Expect The Unexpected with Transverse Myelitis
When I (@fromheelstowheels) was 22, I was fit & strong. I was a struggling single mom trying to make ends meet. It was close to Christmas and I was beginning to feel ill frequently. On December 23, 1997 I was so sick with pain in my muscles and joints. I went to the emergency room where the doctor told me I had herpes. I was sent home with pain meds.
Two days after not leaving my bed to eat, use the restroom, or do anything else, I awoke struggling to breathe. An ambulance brought me to the hospital and that's where the next chapter of my life began. Doctors knew less at the time than they know now. It took a long time to diagnose me. I was eventually diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS).
That, too, was wrong. Eventually, I was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis. I've had my ups and downs throughout the past 20 years, but I work hard each day to make the best of life. You can cry in a corner, or you can put on your big girl (or boy) undies and face the challenges with everything you've got.
