What do you get when mix a sleep deprived Allison with a long day and lots of time waiting? Can you say "temper tantrum"? Alli had her scheduled EEG on Tuesday. This involved sleep deprivation - only 5 hours of sleep. Ralph kept her up until 11:00 pm, and then I woke her up at 4:00 am. We then left the house at 4:30 am to drive to Sacramento to Sutter Memorial for the EEG. I made Alli ride in the front seat with me so I could see when she started to nod off and wake her up again. Traffic was lighter in Sac than I expected (only a couple of "stop and goes" on I-5) so we got to the hospital at 7:30. We had to check in at 8:00, so we waited in the car until 7:50, and then waited in the lobby of the hospital until 8:05 to check in, and then waited until 8:40 until they came to get us for the EEG. Alli was getting a little agitated while waiting in the lobby. She threw one of her toys and (luckily) missed the other people in the lobby, and they found it amusing (they had been waiting long than us). Lucky me! The EEG actually went very well. The tech had to scrub each spot on Alli's head where she attached the electrodes - which didn't go over well, but she put up with it. Then the tech attached the electrodes, and Alli couldn't move around much - which she tolerated better than I thought she would. Then came the time to take the electrodes off! She once again did better than I thought she would, but she did not like having those things that they had glued and taped to her head (and hair!) pulled off. She fought having the glue scrubbed off, so we left with glue in her hair and on her face, and lovely orange markings everywhere (marking where the tech wanted to put the electrodes) on her head and face.

We finished up the EEG around 10:00, and then had to wait until 11:00 for Alli's appointment with Dr. Asaikar. We went back to the car, had some juice and a snack, and then drove across the street to Dr. A's. We got there a little before 11:00, and by 11:05, Alli was acting out. She went into screaming mode by 11:10. One of the other families in the waiting room asked if we had any windows left in our house. Luckily, they too were understanding. Around 11:20, the office staff put us into one of the little rooms. Alli was still acting out and screaming. By the time the doctor came - she was on overload (and so was I!). Poor Dr. A - he had never seen her like this. He tried cajoling her - which usually works for him - but not today. He tried taking her for a walk to calm her down, and she wouldn't go with him. he finally gave up and went to read the EEG (quickly!) He came back, said the EEG was clear - go home! He chased us down the hall to get us out so Alli would calm down, offering her snacks, water, anything! Poor man! He may never recover! She passed the EEG with flying colors - no evidence of any recent seizures! (Mom may not recover though!)