Personal Narrative: Cerebral Palsy Changed My Life

14 years ago my mom gave birth to my brother who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy because he was not breathing when they delivered him. At the time I was two years old and I was not aware of what challenges my brother would face. I had no clue on why our house was filled with people everyday coming to see my brother after my mom got home from work. Learning later in life that a Physical Therapist, Developmental Therapist, Occupational Therapist, and a Speech Therapist visited him on a daily basis. Some of them who grew attached to our family and we still see on a regular basis. They only came to the house until he started kindergarten. My mom later told me that he was in a early development program which only lasted for the first five years

of his life then he would have to rely on therapy from outpatient services and school.

My mom spent the last nine years finding the right providers and therapy plan that will make him have somewhat of a productive life.

Watching their struggles is what sparked an interest in me becoming a Physical Therapist. My brother had several surgeries. He can’t walk and is depending on a wheelchair to get around. My mom relies on his daily therapy goals to help him to become more productive in life. In the beginning my mom had hopes that he would be able to walk so that at first that was her priority. After so many years had gone by and realizing that he was not going to be able to accomplish this and noticing that there were other problems, her goals for him eventually changed. In 2009 he ended up having hip surgery. After the surgery, he was no longer able to do some of the things he could do before the surgery. So my mom noticed that he was having head and neck control and he couldn’t sit up by himself. Her focused turned to this being his primary goals. My mom was really frustrated because he went through a lot of therapist and they were not able to accomplish this. My brother is 14 and he still can’t sit up without assistance and we have to constantly tell him to hold his head up. Some times I wonder if he knows that he is handicap because he wants to do everything the kids that are not handicap are

doing.

One of my reasons for wanting to become a therapist is so other families won’t have to feel what my mom went thru. I have insight into what families go through and then also I will be able to offer my professional help in helping them achieve their realistic goals. My prospective is that therapy should give patients and their families hope to what things that can be achieved physically. I think people take life for granted. My mom says that she would give anything for my brother to be able to go outside and ride a bike or throw a ball.

For the past five months I have been doing college tours. This past weekend I was able to visit Purdue University. It was a great experience. I also got the chance to speak to some ambassadors from the Health and Human Services Department. It was good to hear from other students in what helped them make the decision that Purdue was the right choice. This visit helped me realize that this University will be the best choice and will put me on the direct path to accomplishing my educational goals, which will lead me to achieving my professional goals. I hope that the Purdue University feels that I am a good candidate to represent the Purdue Boilermakers.