Still working on the puzzle pieces...

Today another chapter has been written in our Chiari book. We have been dealing with some of the fun stuff that is related to Chiari. You see... Chiari is a monster. Not only do you have your Chiari, you have your other things that go along with it. For a while now we have been battling Brennan's behavior. It has been escalating and we had an appointment over at Cardinal Glennon for the Knights of Columbus Behavior Center for December. I made that appointment back in February of this year but I am not waiting almost a year to see them. I did some research and asked around about therapists that could help us out. We finally found someone to help Brennan.  We have been seeing Amber for a couple of months now and we have accomplished a lot. We have seen some other therapists to help get Brennan diagnosed. Finally we have answers that we have been waiting for!

Today we went and saw Dr. John Bambenek. After a long appointment, Brennan has been officially diagnosed ADHD http://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/childhood-adhd/adhd-children, Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensory_processing_disorder and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/oppositional-defiant-disorder/basics/symptoms/con-20024559. That is a lot on top of his Chiari and Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Some might not know about any of these disorders but they are real. They are a nightmare. His little brain has so much going on in there. He will start on medicine to help him deal with everything going on. Chris and I have said our main focus right now is to make sure Brennan can get through school.

I am his advocate along with being his mother. I know some people probably get tired of me posting articles on my Facebook page about Chiari and ED but it is raising awareness. I can now add ADHD, SPD and ODD.  There is not enough awareness about these disorders. I am blessed with meeting people who have children going through the same thing along with friends fighting too. I do not feel alone like I used to.  We will continue to fight on and deal with what is ahead of us. For now.. another chapter is written and another piece of the puzzle has been found.