07-01-2020, 01:37 AM
Hi everyone. I originally created this thread in ATS. I realize vaccinations are a very controversial topic. We’re all adults here. I feel good about posting this. Now I know I won't change anyone's mind, but I feel compelled to tell this true life story.
Polio is a devastating, crippling, sometimes fatal disease. Thankfully, there is a vaccine for it. This wasn't the case in 1946, when my mom, who was two years old at that time, wound up with polio. So for 74 of her 76 years of life, she has had to deal with this.
After getting sick and being quarantined, she was sent home. She was one of the lucky ones who didn't die or wind up paralyzed. But she was unable to walk anymore. In the years that followed, she went through many lengthy stints in the hospital. In order to get her legs so she could possibly walk again, she endured 15-20 operations. She had both of her legs broken twice.
She spent most of her summer vacations in the hospital for more treatment. She was endlessly bullied in school as she was in a wheelchair. She endured so much physical and emotional pain. Then there were the other indignities. The pointing and stares when she walked haltingly with ugly cumbersome braces. The ridicule by other kids. She was told she would never drive, ride a bike, or be able to bear children.
Then she met my dad. The fisst time he proposed to her, she told him to go to hell, and prove he wasn't proposing because he felt sorry for her. She made him work for it.
once they got married, he taught her how to drive and ride a bike. She walked a lot, with a noticeable limp. She never let that slow her down. She has three kids and four grandchildren now.
She also has something called post polio syndrome. She is in constant pain, and still walks, but it's much more difficult for her. She has taken many falls, has had a few concussions. Her damn kneecap is literally sliding down her leg. I worry about her a lot.
We have talked on the phone, and I asked her what she thinks of all these things in the news about the anti vaccine movement, and she said: I hope nobody ever has to go through what I have been through, and that these people are seriously deluded.
Her words, not mine. But I totally agree with her. I cringe when I hear about previously eradicated things coming back.
Oh well. This will not change anyone's mind, but I had to get this off my chest. I hope nobody is offended. I get some are against vaccines, and some are for vaccines. It is a hot button issue.
Polio is a devastating, crippling, sometimes fatal disease. Thankfully, there is a vaccine for it. This wasn't the case in 1946, when my mom, who was two years old at that time, wound up with polio. So for 74 of her 76 years of life, she has had to deal with this.
After getting sick and being quarantined, she was sent home. She was one of the lucky ones who didn't die or wind up paralyzed. But she was unable to walk anymore. In the years that followed, she went through many lengthy stints in the hospital. In order to get her legs so she could possibly walk again, she endured 15-20 operations. She had both of her legs broken twice.
She spent most of her summer vacations in the hospital for more treatment. She was endlessly bullied in school as she was in a wheelchair. She endured so much physical and emotional pain. Then there were the other indignities. The pointing and stares when she walked haltingly with ugly cumbersome braces. The ridicule by other kids. She was told she would never drive, ride a bike, or be able to bear children.
Then she met my dad. The fisst time he proposed to her, she told him to go to hell, and prove he wasn't proposing because he felt sorry for her. She made him work for it.
once they got married, he taught her how to drive and ride a bike. She walked a lot, with a noticeable limp. She never let that slow her down. She has three kids and four grandchildren now.
She also has something called post polio syndrome. She is in constant pain, and still walks, but it's much more difficult for her. She has taken many falls, has had a few concussions. Her damn kneecap is literally sliding down her leg. I worry about her a lot.
We have talked on the phone, and I asked her what she thinks of all these things in the news about the anti vaccine movement, and she said: I hope nobody ever has to go through what I have been through, and that these people are seriously deluded.
Her words, not mine. But I totally agree with her. I cringe when I hear about previously eradicated things coming back.
Oh well. This will not change anyone's mind, but I had to get this off my chest. I hope nobody is offended. I get some are against vaccines, and some are for vaccines. It is a hot button issue.