crydun
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I thought I'd post this. I consider many of you close friends of mine. Here is my story. It was published in our local newspaper in October 2000. Enjoy and feedback is welcome.
Beating The Odds
I am now a young woman and, as I look back on my short life so far, I have discovered a life that has been very challenging and quite extraordinary. In reality, I am very lucky to be alive.
I was born on December fourth, in the mid-seventies. Medically speaking, however, I’m not even supposed to be here. Before I was born, my mother had four miscarriages. After the fourth miscarriage, the doctor said, “You cannot have children. It is medically impossible.” Six years passed.
I guess the Lord had other ideas and plans because six years later I was born. Two days after my birth, my mother went home but I stayed in the hospital. The doctor informed her that I was having seizures and could not leave.
That was the beginning of the seizures that have been part of my life ever since. Constant doctors, hospitals, and medications have followed. At one time, I was having between forty and fifty seizures daily. I took medication every hour around the clock.
By the time I was three months old, I had been in four hospitals and had thirteen doctors. The anesthetic walls of the hospital became my second home. At times, it seemed like I would be home two weeks only to return to the hospital two weeks later. No one knew if I would live, and if I did, would I ever walk or talk? However, the Lord was with me the whole time and he had his hand on my shoulder, guiding me. As a result, I have had a remarkable life.
When I was six months old, my mother knew that I would be healed. A prayer chain was formed across the country for me. People my mother did not know and would never meet were praying for me. Posters of me saying “Please pray for me” went up in churches everywhere. I was on massive doses of anti-convulsant medication and was very critical for awhile, but miraculously, the seizures stopped for awhile.
Like most epileptics, I have had to overcome many obstacles. I had so many seizures that I was no longer a functioning person. The combination of seizures and medication had turned me into a vegetable. I was like a rag doll. I would come home from the hospital only to return in a few weeks in critical condition. This continued for months. While most babies are learning so much that first year, I struggled to live.
By the time I was six months old, the entire right side of my body stopped working. I could no longer talk, walk, eat or swallow. I was like someone who had had a stroke. It would take eight years of intensive physical and occupational therapy to learn the things that most people do with no thought.
All the seizures have affected my abilities in some areas. However, God always gives something back when he takes something away. He has given me a great memory and a desire to succeed. He has also blessed me with the ability to laugh at myself. This is an important quality to those who face the daily challenges of a disability.
The saying goes “God does not make junk.” That saying has proved itself to me many times over. I made the honor roll twice while in middle school. It’s a good thing I love a challenge.
I won several spelling bees in elementary school and also the Lima Citywide Spelling Bee in 1988. I then went on to place fourth runner-up in the regional spelling bee in Dayton. I am now a senior at OSU-Lima as a psychology major.
I would also like to say something about the lack of education there is about epilepsy. I think we need to make it a point to educate others and ourselves about the acceptance of people with disabilities such as epilepsy. We need to learn to accept one another the way we are and stop judging one another. That is God’s job.
I have learned to accept my illness and now I wish others would. I moved to a new school district in the seventh grade. Everything was fine for the most part until the eighth grade when I had a grand mal seizure in choir class. I can recall sitting in choir class and all of a sudden, the back of my head felt like someone was dropping hot coals on it. I called out to the teacher and then began shaking violently from head to toe. My speech was slurred and I could not walk or talk for a short time. However, I was conscious of everything around me. I can recall hearing someone running up and down the hallway screaming, “We need help! We need help!” Five teachers came running. After a short time, they helped me to the office and the assistant principal took me home.
During my sophomore year in high school, a boy in my class dumped cockroaches on me in the hallway. After that incident, I missed three days of school and started having seizures again. That August, I spent a week in the Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus trying to stop the seizures. We have never fully stopped them.
I used to be bitter toward that boy, but have since forgiven him. I actually feel sorry for him. In my opinion, he has a bigger problem than I’ll ever have. You see, I was born with my problems and I cannot help the way I am. However, he learned his problems from society and he can do something about them. I hope he’s learned his lesson and doesn’t do it again. He is now married and it is my hope that he will teach his children to respect others and not make the same mistakes he did. I hope he and others like him can accept me and my problems the way I have.
After all, I have truly beaten the odds. Ninety-nine percent of babies who have suffered as I have either die or are severely retarded. By the grace of God, I am neither. I owe it all to the Lord. He spared my life and I plan to continue to be a witness to His testimony.
Beating The Odds
I am now a young woman and, as I look back on my short life so far, I have discovered a life that has been very challenging and quite extraordinary. In reality, I am very lucky to be alive.
I was born on December fourth, in the mid-seventies. Medically speaking, however, I’m not even supposed to be here. Before I was born, my mother had four miscarriages. After the fourth miscarriage, the doctor said, “You cannot have children. It is medically impossible.” Six years passed.
I guess the Lord had other ideas and plans because six years later I was born. Two days after my birth, my mother went home but I stayed in the hospital. The doctor informed her that I was having seizures and could not leave.
That was the beginning of the seizures that have been part of my life ever since. Constant doctors, hospitals, and medications have followed. At one time, I was having between forty and fifty seizures daily. I took medication every hour around the clock.
By the time I was three months old, I had been in four hospitals and had thirteen doctors. The anesthetic walls of the hospital became my second home. At times, it seemed like I would be home two weeks only to return to the hospital two weeks later. No one knew if I would live, and if I did, would I ever walk or talk? However, the Lord was with me the whole time and he had his hand on my shoulder, guiding me. As a result, I have had a remarkable life.
When I was six months old, my mother knew that I would be healed. A prayer chain was formed across the country for me. People my mother did not know and would never meet were praying for me. Posters of me saying “Please pray for me” went up in churches everywhere. I was on massive doses of anti-convulsant medication and was very critical for awhile, but miraculously, the seizures stopped for awhile.
Like most epileptics, I have had to overcome many obstacles. I had so many seizures that I was no longer a functioning person. The combination of seizures and medication had turned me into a vegetable. I was like a rag doll. I would come home from the hospital only to return in a few weeks in critical condition. This continued for months. While most babies are learning so much that first year, I struggled to live.
By the time I was six months old, the entire right side of my body stopped working. I could no longer talk, walk, eat or swallow. I was like someone who had had a stroke. It would take eight years of intensive physical and occupational therapy to learn the things that most people do with no thought.
All the seizures have affected my abilities in some areas. However, God always gives something back when he takes something away. He has given me a great memory and a desire to succeed. He has also blessed me with the ability to laugh at myself. This is an important quality to those who face the daily challenges of a disability.
The saying goes “God does not make junk.” That saying has proved itself to me many times over. I made the honor roll twice while in middle school. It’s a good thing I love a challenge.
I won several spelling bees in elementary school and also the Lima Citywide Spelling Bee in 1988. I then went on to place fourth runner-up in the regional spelling bee in Dayton. I am now a senior at OSU-Lima as a psychology major.
I would also like to say something about the lack of education there is about epilepsy. I think we need to make it a point to educate others and ourselves about the acceptance of people with disabilities such as epilepsy. We need to learn to accept one another the way we are and stop judging one another. That is God’s job.
I have learned to accept my illness and now I wish others would. I moved to a new school district in the seventh grade. Everything was fine for the most part until the eighth grade when I had a grand mal seizure in choir class. I can recall sitting in choir class and all of a sudden, the back of my head felt like someone was dropping hot coals on it. I called out to the teacher and then began shaking violently from head to toe. My speech was slurred and I could not walk or talk for a short time. However, I was conscious of everything around me. I can recall hearing someone running up and down the hallway screaming, “We need help! We need help!” Five teachers came running. After a short time, they helped me to the office and the assistant principal took me home.
During my sophomore year in high school, a boy in my class dumped cockroaches on me in the hallway. After that incident, I missed three days of school and started having seizures again. That August, I spent a week in the Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus trying to stop the seizures. We have never fully stopped them.
I used to be bitter toward that boy, but have since forgiven him. I actually feel sorry for him. In my opinion, he has a bigger problem than I’ll ever have. You see, I was born with my problems and I cannot help the way I am. However, he learned his problems from society and he can do something about them. I hope he’s learned his lesson and doesn’t do it again. He is now married and it is my hope that he will teach his children to respect others and not make the same mistakes he did. I hope he and others like him can accept me and my problems the way I have.
After all, I have truly beaten the odds. Ninety-nine percent of babies who have suffered as I have either die or are severely retarded. By the grace of God, I am neither. I owe it all to the Lord. He spared my life and I plan to continue to be a witness to His testimony.
