Pediatric Epilepsy: Asher’s Story

​“He was very quiet.  He didn't play.  He didn't do much.  He was just sitting there, and it wasn't a normal kid per se.  He didn't act like a normal kid." When Asher's mom knew that something wasn't quite right, she followed her intuition and contacted over 20 pediatric neurologists. She wanted to make sure she found the best care, and a good fit for her son.

“It makes a difference when you have a team that believes in your child as much as you believe in your child," says Lena, Asher's mom. “Dr. Shaguna Mathur is the best doctor ever.  That's all I could ever ask for from her. She gave me my baby back."

Watch Asher's Story

• Transcript

  Pediatric Epilepsy: Asher's Story - Boys Town National Research Hospital

  He was very quiet. He didn’t play. He didn’t do much. He was just sitting there, and it wasn’t a normal kid per se. He didn’t act like a normal kid. I though he was having seizures at night and during the day. He was making little jerk movements and his back would extend high. It would almost be like a very dip arch. So, I talked to his pediatrician and his pediatrician said maybe we should look into a neurologist for him. So, I then contacted, I contacted over twenty neurologists trying to figure out who I wanted my son to go to for the best care possible. I brought him to Dr. Mathur. I said I think the seizures that I think he is having are a huge factor in the way he is acting, and she picked him up right away, hugged him and I was like, alright I made the right call, the right decision right here. Then she started asking me questions. She started playing with him because, to interact with a kid to get to know who they are, you have to play with them and interact with them and see who they actually are. I never felt that connection before with my son. She said hey, can we admit him to the hospital. I said yes, like we need to figure what’s going on here, so we admitted him to Boys Town Hospital for the EEG overnight. We were there for a week, that Friday we put Asher on seizure meds. A week later he was smiling, he was bubbly, like he plays now. It’s like a whole new kid. He wasn’t even supposed to walk and Dr. Mathur said he’s going to walk Lena. I promise you he’s going to walk. She said it might talk a little bit of time, but slowly but surely once we get these seizures under control. He’s walking. He runs now. He jumps off the bed. He jumps off the couch. You would never guess. No one else had faith in him to think that he actually could. It makes a difference when you have a team that believes in your child as much as you believe in your child. She’s the one. Dr. Mathur is wonderful. Since she met him at such a young age, her and I and Asher have developed a very good connection. Before we even leave the office, she always gives us all a hug. Its finding that connection with somebody that is much needed with a child this young, because it is hard for a kid to connect to somebody at such a young age that has been through so much. I could never speak more highly of these ladies that I’ve connected through with Boys Town. All the nurses in the office, they go above and beyond. Dr. Mathur, she is the best doctor ever. That’s all I could ever ask for from her. I feel if I would have went to someone else, it would’ve been a longer process than what it’s been. She gave me my baby back.