Growing up I had a pretty normal childhood, well mostly. As normal as I could for someone with a Cerebral Palsy diagnosis. I started school at the age of three, because I had to have first steps therapy. I'll go into more detail about going to school later, but to understand how I've gotten to this point of where I am now, you'll need to hear about my life outside of school and the activities I enjoyed doing growing up.
Most of my childhood outside of school and the activities I were able to participate in and enjoyed, were spent traveling out of state to doctors, participating in intense physical therapy sessions every day for eight hours a day. I'm going to keep it one-hundred percent honest with you, and tell you that I absolutely HATED IT!!! I bet if you ask the numerous physical therapists and occupational therapists who have worked with me over the years, they all will give you this exact answer "Hayley is not a morning person, she hated to see my face walk through the door. I've had to bribe her with her favorite things, just to get her to do her therapy." One particular memory sticks out to me the most my first steps therapist, Connie Woods would come out to my home for me to have my scheduled weekly therapy session, and I was still in bed snoozing away and I threw an absolute fit, because she woke me up so early. She actually bribed me with Reese's cups to get me to do my therapy, and I remember telling her it better be a big one. I don't think I know of anyone has ever gotten out of bed faster and been more excited for Reese's cups in my life except for me. (Did I mention Reese's cups are my favorite candy?) Connie, if you happen to read this just know that I am sorry for the little prissy hissy-fit I threw at three years old, because I didn't want to get out of bed at 7:00 AM to do my therapy. I promise that I truly am grateful for all you have helped me with throughout the years. I love you. I have traveled to Detroit Michigan and Saint Louis, Missouri to see some of the best physicians in the country, which have all given my parents and I the same exact diagnosis and to tell us that I'd never be able to completely walk on my own without assistance, but that I would need intense physical therapy sessions for the rest of the days God has planned for me on this earth. I have also stayed for weeks at a time in these states for intense physical therapy and occupational therapy as well. I even crossed the border over to what is now one of my favorite countries Canada just to visit, and sight-see for a day and brought home some pretty cool Canadian money. (I'll get to why Canada is now one of my favorite countries, and why I want to visit there again eventually). It has taken me a long time to come to terms with my diagnosis, and I'm still working on it. I am slowly starting to just accept that I am just simply blessed to be here and that it definitely could always be worse. Even though I hated therapy as a child, I can promise you that I'm no longer like that, I'm truly grateful for it, because without it, I'm not sure where I would be. It is because of those long hours spent in therapy and everything the doctors, nurses, physical, and occupational therapists and God himself, have done for me that I am able to sit here and share my story with all of you.
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About the AuthorJust a simple small-town girl with big dreams, with an inspiring story to write and share. Archives
December 2020
CategoriesThe LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. |