Bethany Serna, 2 ½, picked up the sunglasses,
and began putting them on and taking them off. She took the Bacon Fest pig
keychain and started pulling the measuring tape out with ease. Seeing her
today, you would never guess that more than a year ago this toddler could
barely move her arms or hands.
On April 5, 2012, Bethany’s parents, Rodney and
Veronica, rushed her to the hospital in the middle of the night—something was
terribly wrong. She had signs of meningitis, but when the doctors did a spinal
tap, they saw that it was something else. She had a dangerously high red blood
cell count and protein in her blood. So, she was sent to another hospital where,
that night, after suspecting she had a tumor, she was rushed into surgery that
lasted seven hours! The actual problem was an aneurysm caused by arteriovenous malformation (AVM), the abnormal tangling
of arteries and veins. To help prevent further damage, the doctors had to put a
clip on her spinal cord.
Despite surgery,
Bethany experienced changes that would have life changing effects for her and
her family. Bethany now had tetraplegia, the paralysis of the arms, legs and
trunk of the body, so she could barely move. To help her regain certain skills,
Bethany began speech, physical and occupational therapies at the Rehabilitation
Institute of Kansas City (RIKC).
“When she came in,
she couldn’t even lift her head up,” her father Rodney said. “She was starting
over from the newborn stage for the most part.”
After doing therapy
for more than a year— three times each week for up to five hours each time—
through hard work, and the help of her family and RIKC staff, Bethany can now
move her arms all around and crawl.
“Just to see her
roll over again is so rewarding,” Rodney said. “She’s still weak in the trunk
but is getting there and working on strength. This and other little things
people take for granted are rewarding to see her do.”
When her AVM first appeared
she didn’t talk much or eat well on her own, which the speech therapist and
Bethany’s mom Veronica think are behavioral, indirect effects of her AVM.
“She is still a
picky eater, but she has come a long way,” Veronica said. “She talks like
crazy. She’s a little parrot.”
In about a month,
Bethany will undergo one more surgery to remove the clip that is attached to
her spinal cord.
Next year, Bethany
will start preschool. She still has therapy at RIKC three times a week, but she
has made such progress that her appointments are hours shorter.
About a year ago,
Bethany couldn’t move her fingers. Now, as she and her parents leave the
office, she waves goodbye with her index finger with a big smile on her face.
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