Chapter 19 - Lucas recovers
By six weeks, Lucas was physically himself.
No neurologic deficit.
No cardiac injury.
No chronic medication.
No developmental regression.
The pediatric neurologist saw no evidence of a seizure disorder after follow-up.
The collapse had been toxic.
Not epilepsy.
His pediatrician said:
“We continue normal care.”
Best sentence in medicine.
Normal.
Emotionally, Lucas had small aftershocks.
He stopped taking mints from anyone for months.
Asked:
“Is this medicine?”
before eating unfamiliar candy.
At Halloween, he examined every wrapper with absurd seriousness.
Dr. Lin told us:
“Reasonable after what happened. Don’t turn inspection into ritual.”
So we answered once.
“This is candy.”
Then moved on.
No repeated reassurance loop.
By the next birthday, he ate from his cake without asking whether anyone had poisoned it.
That made me cry in the kitchen where he could not see.
May you like
Then I stopped.
He deserved a birthday not measured against the last one.
