Trina's Story
“Can you spell that for me?”
“Sure” she replied. “It’s….amygdalohippocampectomy”
“Jeesh..that sounds awful”.
“Ya..that was my first brain surgery. They removed parts of my amygdala and hippocampus to help control the seizures and did a right temporal lobectomy. I also have a vagus nerve stimulator battery in my chest. (She pulled down the neck of her t-shirt, revealing the scar and the bump under the skin where the battery was implanted). It goes off every 5 minutes and lasts for 30 seconds. My second surgery involved drilling 14 holes into my skull and placing probes into my brain to help determine where the seizures are happening. That was fun. My first grand mal seizure was in 2003. I was sitting in the back seat of a truck when I had my first grand mal seizure. The next thing I remember I was screaming at a guy with a mask on thinking I was being date raped. I was being held down and he was saying, “It’s okay- I’m a medic. You’re in the hospital.”
March is Epilepsy Awareness Month and I have the privilege of being invited into this home where Trina, her husband, Chris and their 2 young children live. Many days she barely has the energy to unload the dishwasher. She often forgets where she placed household items and so buys duplicates. Well meaning friends and family also add to the clutter by giving them bags of clothes and toys. Grocery shopping, cooking, laundry and managing the home falls mainly on Chris’ shoulders. And just how many balls can one husband juggle? Overwhelmed barely describes how they’re feeling.
She reached out to Clutter Busters Home Organizing for help and together, we’re finding ways to tame the clutter and create a home that not only is inviting but functions well.
Her goals include:
spending less time looking for things
managing piles of laundry by reducing the amount of clothing
learning new routines to help maintain order
experiencing more peace
Trina recently texted me saying,
“Hi Sue, you really have no idea how much you are helping me here. This had been an overwhelming home of “stuff” before and you have helped my brain start to recognise things that are actually not needed and are garbage or donation worthy, even when you’re not here! Before you came along, I would just stand in the room and turn around in circles and walk out because I had no idea where to start. I used to be amazing at that stuff when I was younger, but since my brain surgery, I get easily overwhelmed and distracted so now that you’ve helped me learn to focus on certain things, I find myself doing it without any prompting. I can’t thank you enough. We’ll get there!”
Reading that text almost made me cry and I was again reminded of a quote from Frederick Buechner who said, “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet”.
Trina- You are a gem. And yes- we’re getting there!
