Jaime Simpson

It took me 20 minutes to become aware and coherent again. I had to cut our home camera footage down because it was extremely long. This was a breakthrough seizure as I had been doing extremely well since my blood patches. Ruben was home fast due to the @ipuppee button. I didn’t realize that I was forgetting things or started to do things that didn’t make sense/ never got finished before the grand mal seizure until watching this back. This in itself could be a sign of focal seizures. I am typically not just so still, confused, and trying to figure out my own consciousness in and out of focal seizures before a grand mal. Even the grand mal seemed slightly different looking back. My medication for epilepsy is so hard on your psyche so I tried to reduce the dosage slowly since I hadn’t had seizures in a while. It didn’t really go to plan so back to the main dose. (If you’re my doctor and you just read that, no you didn’t). 😅 Once the grand mal seizure began my face changed colors through a variety of shades and then back to normal. It has always been a fear of mine for me to have a seizure in front of people. I think posting them advocates for epilepsy but also took some of that fear away by letting me have some control in allowing others to watch. (I have had a handful of seizures in public). Echo and I have been working on bringing pillows before the seizure lately due to past injuries. He did great bringing rescue meds but by the time I got them, I wasn’t very coherent and couldn’t even grasp that I was holding medication to stop the seizures. Rescue medication can stop both focal and grand mal seizures but focal seizures are harder for a dog to scent to. Im thankful that Echo can prepare me before bigger seizures. Sometimes he even prevents them. More importantly, I’m so blessed to have a dog that loves me and his job. #epilepsyawareness #seizureservicedog #seizureawareness #epilepsywarrior #seizurelife #epilepsyadvocate #invisibleillness #epilepsysupport #serviceanimal #medicalalertdog #epilepsydaily #seizuresurvivor #focalseizures #grandmalseizure #epilepsycommunity #spoonielife #servicedoglife #epilepsylife #epilepsyfighter #epilepsystories

It’s my birthday!! 🥰 I appreciate every birthday I get with BOTH of my dogs. Their life is so limited and I will always cherish the time I have with them. 🥺 Thank you everyone for getting us to 100k! Wow. What a birthday present. 🥹🎉 And thank you @allieblaylockphotography for taking one of my favorite photos with Echo. 🥰 #embraceeveryday

Autism runs in our family which is part of the reason we hunted down a possible genetic component for Halstie girl — not because we wanted to “fix” her but because we wanted to be prepared for any potential and additional accommodations she might need. Our partner and #sponsor MAR-Autism Test has been educating us on other interesting research in the Autism community lately. I was so shocked when I learned that research has been studying an immune mediated subtype as well. In retrospect, it makes sense. We live near a huge PANDAS/PANS center that is essentially for children who’s behavior, cognitive function, and physical abilities have changed after history of Streptococcal and other illnesses. I know from personal experience that illnesses like encephalitis can change your intellectual abilities, social judgements, and cause seizures so when I heard about the research of connection between auto-antibodies and a specific subtype of autism, it got my brain turning. Of course, this wouldn’t apply to all autism. The spectrum is huge and we are constantly learning more. We learned that the genetic factors in our family is more mild for learning disabilities in girls and more advanced for learning disability in boys. Those affected are notoriously bad at math/calculating- that girls who have it struggle a lot with sensory issues and anxiety. To be clear, we wouldn’t want Halston any other way than exactly who she is. Having clarity on your child’s potential future and needs is so beneficial. I have become a better advocate for her as we learn more. @marabiosystems is a blood test that provides pre-pregnancy insight to provide clarity long before families notice signs of Autism. Immune connection and research in Immunity is such an important and interesting part of the Autism conversation. This is a test available to women over the age of 18 with a child that has an existing autism diagnosis or showing signs of autism. This test is not validated for use during pregnancy and can be used before conception or after birth. This test is available in the U.S. either via your healthcare provider or MARAbio’s telemedicine option. #AutismAwareness

#reds4veds day and although I’m a little late, this “Vascular Ehlers Danlos Syndrome” diagnosis is a HUGE reason for many of my serious complications. I respect the struggle of those who have hEDS but I also acknowledge that they aren’t the same and that needs to be shouted from the rooftops so those with VEDS get the CORRECT healthcare treatment. Both are technically under the same “EDS” umbrella (VEDS wasn’t always), but statistically they behave completely differently in terms of rarity, risk profile, genetics, and survival. • Historically the lifespan for VEDS is around 48–51 years while hEDS patients typically have a normal lifespan •Maternal mortality during pregnancy is about 12% whereas hEDS is not considered for potential fatality •Organ rupture (spleen, uterus, intestines) is a characteristic in VEDS that isn’t in hEDS •Pneumothorax (collapsed lung) is a huge characteristic of VEDS and rare in hEDS • About 80% experience a serious vascular/organ complication by 40. hEDS typically does involve spontaneous arterial rupture •First major complication is around 20s to 30s for almost all if not earlier •Uterine Rupture during pregnancy is an extreme risk that is rare in hEDS • Many VEDS patients have a Spontaneous carotid-cavernous fistula occurrence •skin appearance is often translucent enough to visibly see veins through the chest/abdomen whereas hEDS has soft velvety skin •Colon Ruptures happen in 50% of patients in which is not a characteristic in hEDS •Sudden death due to Arterial rupture/dissection whereas it’s not a trait of hEDS •VEDS is one of few connective tissue disorders where a spontaneous organ rupture can be the first symptom • 70%-80% experience a Major arterial rupture/dissection in their lifetime • VEDS can sometimes present with little hypermobility compared to hEDS • In VEDS, arteries can rupture without an aneurysm first, meaning imaging may look stable and an emergency can occur suddenly • VEDS emergencies often happen in: * carotid arteries * renal arteries * iliac arteries * mesenteric arteries * colon/sigmoid bowel * uterus during labor •Bruising and bleeding is profoundly worse in VEDS

We have met some incredible people thanks to your support and sharing your stories with me. Thank you @iamrachelmccord @themccordlist for having us on (chaos and all)! Thank you @rarebreedpet for treats that are healthy and keep Echo motivated all day long. They taste amazing (I would know)! And you can now get them on @chewy right now #ServiceDog #DisabilityAdvocate #EmbracingEcho #WorkingDog #DogMomLife

It keeps happening over and over and it’s illegal. It’s also wrong. #ServiceDogHandler #DisabilityAdvocacy #ServiceDogAwareness #AccessibleTravel #LyftExperience

Both of hers sons sustained life threatening injuries and she created @rawznaturalpets . They donate 100% of their profits to service dogs like Echo and Everest. I cannot be more proud to love a human and the change they are making in this world. The dogs LOVE RAWZ and I can’t blame them. The ingredients are packed with healthy meats and hydration. As you all know, I only support brands and I know and love and I wanted to share why. 🥺 #RAWZPets #ServiceDogs #DogNutrition #HealthyDogs #WorkingDogLife

I cut out the worst of the seizure because I couldn’t stand to watch it again. I’ve been sitting on this video because I didn’t want to watch it. I edited the beginning and the end. The middle is not something I want to see again. It was a really really bad seizure. I turned purple, I choked, I was foaming at the mouth. I really just wanted to advocate for the reality of struggling with Epilepsy while being a parent. It’s hard watching this 1. Because the seizure was horrific 2. Because my girls just wanted their mom and I couldn’t be there for them. Those moments break you in a million pieces. I can’t even process most of what’s happening before and after. At the end, I finally realized what was happening. My kids needed me and I was on the floor looking scary — the worst part is that there’s nothing I can do to stop that. #EpilepsyAwareness #SeizureDisorder #EpilepsyWarrior #ParentingWithEpilepsy #InvisibleDisability

Supergirl has Krypto. Jaime has Echo. We all have heroes.

Today is Adopt a Pet Day and our friends at @rarebreedpet MOVED MOUNTAINS today at Pima Animal Care Center (PACC) @friendsofpacc by donating FOUR MASSIVE pallets to a shelter very close to our hearts. As most of you know, we just rescued Eclipse, a gentle gigantic German Shepherd, Husky mix after his family was deported. We KNEW this year, we had to do something big for our favorite shelter, PACC. PACC houses over 300 dogs right now and has over 800 dogs fostered out. I always work over in the clinic side but I KNOW their ENTIRE team is remarkable. Thank you again RARE BREED for sending some absolutely delicious treats. I even snuck a couple bites myself (don’t worry, they are human grade) #ShelterDayImpact #AdoptDontShopAZ #PACCStrong #RescueDogsMatter #RareBreedGivesBack

On the Pets Add Life Podcast, recorded live at @globalpetexpo , epilepsy and VEDS advocate @embracingecho shares her work with service dogs, her journey with chronic illness, and life alongside her family and service dog, Echo. Through her advocacy & work, Jaime brings awareness and empowers others on similar paths. 💜 🎧 Episode 114 now streaming! #petpodcast #petsaddlife #servicedogfamilylife

This breaks my heart for obvious reasons. I don’t ever want her to be alone with me when I have an epileptic seizure. Luckily, dad could see the entire thing happen and talk to Halston through the camera. He was just at the gas station to grab some Gatorade for Payson. I have actually been seizure free for quite some time and I had been really proud of myself. Sometimes I get too confident in the fact that I’ve been seizure free for a while and get sloppy about medication times. There are quite a few more videos as this night took a turn for the worst shortly after. Thankfully, Halston has grown up in this meaning that she feels very calm and comfortable in these situations. I feel terrible that she has to have a mom with epilepsy. I also feel proud of her to know to hold my head up and that she didn’t get too scared. She clearly doesn’t understand that I can’t help it yet which is why she kept yelling mom stop it while also keeping her calm and not getting too afraid. She is very resilient and just went back to her show after my seizure ended. I have a lot of feelings about all of it and I’m sad I have Epilepsy. #EpilepsyAwareness #SeizureLife #DisabilityMotherhood #ServiceDogLife