A Day in the Life of a Genius?

Ok, I’m not quite a genius, but I have been told by my Neuropsychologist that I have “superior intellect.”  Why would I need a neuropsychologist?  Because the encephalitis and the ensuing strokes that I had in December left me with permanent brain damage, epilepsy, and all of the fun things that come along with that.  The neuropsychologist assessed my brain function and made recommendations to my neurologist regarding what kinds of therapies might work for my memory issues, my concentration deficits and other areas regarding cognition.

In addition to brain damage, I have an autoimmune disorder which  I have been told means that I will need to have all of my childhood vaccines redone.  Before I began monthly infusions of immunoglobulin, I had no ability to store the antibodies that a body usually develops and stores from vaccines.  So in a recent visit with my hematologist, he said he would refer me to an immunologist so that we could make a determination and get that process started.

I received a notice in the mail that I had an appointment on the 17th at an office in Durham, which is about 50 miles from where I live.  It’s where Drew works, and since I am unable to drive due to my potential for seizures, that meant that he had to take me to my appointment, bring me home, then go back to work.  You may be asking if I could have taken Uber or Lyft or public transportation.  The answer is that there is no public transportation out here where I live, and Uber and Lyft are expensive.  Since I can’t work, we are on a much tighter budget.

So this morning at 8:15, we left the house and headed to my appointment.  I double checked the letter so we could enter the address into our GPS and then tucked it back into my purse.

The part of North Carolina where I live is right on the fringe of Hurricane Florence.  We’ve gotten tons of rain and some higher winds than normal, but where we live, there has been no serious damage and only a few hours without power.

As we drove to the appointment, we got to see more of the flood damage that is affecting the area.  We encountered at least two road closures due to flooding, and we drove past a number of creeks and streams that had surpassed their banks by several feet.  We passed several convoys of vehicles clearly headed to the areas needing the most help – EMS, electrical contractors, people with tools and bodies to help.

Traffic was surprisingly light for a Monday morning.  Most schools remain closed so that probably means that a lot of people stayed home, today.  I spent the drive updating Facebook on what was happening, this morning and how we’re doing.  Everyone we know is on the West Coast, so they’re all concerned for us and keen for updates.

After several detours and a bit of cursing and swearing. We made it to my doctor’s office.  Drew dropped me at the door and he went to park while I checked in.

And that’s when I found out that my appointment wasn’t supposed to be until October 17.  

Fortunately, Drew not only adores me, but he understands that my brain doesn’t quite function the way it used to.  Instead of being annoyed with me for the giant hiccup in the day, he hugged me, chuckled, and told me that I keep life interesting.  Then he took me to breakfast.

I love that man.