Tune-In-Tuesday: February 12, 2019

I remember when I was a child finding out what my blood type is. I saw it written on a form my mom had to fill out for something. I couldn’t help but exclaim, “Hey Mom, I got an A+ on my blood!”. She laughed and corrected me saying that my blood type is A positive. It’s one of the only things in life that I’ve gotten an A+ on. That and I’m a type A personality, if that counts – ha! 😊

In last week’s blog post, I was debating on whether to try a new frequency in my DBS system or wait it out another week on Frequency A. Well, right before bed Tuesday night, I decided to try another frequency. Guess what?! I didn’t even have to dig out the manual to figure out how to do it – I remembered it on my own! I changed it to Frequency D. When I switched it over, I noticed that the voltage was at 3.30. Since I was on 3.10 volts on Frequency A, I decided to dial it back to 3.10 on Frequency D.

Then I went to bed. I’ve found from past experiences it’s better for me to adjust the electricity at night and give it time to start working while I sleep. 😉 I don’t know if this is a scientifically proven method of doing things, but hey – it works for me! When I woke up on Wednesday, I wasn’t walking as great as I had hoped, and my arm and hand were having issues (I couldn’t grip well and kept dropping things.). I then switched it to 3.20 volts and then back up to 3.30, but by the time I was ready to leave for work, I felt like I needed to turn it back down to 3.10, so I did. Then I left for work. I almost fell when I got in to work but decided to give the level a try. However, after lunch, I decided to go back to 3.30. I was having issues – major issues – getting around.

I left it on Frequency D at 3.30 volts until Friday morning. By the time Friday rolled around, I had had enough. I couldn’t wait any longer. Wednesday and Thursday were really tough days. My walking on those two days reminded me of my worst days. I tried to give it more time to work, but weighing the options, I decided to act and not be miserable any more. At first, I just dialed the voltage back from 3.30 to 3.10, but within a few minutes of doing that, I decided to go ahead and switch frequencies entirely. I went back to Frequency A (which notoriously has been my go-to frequency), but instead of going back to 3.10 volts as I was on before, I decided to go up to 3.20 volts.

Now, not only do I have A+ blood, and am a type A personality, but now I have Frequency A electricity in my brain. 😉

It’s an amazing, weird, kind-of-freaky feeling changing frequencies and volts. I can feel it. It’s hard to describe, but it’s almost like a release of a muscle. Or, if I turn the voltage up, it’s like a contraction of a muscle. It’s so hard to explain. I know I don’t give it justice. It’s quite the experience, to say the least.

I still marvel at it. A man-made device distributes electricity to just the right area of my brain to make me walk. Amazing.

Just as an FYI, the different frequencies I'm referring to are different areas of the brain that are being stimulated. There are between 10 and 20 different places that were stimulated in my brain at the point of the awake surgery. They were stimulated, but are not "on" unless my neurologist turns them on via remote control. The frequencies act differently according to which area of my brain they are in. Frequency A is "on" all the time. I'm not exactly sure which part of my brain it's stimulating - I would need to ask Dr. T. that question, but whatever part it is, it seems to work the best. Frequency D, while it's "on" all the time as well, vacillates between Frequency A and Frequency B so it mixes the two frequencies. Again - the whole process, all the frequencies and electricity stimulation - it all leaves me in awe.

Since Friday, walking has gotten substantially easier. I’m still having problems, but not as many as I had on Frequency D. Now, I need to retrain my brain not to get anxious when walking in front of people. I thought I had gotten past that part, but maybe it was just taking a hiatus, because it’s back in full swing now. I clam up when I know people are watching me. But this too shall pass, right?!

I have to say the one and probably the only thing I love about having issues walking is it brings me so much closer to God. I’m in constant contact with him. I plead with him not to let me fall. I thank him when I don’t fall. If I do fall, I thank him I’m not hurt worse than I am. Sometimes it’s a formal prayer with a “Dear Lord" and "Amen” and other times it’s “Help!”. God never fails. I don’t know why He’s allowed me to have these issues with walking, but I know His plan is perfect.

Always remember, "God's Got This!"