Found this amazing read and wanted to share it with everyone.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Introducing The National Face of Hydrocephalus Awareness 2012
Making us so proud, Go Team Jaden!
The PHF is proud to present the winner and now the National Face of Hydrocephalus Awareness 2012, Jaden Brown:
Jaden was born in April 2010, unknowingly as a healthy child with no known health issues at birth. Jaden’s head started to grow at a rapid rate around 4 month of age. My older son has a “large head” and has had an MRI to confirm that there is no medical condition. So at Jaden’s 4 month well check- we all didn’t think much of his “big head”. When his head continued to grow our doctor recommended he have an ultrasound which, then lead us to an MRI and neurosurgery consultation. Because of where we live in Southwest Colorado, we have to travel to Colorado Children’s Hospital for specialty treatment which is about 350 miles from where we live. During the first visit with Jaden’s Neurosurgeon, we learned about the large amount of extra-axial fluid on his brain and that Jaden had also suffered a stroke.
He has a large amount of brain damage affecting the left side of his brain and right side of his body. Jaden’s diagnosis is Hydrocephalus, infant Stroke, Cerebral Palsy and a vision condition called Cortical Vision Impairment. Jaden had his Shunt placed in 10-2010. Knock on wood his one and only shunt is working well and his MRI’s show a lot of improvement fluid wise. Jaden works hard with physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy. He is little to no use of the right side of his body and is developmentally delayed. His movement is = to a 6 month old, and cognitive = to a 12 month old.
Yet he is full of personality, strength and joy. It is amazing how many people’s lives he has impacted in his small years- his future is bright to say the least. Jaden has something in his smile that lights up a room. He enjoys working on therapy with his iPad, playing cars with his brother and laughing with his family
~ Jaden’s Mom Christina
Monday, March 5, 2012
The Colorado Pediatric Stroke Parent Support Group: About Jaden
Family Spotlight in the CPSPSG news letter 2/2012
Jaden,
Being the parent of a special needs
child is very challenging and has proven
to be the most emotional experience in
my life so far. Some days are good while
others are harder, making me ask a
question I will never know the answer
to- why did this happen to my child? It
is important to take into consideration
the effect that having a child who is a
stroke survivor has not only on my son
Jaden, but also on our family, friends
and everyone we meet. People tell me I
am the strongest person they have ever
met, and while this is an amazing
compliment, I can’t help but think that it
is Jaden who is strong, not me.
The hope I see in Jaden and the
inspiration he gives others has led me
to raise awareness about
infant/childhood stroke. The impact of
Jaden’s stroke has been life-changing
for our family and other like us who
have had a child diagnosed with stroke.
However, through it all we have found
strength and remain thankful in
knowing that Jaden and others like him
will achieve success and believing in him
even when he may not believe in
himself. Jaden has shown us to cherish
the small things -- sitting up, tying our
shoes, clapping our hands and what it
means to have a life free of occupational
therapy, physical therapy and
speech therapy.
My son has changed people’s idea of
what it means to have the diagnosis
stroke. He has inspired me to encourage
people to speak openly about
medical conditions and meet with
members of the community to share
our story, spread information and help
patients and their families cope with this
life changing diagnosis, the diagnosis of
childhood stroke.
Please visit our blog website or e-mail
me directly if you have questions or
would like to connect.
www.jadenstory.blogspot.com
Christina Brown
E-mail:
christinaandroy@yahoo.com
Colorado HealthStory
Here is Jaden’s health story that I recorded for Colorado HealthStory. I am always looking to share our story and bring awareness to the issues that affect our lives and the lives of so many people.
I very much enjoyed working with Joe and being a part of Colorado HealthStory.
Love and Health,
Micah and Jaden’s Mommy
Please follow the links provided to have a listen and feel free to share.
Our Health Story
Colorado Coalition for the Medically Underserved
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