The Journey toward Enlightenment

My Story

I was born, according to family accounts, in 1977 on November the 26^th.  The thing about having a birthday on that particular day is that about every other year or so it happens to fall simultaneously on that wonderful American Holiday of Thanksgiving.  So needless to say my Celebrations on this particular holiday have always been a constantly evolution between holiday and Birthday Party.  It always makes me wonder what those people who were born on Christmas Eve do when the holiday festivities and birthday celebration collide.

Any way I digress, back to the story, this was in fact the case that year as it was thanksgiving and as my mother recalls it  she had to go about her day, preparing the family thanksgiving feast after a visit to the Obstetrician for a routine amniocentesis.  She was expecting our minister at the time, and his wife as guests that evening and didn’t give much thought to the rumbling in her stomach because it was very typical for my mother to experience uterine discomfort following an amniocentesis.  She had prepared the typical festive spread of turkey and dressing with mashed potatoes and cranberries sauce, and pumpkin pie for dessert.

But on this day she noticed something different, you see her stomach was in constant motion in what she describes as, “Not exactly a contraction but not exactly a concern.”  Given the fact that my mother is a thorough woman some time during her day she managed to call the obstetrician, who was also preparing for his family to arrive for thanksgiving, and was not concerned about mother’s concern’s because of her amniotic history.  So my mother trusting in the advise of her doctor remained aware of her prenatal state but thought nothing much of it because the doctor did not appear to have any cause for concern.

The situation did not change however as the day continued and the guests arrived.  After dinner was over the topic of the pregnancy came up in conversation, as it usually does when people know that you are expecting a baby, and my mother began to explain to the minister, whose wife was a nurse, some of the things that she had gone through during the day.  The minister handed my father a blanket and said that my parents should get to the hospital.  We lived in a rural area so the trip to the nearest hospital would take a while.  The minister must have made a phone call to the sheriff’s office because on the way to the hospital, my parents were met on the highway by a deputy who gave them an emergency escort to the hospital.

The fact that I was born at a local Green Bay hospital on the 26^th of November meant that I was apparently, from what they could calculate, 9 weeks early.  As a result, I was born with underdeveloped lungs which inevitably caused my brain to suffer from a lack of oxygen.  And of course the fact that my lungs were in this condition also meant that I was at an increased risk of suffering brain damage because they could not send the necessary air my brain stem required in order to sustain its cells.

Shortly after I was born there were numerous things which occurred that eventually lead my family and my doctors to determine that something was wrong. After many medical tests they still couldn’t figure out what was wrong.

It was not until I was 18 months old that the doctor’s, who were finally able to eliminate all of the possible medical conditions,  discovered that I had a condition known as Cerebral Palsy.  This diagnosis was in no way an easy thing to determine.

Prior to the medical conclusion that I had Cerebral Palsy, my mother was encouraged to turn me over to a state agency because the Dr. felt that I was never going to be able to become a productive member of society.  This of course placed my mother in a position I have come to believe no parent should ever be in.

Every time I recall this story I am glad for the innovations of modern medicine.  I have come to understand that research