It’s day four now. Still no seizures and no confirmed date to go home. I did get to sleep for almost eight hours last night though. My medications are done now for this trip in hopes of generating a seizure.

I don’t know if it was a good thing or not, but I read some posts on one of the epilepsy support groups that I am a part of on Facebook. Some poor soul is also in an EMU right now, bored, and anxiously waiting for some seizures. She asked others if they’d ever been in the EMU and not had a seizure. The stories were eye opening. That is for sure. Some people have stayed in their monitoring units for more than 20 days. I am going to need more crocheting yarn if that happens! Others have been given vodka to induce their seizures. I asked my nurse about that one. It is a possibility. When I suggested a brandy old fashioned instead she was apologetic and explained that unfortunately it’s not an open bar. Oh well.

Dr. Lagerland and team did their daily visit just a few minutes ago. He’s encouraging me to keep up with doing sleep deprivation, so I am back to the four hours a night if I don’t have some seizures before then. I’m to keep exercising too.

I can tell that my system is wearing down. I started to get twitches yesterday and words are just a little more difficult. Spelling is a bit more of a challenge. I brought out my Ojibwe language lessons this morning for the first time in quite a while and practiced for about an hour. Learning another language at any time is challenging, in a state of sleep deprivation and medication changes it’s a real trip. But, I suspect it’s good to challenge my mind especially now. Besides there’s only so many television reruns and movies that anyone should watch at one time. Maybe today I’ll go back to the Call the Midwife series though. I’ve seen them all, but they’re just comforting.

I put the message out to my online support groups asking what people would like me to share about my experience in the EMU in my blog. I would love for my writing to be more than just an online journal. I would love for it to be a support or guide for others in a similar space. I hope that my readers will share my blog with others facing similar situations, that you will tell me your stories, and that you’ll let me know what you’d like me to write about too. Thanks for reading!