CLONCURRY girl Olivia Christen was trapped in a mental fog, clouding her personality.
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The three-year-old now has a chance to have a normal life with surgery suppressing her epilepsy.
Her parents, Peter and Anna, described her transformation as having gone “through the fog”, naming a charity after their analogy.
Her parents describe Olivia as clever, cheeky and sparkly eyed, but at 15 months old, she had severe epilepsy, which caused her personality to disappear.
“I will never forget the first extremely mild seizure I saw Olivia have,” Mrs Christen said.
As a registered nurse, she knew it would be a long struggle for the family, but they had much support from friends.
“It was a lot to take in,’’ she said.
‘‘We [Peter and I] both just had to stay strong and keep pushing through the grim days together,” she said.
Olivia went through a number of treatments and tests, but surgery was her only option.
The surgery was made possible by Royal Children’s Hospital neurologists Simon Harvey and Wirginia Maixner, in Melbourne, which disconnected a portion of Olivia’s brain that caused the epilepsy.
“She is now three and hitting average markers for speech, cognition and physical ability,” Mr Christen said.
“Average may mean genius in our house; this is amazing and not possible pre-surgery.”
Still, Olivia will need occupational therapy from Isa Therapy Services and through the Mount Isa Hospital, and regular treatment in Melbourne.
The Christens also have formed ‘‘Team Olivia’’ to cycle in the Border Ride to be held on Saturday.
Twenty-two people will ride or offer support in the event to raise $20,000 for the Royal Children’s Hospital Neuroimaging Department.
Cyclists ride 202 kilometres to the Northern Territory border from Mount Isa.
Team Olivia wanted to boost funding to Neuroimaging scientists, who relied on charities to support their positions.
“Without this scan overlap system, the surgery becomes more generalised with severe side effects, including cerebral palsy-type symptoms and autism,” Mr Christen said.
“This is an unfortunate reality for children in other parts of the world.”
Those wanting to donate to Team Olivia can do so at http://ozcrowd.com/campaigns/team-olivia/.
