glad to report that I show not that many neurological deficits, any more, I'm getting better even though they said I wouldn't. However I have "weaknesses" (his word) in all areas. The doctor believes that I still have some recovering to do, albeit little. He does not believe that I will reach my previous mental abilities that I had before the surgeries.

Everyone fears the statement, "She has a great personality," when referring to a blind date. Which is how I felt when the doctor said that I'm very compassionate, and personable, and will fare just fine in society. When discussing my future in the academic world, he was on the fence regarding my ability to succeed. Basically, he doesn't believe that I will have the attention, retention, or energy to ever earn another degree.

I know it sounds crazy, but I can understand his reasoning. I am still exhausted and have to take 2-5 hour naps after work. I'm still struggling with higher level thinking. Things are definitely tough, but at the same time it has only been 6 months and to write me off at this point is ridiculous. I'm sure he's just going off of statistics, and personal accounts, but each individual is different and I'm pretty damn stubborn. Just because I can't use more than two syllable words in my speech, or pronunciate words I should know, doesn't mean I'm stupid. That it isn't in there.

I guess I thought I'd do something challenging and impactful with my life, and I always thought it would be achieved through the academic world. Even though I've never been a genius, whatever lack of knowledge I had I knew I could compensate with hard work and perseverance. Unfortunately, I can no longer power through tasks, both physically and mentally. I get exhausted and my mind shuts down completely. My life has immeasurably changed. My mechanics have shifted, and I'm learning to adjust my system. Now, all I have is my story. Maybe that's my challenge, sharing it. Maybe if he saw my blog he'd see that I'm smarter than he thinks. His test was by hand and I still can't use a ben or pencil well or write stuff, my hand is funky. But I type. I can do that.

Neuro Testing Results

Tomorrow I get the results of the neuro testing from last month. Woo hoo! The testing was pretty interesting, fun even, although at the time I was a little stressed about the MRI. The first day of testing began the day before the MRI, which wasn't ideal timing but that's the soonest they could fit me in.

The testing had the basics that you'd expect, timed math, memory cards, definitions, spelling, reading comprehension, pronunciation, and things of that nature. It also had some pretty interesting segments that included blindfolded three dimensional puzzles. They had me do the exact same puzzle (always blindfolded) starting with only the use of my right hand, then again with my left hand, and finally I was able to use both hands.

There were drawing tests where I had ten seconds to memorize an image and then I was expected to draw it. As the time went on, the pictures became more and more difficult. Things were color coded, and things got hairy from there. It was a whirlwind of testing. Anyway, the testing was interesting, and the scoring will be incredibly interesting to hear about. I'm excited!