Kyle's Story
Kyle was born in April 1993 after a normal full term pregnancy and delivery. We had no reason to think that he would have any problems. At about 5 months we began to notice that he didn't use his right hand but decided that he was just going to really favor his left . Then at about 9 months I noticed that when he used his right hand he could not control where he wanted it to go. He had also just started sitting up which usually happens at about 6 months. I brought the fact that Kyle couldn't control his right arm and hand very well to the attention of his pediatrician who said that it was probably just a pinched nerve or pulled muscle from delivery. He then sent us to a neurologist and we were definetly not prepared for what we learned while there. After the neurologist examined Kyle he told us that Kyle's right leg was also involved and that he believed that Kyle had right side hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy, caused by a stroke suffered in utero. An MRI confirmed this diagnosis and found that 15-20% of Kyle's brain had not developed. Needless to say I was in shock. I had never heard of such a thing. I couldn't believe that my precious and happy baby had cerebral palsy. I was scared to death of what that was going to mean for him. I blamed myself. It had to be someone's fault and to me I was the obvious candidate. Today I have come to grips with the guilt. I know that there was nothing that I could have done differently that would have prevented this. Some things just happen and have no explanation.
May 2005--- Kyle is now a very active 12 year old who is just finishing up the 6th grade and is playing baseball this summer. He is a smart young man who loves all the things that young men love. He is very, very special though at times he has a hard time thinking so.
Puberty has set in and we were having some major behavior issues. These have settled down thank goodness.
We started homeschooling Kyle in the fall of 2004. He was in a Catholic School through fifth grade, which is where this school stops. We did not want to send him to the public junior high and were denied admittance to a private Christian school because of his learning disabilities. I have enjoyed teaching him this year and have learned a lot. Hopefully he has too.
We have not done any therapies for awhile. His ortho wants to do Botox this summer but I don't think we will be doing it. Kyle is on Depakote for seizures but has just had an EEG and we are hoping to get him off of his meds if that comes back alright. Kyle is also taking Zyrtec and Advair for allergies and asthma. We started him on a very low dose of Zoloft in February because he was having constant headaches. This has taken care of the problem. It is nice not to hear "I have a headache" every day. The Zoloft has also helped with his behavior.
Kyle played soccer this spring. He started to play in the fall but fell and broke his upper right arm so couldn't play. He is playing baseball this summer and seems to be enjoying practice so far.
We plan to homeschool Kyle through at least 9th grade, maybe further.
August 2001----And, as KidPower turns three on August the 19th, Kyle is now 8 and will start 3rd grade this fall. Kyle's second grade year was a hard one for us. We discovered that Kyle has many learning differences that require accomodations within his schoolwork. It took his entire IEP team most of the year to come up with the strategies that worked best for Kyle. We are looking forward to 3rd grade and anticipate it being a much easier year for all of us.
Kyle played baseball this summer and had a great time. He got very good at hitting the ball from the pitching machine. He also has gotten quick at stopping the ball and taking his glove off to throw it to the infield.
Kyle received botox injections in his calf and thumb on July 5th. We have noticed that the joints in this thumb are not subluxing as badly and that it is much easier for him to walk with his foot flat on the floor. We are using TES again and hope that we can strengthen Kyle's anterior tibialis muscle (helps pull big toe up) so that we can stop him from walking on the inside of his foot so much. This has started causing his toes to curve out and is our biggest challenge at the moment.
September 1998---Kyle is now a very active 5 year old who just started kindergarten and who played t-ball this summer. He wears a DAFO on his right foot to make his gait more normal and uses his right hand and arm mainly as a helper. He is a smart and precious boy who loves all the things that little boys love. He is just a normal little boy and very, very special.
To read Kyle's seizure history go to the KidPower Seizure Disorder page.
to therapies I am using or have used in the past.
Botox
Kyle & Therapeutic Horseback Riding
Kyle & TES
The NARHA--Therapeutic Horseback Riding
The Rolf Institute
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This Our Special Child
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Copyright 1998-2005 by April Hernandez for KidPower Family Support Resource. Please do not use this story or Kyle's picture for any purpose without written permission. Thank you.
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