Tending the Soil

Tending the soil in any garden, and providing protection from stormy weather, will help plants so they can blossom and grow strong.

Epilepsy, untended, grows stronger and more destructive to all in the family.

Learning that I was powerless over the fact that epilepsy resided in my brain and that I was NOT powerless over how I managed that condition, was a turning point for me as a parent, and an individual.

As a parent with epilepsy,

once I knew of my responsibility for the self care,

I learned what I could about 
managing my epilepsy,
minimizing my risk of seizures and,

that self care always came first ~ 

for birthday cakes and balloons

being a den mom with a Beaver troop

or going to gymnastic events or water polo

and so very much more during the ‘raising kids’ years.

Epilepsy had to sit quietly within - there was work to be done, fun to be shared

Epilepsy is merely a part of me

like any other part of me,

and deserved my attention then and now,

just as my children have deserved my attention.

Information abounds about epilepsy and

epilepsy has long been seen as something that children have.

But those children grow up to become parents, and

there are those of us whose epilepsy didn’t show itself until we were parents.

Ask questions of any health care professional that you can about whether you need to do anything 

differently, 

more carefully, 

with more planning

and how to enlist family members in this crucially important endeavor.

An online resource I have recently located is, 

http://www.epilepsy.com/

for common sense information about epilepsy and parenting.

“Trust yourself.  You know more than you think you do.”

~ Benjamin Spock