Comments | twop_tjl: On Living with Cerebral Palsy (Part 2)

twop_tjl

On Living with Cerebral Palsy (Part 2)

Nov 07, 2007 20:09

First off, I realize I've been a bad LJ friend and haven't been commenting, and I'm sorry. I hope to do better in the future.

Thanks to all who commented on the last post. In my previous post on living with CP I only touched on a few of the issues, mostly dealing with how I've had to deal with various physical challenges. This post deals with the ( Read more... )

Comments 16

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twop_tjl November 8 2007, 01:34:11 UTC

I don't mind that much being asked, but only after I've got to know the person first. Otherwise, the first impression I get is being defined by physical attributes rather than mental ones. I wouldn't even mind much if I was asked on the same night I met someone as long as we've had a chance to talk about other things first for a while.

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petunia846 November 8 2007, 11:15:58 UTC

Oh my goodness...that's me exactly right now. Except substitute arthritis for broken leg and ankle due to overzealous judo practicing.

petunia846 November 8 2007, 01:37:29 UTC

I know I'm already sick of talking about why I'm on crutches, so I can only imagine how it must suck to live with that.

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petunia846 November 8 2007, 11:13:30 UTC

Ha, ha, ha!

Unfortunately I'm a teacher, so I'm not sure that's an appropriate answer in school.

omoo November 8 2007, 01:49:54 UTC

What are you hoping to do with you PhD?

I know it's really different, but being tall, I always get the 'do you play basketball', 'hows the weather up there' and other similar comments. You are right that I get them much less often now that I'm older. I wonder if adults feel less intimidated by kids/ teenagers and so ask really inappropriate questions.

Thank you for sharing.

twop_tjl November 8 2007, 02:07:42 UTC

It's my hope to find a position in industry, preferably one doing research. Unfortunately, my area of research isn't a popular one.

omoo November 8 2007, 02:24:12 UTC

I would think that many areas of interest come in and out of fashion. I'm amazed at how old a lot of the blueberry literature is, because no one worked on the crop for good long time. Now people are interested again because they are a 'functional food'.

bostonben November 8 2007, 02:54:15 UTC

Thanks for writing this. I can't imagine what it's like to deal with an illness AND deal with other people's reactions to it.

twop_tjl November 8 2007, 04:23:37 UTC

Thankfully, I've had a lot of time to get used to it. Unfortunately, there are still times where other people's reactions matter.

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twop_tjl November 8 2007, 04:29:43 UTC

You're welcome. I really think that it is okay to ask questions, but you need to know the person first.

My CP doesn't really get any worse (or any better for that matter), but my Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) does fluctuate and people are much more willing to comment on how I look in regards to that. Some days I can't hide the pain and people will comment, other days I'll appear just fine. I've found that people need to learn that some days will be better than others.

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twop_tjl November 8 2007, 12:42:27 UTC

I've certainly had days where it has been difficult to follow the conversation, on those days I usually end up taking Tylenol 3s. Unfortunately, those happen far more frequently these days.