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Description
4 years ago today, back when I was 17, I had an MRI showing the reason why I had been sick for at least the 4 or 5 months beforehand. It diagnosed an arachnoid cyst, the approximate size of a tennis ball/peach in the base of my skull, preventing my spinal fluid from circulating correctly throughout my spinal cord and head.
***(((My normal doctor had previously diagnosed my 8-on-a-10-pt-scale-of-pain headaches as "displaced sinus pain caused by allergies" and my other symptoms of sleeping 14 hours a day, throwing up everything I tried to eat, double vision, balance problems and not wanting(or rather being able to) go to school to "clinical depression" and being a teenager with image issues. I was prescribed multiple allergy medications, anti-depressants, and told that when having double vision, its "always good to go to an optimologist every so often". Never mind the fact that he was trained to do a standard eye exam. I visited him at LEAST 4 times throughout the 4 to 5 months prior to the MRI, which, it is important to note, was suggested by a therapist we sought out when told that I was "depressed".)))***
4 years ago tomorrow, I had the first of four brain surgeries. It was to drain the cyst, and they removed part of my top vertebrae and a piece of the back of my skull permanently. The piece of skull was so small and under so many layers of neck muscle that it doesn't make that much of a difference that its gone.
A week after my first surgery I had my stitches out, and then soon developed symptoms of meningitis.
The short version is, after lengthy hospital stays, a spinal tap (which, by the way, is rumored to equal the pain of child birth) I was sent home with bubbles of fluid forming on the back of my neck-- which I repeatedly brought up and were repeatedly dismissed as my imagination by my neurosurgeon.
Then one decided to pop open in the middle of the night and I went back to the ER with spinal fluid, LITERALLY, squirting from the back of my head. oops?
I had another surgery, inserting a shunt (essentially a tube with a pressure gauge) to correctly drain my spinal fluid.
I was then diagnosed with bacterial meningitis from a staph infection, was treated with iv antibiotics over the span of about 3 weeks, had my shunt removed and then replaced on the opposite side of my head to clear all worries of the staph infection.

thats the short version of the story. Needless to say, after having both my normal doctor and my neurosurgeon not listen to me when I tell them something is wrong, I don't trust doctors very easily. We have since switched normal doctors and I don't see my neurosurgeon very often.

I draw a picture every year, sort of, to commemorate being alive. the type of cyst I had is uncommon for young people, and for females. AND they usually aren't large enough to be noticed, let alone cause problems.

photo of original stitches here: [link]
last year's drawing:
[link]

<3s to who is still my friend after all my medical baggage. she visited me in the hospital and stuff. ohhhh, high school. seems so long ago.

for more information, google 'vp shunt', 'hydrocephalus', 'bacterial meningitis', and 'arachnoid cyst'.

SO. the brain halo is self explanatory. the syringes reference the hospital itself, the bandaids are for the repeated invasion of my body/recurrent illnesses/ all those stupid IVs they stuck in me. and stupid taking of blood. skeleton is my relationship with death/ memento mori, and snakes are a symbol of power.
bird skeletons are just cool. psh.

Description
4 years ago today, back when I was 17, I had an MRI showing the reason why I had been sick for at least the 4 or 5 months beforehand. It diagnosed an arachnoid cyst, the approximate size of a tennis ball/peach in the base of my skull, preventing my spinal fluid from circulating correctly throughout my spinal cord and head.
***(((My normal doctor had previously diagnosed my 8-on-a-10-pt-scale-of-pain headaches as "displaced sinus pain caused by allergies" and my other symptoms of sleeping 14 hours a day, throwing up everything I tried to eat, double vision, balance problems and not wanting(or rather being able to) go to school to "clinical depression" and being a teenager with image issues. I was prescribed multiple allergy medications, anti-depressants, and told that when having double vision, its "always good to go to an optimologist every so often". Never mind the fact that he was trained to do a standard eye exam. I visited him at LEAST 4 times throughout the 4 to 5 months prior to the MRI, which, it is important to note, was suggested by a therapist we sought out when told that I was "depressed".)))***
4 years ago tomorrow, I had the first of four brain surgeries. It was to drain the cyst, and they removed part of my top vertebrae and a piece of the back of my skull permanently. The piece of skull was so small and under so many layers of neck muscle that it doesn't make that much of a difference that its gone.
A week after my first surgery I had my stitches out, and then soon developed symptoms of meningitis.
The short version is, after lengthy hospital stays, a spinal tap (which, by the way, is rumored to equal the pain of child birth) I was sent home with bubbles of fluid forming on the back of my neck-- which I repeatedly brought up and were repeatedly dismissed as my imagination by my neurosurgeon.
Then one decided to pop open in the middle of the night and I went back to the ER with spinal fluid, LITERALLY, squirting from the back of my head. oops?
I had another surgery, inserting a shunt (essentially a tube with a pressure gauge) to correctly drain my spinal fluid.
I was then diagnosed with bacterial meningitis from a staph infection, was treated with iv antibiotics over the span of about 3 weeks, had my shunt removed and then replaced on the opposite side of my head to clear all worries of the staph infection.

thats the short version of the story. Needless to say, after having both my normal doctor and my neurosurgeon not listen to me when I tell them something is wrong, I don't trust doctors very easily. We have since switched normal doctors and I don't see my neurosurgeon very often.

I draw a picture every year, sort of, to commemorate being alive. the type of cyst I had is uncommon for young people, and for females. AND they usually aren't large enough to be noticed, let alone cause problems.

photo of original stitches here: [link]
last year's drawing:
[link]

<3s to who is still my friend after all my medical baggage. she visited me in the hospital and stuff. ohhhh, high school. seems so long ago.

for more information, google 'vp shunt', 'hydrocephalus', 'bacterial meningitis', and 'arachnoid cyst'.

SO. the brain halo is self explanatory. the syringes reference the hospital itself, the bandaids are for the repeated invasion of my body/recurrent illnesses/ all those stupid IVs they stuck in me. and stupid taking of blood. skeleton is my relationship with death/ memento mori, and snakes are a symbol of power.
bird skeletons are just cool. psh.