nocturnal hours

It's hard to believe that five years have passed since I began making a THCA cannabis oil to treat my son's epilepsy. Shortly thereafter, I started the difficult and protracted effort of weaning his benzodiazepine, Onfi, aka clobazam. The endeavor took us four years, but we succeeded. What I find most noteworthy since starting Calvin on cannabis oil is that his daytime grand mal seizures—despite the benzo withdrawal—have virtually disappeared. The seizures, which were common in late afternoon, have been largely limited to nocturnal hours; he has suffered only a handful of them during the day in those five years. Calvin's partial seizures, on the other hand, often come in clusters and often occur in the wake of grand mals, usually presenting in the wee morning hours, yet still nocturnal, as they did today and on most if not all of the past six days.

This spate of complex partial seizures is disheartening. For the past few months, the Palmetto Harmony CBD oil seemed to have reduced their monthly numbers from double digits down to three or four. Regrettably, however, as I have been increasing its dose, we have not yet seen them disappear as I had hoped. I might now know why.

Yesterday, after Calvin received a meningitis vaccination, I weighed and measured him. I've sensed he has been going through a growth spurt, but I was surprised to see he has gained nearly seven pounds and has grown over an inch since October. This rapid and substantial weight gain prompted me to slightly increase his bedtime Keppra to equal a previous level, effectively zeroing out one variable as I continue to titrate his CBD oil. My hope is that it will lead to better seizure control. I'll let you know.

This past week's nocturnal seizures have meant that I've been waking up between two and three-thirty and getting little if any sleep from then on. Sleep deprivation is a form of torture, spiking my despair, anger, impatience and resentment. And yet, when I pull myself from its grip, get some rest, take a shower, I can see my way out of its shadow and am heartened when I remind myself of Calvin's seizure-free afternoons. I am pleased with how quickly he now (usually) bounces back from grand mals. I'm consoled by the notion he is finally growing, is taking a fraction of the drugs he used to, is walking tall, standing steady, having fewer mood swings and tantrums, and is more often going to sleep when his head hits the pillow. And though I still have to get up in the middle of the night, watch him seize, deal with the aftereffects of grand mals, change poopy diapers, dress, bathe and feed a fifteen-year-old, I can say with confidence that my boy is easier to take care of these days.

Photo by Phoebe Parker