Everyone in the world is inherently unique. However, some people may have some extraordinary characteristics that define who they are. I was born with a cleft lip and cleft soft palate, meaning that during my development not enough tissue formed in my mouth and lip, which left a gap, or hole, in my soft palate and lip; this “birth defect” is treatable with numerous surgical procedures. While I am whole-heartedly grateful for the opportunity to fix my cleft lip and cleft soft palate, I faced physical, social, and religious trials along the way that together helped mold the person I am today. Just two weeks after birth, I had my first surgery. Being that I was a newborn, recovery was very difficult and prolonged. My health complications …show more content…
I transferred from a very small private school to a large public high school. When I got to high school, I expected to be judged for the way I talked and the way my lip looked; however, it was the exact opposite. I was accepted with open arms and no one questioned the obvious scaring of my lip. This made me realize that it did not matter that I was different. Because I was so blinded by my self-consciousness, I neglected to appreciate the opportunities I had been given. My father was born with a cleft lip as well, but he came from a humble family who could not afford many surgeries to fix his cleft. I, on the other hand, have had the privilege to treat my cleft lip and soft palate to make it less noticeable and more cosmetically pleasing. I was so consumed with selfishness I forgot to understand the fact that I was molded this way for a reason. My grandma always told me I was the strongest person she knew. For a while I did not believe her and thought she was just saying that to console me; however, as I face the unpredictableness of life, I want to believe her. I want to be that strong person she whole-heartedly believes I am. My cleft lip will always be apart of me; it is who I am. It has set me up to face all challenges that lie ahead, to go through life with an open heart and open mind, to be that strong, loving person my family and friends believe I am. After all, I have 25 surgeries down
On reflection, after the first surgery, I was upset because no one told me that I could lose muscle or gain scar tissue. This time around, I wanted to make sure that I personally understood what it takes to fully recover. The day of the second surgery came when I had just turned fourteen. My knee swelled up like the first time, but this time it was different because I knew exactly what to expect and what to do in order to
Overcoming adversity says a lot about a person. The adversity in life I have had to personally overcome is a birth defect. I was born with a cleft lip which has caused me to have five procedures from the ages of three months to sixteen years old. Not a day goes by where I’m not reminded of the challenges I’ve had to overcome, because every time there is a mirror, I’m reminded by a scar upon my face.
When I gave birth to my son, the recuperation process was not tough for me. I completed my pregnancy at forty weeks with a natural delivery. I was able to move around by myself with little to no pain or difficulty that same day. But, it was a complete different story when my second child came around. At thirty-seven weeks I went to the emergency room with contractions. My baby was breeched and they had to do an emergency C-section because my blood pressure was really high. Unlike, my natural delivery, I was not able to move without feeling pain. The recuperation process from my C-section consisted of many little processes throughout the day and the longest and most painful one was taking a shower.
Twenty-one years ago, my parents received the devastating news that my lungs were not developing properly and as a result my mom had an induced labor. I was born as a premature baby, weighing only 3 lbs. and was placed in the care of neonatal nurses in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for 18 days. While my mom came to visit me, she would notice how well the nurses would care for me. Though their jobs were tough, the nurses would often carry me while I was crying and would often talk me to sleep, sometimes singing lullabies.
My stomach was growling like crazy because I was not allowed to eat since 12 am that morning. Soon enough, I heard the nurse say “Jenna Ottman,” and my heart felt like it just might pound out of my chest. What if they can’t fix it, what if I wake up during surgery, what if I can’t play sports again? All these questions were rumbling through my mind as I blocked out all the words the doctor was saying to me. The three hour surgery seemed like a breeze to me because I was under sedation the entire time. However, when the anesthetic wore off that night, I was in a world of pain. I had to undergo one full week of bed rest. It consisted of lots of netflix, physical therapy, and visits from friends. I had a long road ahead of me, but every day got me closer to
I will never forget the last surgery on my female organs in November, 2011. It was the most painful surgery
“The first trimester is one of the most important stages of pregnancy”, according to Understanding the Stages of Pregnancy. Along with the mother’s body changes, the baby is also developing in the womb. Although each stage of pregnancy is important, the first trimester is looked at closely. The first trimester is considered to be from zero to twelve weeks. During this period the mouth is under-going the developing stage. This will aide in determining if the baby will have difficulties within the mouth region. “The soft and the hard palate are formed together by the primary and secondary palates. These palates form a Y-shaped pattern at the roof of the mouth which continues to fuse.” (Bird and Robinson, 2015. P.87). One disturbance that may
Around 6pm on Friday it was time for surgery. I was really scared when I was on my way to the surgery room. On my way there I had to stop and talk to a guy because he needed to put a liquid to make me dizzy and waist time to get everything settled.
Once my operation was over, I looked around in amazement. Most five year old children would cry after being in the emergency room—not I. I simply stood up and smiled, pondering on the limitless possibilities that exist within the medical field. I was envious of those doctors. I wanted
The examiner can hold the tongue with a sterile gauze and examine the dorsum of the tongue when the tongue is protruded.
Once I had the blood transfusion the doctors thought I was good to go and I would recover soon. However, that wasn’t the case. Unlike my brother, I wasn’t able to go home after one month after being born, I had to stay in the hospital for another three months. The doctors told my parents that I was the “party baby” of the newborns. What they meant by that was I had many complications throughout the night that they didn’t think I would survive. Therefore, all the doctors had given me the nickname “miracle baby.” When I came home for the first time on October 8th, I was still on oxygen. My parents had a big tank in the hallway, my oxygen was portable but was connected to the big tank. When I would eat I would choke and the food would come through my oxygen tubes. My parents then had to pull them out of my nose and rip the tap off of my face to clean them quickly so they could put the oxygen back on me. Every time that would happen, my mother would pray the Hail Mary. I had a physical therapist and an occupational therapist come each week. The occupational therapist came twice a week and the physical therapist came three times a week. The occupational therapist worked on my sensory
After I woke up from surgery everything hit me like a train with my mom and dad next to me I began to cry because it was devastating for it to really be happening and I would be in a sling for two months. Not being able to get much exercise was extremely difficult. That made me realize how the surgery would change me and who I was. Sitting on the couch up right for two weeks ordered by the doctor was one of the most stressful things I’ve ever been through and sometimes overwhelming. I was a mess at the
The day of her surgery, I remember, I got a text from my dad saying that they had just rolled her into the operating room. He was no longer allowed with her. This procedure was very risky, since it was an operation directly affecting the most important organ in the human body. My focus in class kept drifting to the image of my mother on the cold, metal operating table with tubes sticking out of her cracked open chest, and wires the only thing keeping her alive.
I’ve manage to find a way to overcome the difficulties that the challenges may bring. Despite, how big or small the challenge may seem. This brings me to a time when life was only starting to begin a little earlier than expected. On September 26, 1995 a baby was born but, not just any baby. Me! I was born a premature baby at 3 pounds and 11 ounces, hang on to dear life. As the doctor break the bad news to my mother and father, that their baby girl was born with undeveloped lungs due to premature birth. With this setback, all hope seem to be lost. But, as time went by hold on with family and friends' prayers on my side. That 3 pounds and 11 ounces baby begins to fight for survival, and each day I grow stronger and stronger until, I was even strong enough to have beaten all odds of living a normal life. Now, I’m a 20 year old college student/starter business owner who has overcome all odds with an inspiring life to others.
I had my first surgery during the summer of 2015. Sitting at home in my cozy living room, a sense of pain came across my throat and my ears felt like they were full of water. I asked my mom to look in my mouth because every time I swallowed, it felt like a piece of sandpaper scraped my throat. I remember her saying we should go to the doctor in the morning because of the white, clammy spots deep in the back of my throat that should not be there. The worst was yet to come.