A picture worth a thousand words
Eden was like most children, she loved to dress up, draw and play with her friends. Suddenly, her mother noticed a change in Eden’s behaviour and took notice of her complaints of headaches, nausea and decided to take her to the doctor.
In October 2005, Eden was diagnosed with a brain tumour at age five. Four months after undergoing surgery, radiation and at the start of her chemo treatment, Eden came to Bloorview Kids Rehab as a day patient. Upon her arrival at Bloorview, she had just started to walk again, and had to re-learn how to feed herself, and even hold a pencil. For many months, this normally independent girl was forced to rely on her Mom for the most basic needs.
“I wasn’t very familiar with Bloorview or the services or programs it provided,” says Eden’s mother Risa. “Nobody expects their healthy child to get a brain tumour, require surgery and months of rehabilitation. I am grateful Bloorview exists. The staff members are so welcoming, which made Eden feel more comfortable. I am so thankful to live in Toronto and have access to such an unbelievable facility.”
Eden received intensive treatments and therapies at Bloorview including: physiotherapy, speech language therapy, music, and occupational therapy. Eden worked daily at her therapies, which were exhausting at times, but she was determined to move forward as quickly as her little body would allow.
After months of hard work, you could clearly see the increased development of her fine and gross motor skills. Eden’s greatest personal achievements at Bloorview were learning how to ride a bike and re-learning how to write, which was a challenging task, as she had to switch hands after her surgery.
Eden, 9, is completing grade 3 and enjoys arts and crafts, swimming and watching YTV. When she grows up, she wants to be an esthetician.
