As related by her family and assisting therapists.
Isabella’s background shared by her mother:
“Isabella was born a perfectly healthy, beautiful little girl with the
sweetest personality. She brightened every room she entered and
brought joy everywhere she went. She was very sociable and loved
making new friends everywhere she went. According to Isabella, every
day was “Great!” She woke up every morning thanking God for a
“beautiful new day” and she went to bed every night thanking Him for
“the best day ever.
When she was 4 years old, Isabella had her first seizure. May 7, 2013,
she awoke from her afternoon nap, and went into the bathroom to
brush her teeth. When she walked back into her bedroom, she
laughed delightfully as she found her daddy was home from work and
pretending to be asleep on her bed. She excitedly started to tell him all
about her “great” day so far, but in the middle of talking and playing,
her little body suddenly stiffened up and she fell backwards, hitting her
head on the floor. She was unresponsive as her tiny body was
convulsing. Her eyes rolled back, her lips turned blue, and she was
foaming from her mouth.
She was taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital and admitted
overnight for observation. After extensive tests and evaluations, the
doctors confirmed that Isabella had a seizure, but unfortunately, they
could not explain WHY, nor could they offer any advice on how to help
her. Isabella was diagnosed with a severe, catastrophic form of
epilepsy and sent home from the hospital with the suggestion to start
a round of anti-seizure medications, and hope for the best...
Soon after that first seizure, Isabella’s condition worsened drastically.
She began having hundreds of seizures a day, with lots of
accompanying injuries and terrible side effects. The independence
that Isabella enjoyed was abruptly GONE! The many activities she
enjoyed doing were suddenly OVER. The enthusiastic, full of energy
little girl had disappeared; in her place, was a confused, sad andfrustrated little girl who did not understand what was happening to her.
She did not understand why she kept falling down and getting hurt.
She even requested, in her sweetest voice, “new shoes” because she
innocently thought that the “ones she was wearing made her fall
down.”
On her evaluation the very first morning, one of John’s incredible
therapists, Jeannie Miranda, noticed 6 noticeable small seizures
during the one hour session. We’re happy to report that after John and
his incredible team of therapists (Valerie, Carol, Jeannie, Kim, Jill) has
worked on her for the past 4 days, there have been no grand mal
seizures or seizures of any kind. Jeannie and John both noticed that
Isabella had an oral motor sensitivity and when John first put his little
finger in her mouth she had a gag reflex. The sensitivity is decreasing
and when he did the vomer technique yesterday she had no gag
reflex. It’s too early to tell, however, we’re off to a very good start. We
will keep you updated on her progress. Let’s keep our fingers crossed
for this beautiful little girl.”
Last week was Isabella’s 10th birthday and she excitedly said to John,
the other therapists who were treating her and her family that “This is
my best birthday ever!”
Valerie McGraw, PT was talking to her mother and with her permission
we are updating you on her impressive recovery.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Isabella, here is some
information from our last post:
Up until the week before coming to the Sanctuary in Malvern, Isabella
was having hundreds of seizures per day for 5 years causing her to
fall and injure her head and body repeatedly. From the first day of
Myofascial Release treatment, there was a remarkable improvement
in her.
Isabella’s aunt said “When Isabella’s seizures began over 5 years ago
(Isabella was only 4) we were devastated, confused, and desperate
for her to be treated and after so many different treatments, diets,
therapies, doctors, supplements, etc etc etc there have been only
minor improvements and nothing lasted long.”
Isabella’s mother explained that “for 5 years her grand mal seizures
would cause her whole body to stiffen and make a sound as if shewas being hit in the stomach, she would then convulse for a couple
minutes, her eyes would roll back, her jaw would clench, and her
breathing would be labored for minutes or hours afterwards and crying
inconsolably for hours.
Since she started Myofascial Release with us a few weeks ago, and
her mother stated that she has only had a couple of small short
seizures, which were totally different than the ones she was previously
having. The convulsions are very brief and mild; more like a shudder
now. The grand mal seizures had never been like this before! We
have been noticing behavioral changes as well.”
Her mother stated that it seems that at the age of 4 when the seizures
started, all development had stopped. Since they’ve been home, she’s
noticing things she didn’t notice before. Isabella is beginning to act
more her age and perceive things differently; more clearly. (John
thinks this was a freeze response from all of the trauma from the
seizures which stopped her development) John and the other
therapists who have treated her at the Sanctuary in Malvern also
noticed the light and clarity coming back in her eyes. John could feel a
shift in her essence beginning to emerge again from a very
traumatized, scared little girl.
We were all impressed by Isabella’s loving mother and she has an
incredibly supportive family. Can you imagine watching your little child
suffer like that for 5 years and how exhausting it must be for them?
Her mother is looking for a highly skilled Myofascial Release therapist
near home to help continue treatment.
Isabella’s nightmare is over!
Our goal is to eliminate all seizures and help her develop into the very
healthy, joyful little girl that she should be. We’ll keep you updated as
time goes on.
Isabella’s mother wanted to express how thankful and grateful she is
for everyone.”
Posted by Isabella’s aunt:
“There is no way to express the absolute and complete gratitude I feel
for ALL you have done for my niece and in turn for our entire family!
John and his amazing staff of therapists have not only given us hope
but empowered our family.When Isabella’s seizures began over 5 years ago (Isabella was only
4) we were devastated, confused, and desperate for her to be treated
and after so many different treatments, diets, therapies, doctors,
supplements, etc etc etc there have been only minor improvements
and nothing lasted long.
With your gentle approach, knowledge, and experience, I (and I know
Isabella’s entire family) feel she is FINALLY on the road to full
recovery. I know this is a bold statement but I have seen such
incredible improvement already and everything explained makes
perfect sense!!!
We were told by a very close family friend (Occupational Therapist)
who has taken classes with John to try this therapy. She believed at
best Isabella could potentially recover from the catastrophic epilepsy
with MFR, but at the very least be given a better quality of life. I was
cautiously optimistic until her first day of treatment. Now I am more
positive and optimistic than I’ve been in over 5 years. So many
positive gains have been seen immediately! I know it will take time
and diligence moving forward, but I believe there are much brighter
days ahead and full healing and recovery in Isabella’s future...
Thank you and God bless each and every one of you!!!
- Nicole Capotorto (close family member of a patient who was treated
over the past 2 weeks at the Sanctuary).”
Comments