When I was five years old, I was diagnosed with cancer. The doctor told my parents that I had Grade 1 Pilocytic Astrocytoma in my brain stem. I went in for emergency surgery to have the tumor removed, but not all of it has been removed. The surgery left me paralyzed from the neck down. I stayed in the hospital for a couple months with multiple therapy sessions to re-learn everything from walking to eating to talking. Through various techniques such as therapeutic horseback riding, I was able to regain back most of my strength but with some lack in my left arm and leg.
As a five year old, I didn’t quite understand what was going on, but when I started elementary school, I began to see that I wasn’t really like anyone else. I had found that a lot of kids labeled gym as their favorite class, and that was never the case for me. That was the one thing I always had difficulty with. Simple things like jump rope and running always came as a challenge. Teachers always gave me extra help and put me into special classes. I had been teased by the other kids because I limped when I walked. This lowered my self-esteem and made me feel different from the other kids when all I wanted to be was normal.
I have never been one to give up easily. Fighting has always come naturally for me, so one day, I just decided that I was going to fight through all the difficulties I was having. I found new ways to cope and adjust to daily life. Soon enough, I tested out of the special classes, and I didn’t need much extra help. I had become independent and able to do many things on my own. Independence brought confidence with it, and soon after, I was in the top of my 4th grade class and even made it into the challenge math and reading classes. Since then, I have always been a diligent worker in school and have received good grades.
When I was a sophomore in high school, I chose to take a gym class as an elective. I took Outdoor Adventures, a class that involved rock climbing and ropes courses. Going into the class, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to do everything, but that couldn’t stop me from trying. There was one day in particular when we were climbing the outdoor rock wall. I made it halfway up the wall, something that I never thought I could do. That was one of the biggest accomplishments I have ever made. I felt like I had just made it to the top of Mount Everest.
In my junior year, I took two AP classes thinking that while the workload would be larger than what I was used to, I could handle the pressure. I was correct when I thought that the workload would be larger than what I was used to, but I was also correct when I thought that I could handle the pressure. Those two courses ended up being some of my favorites because of the challenge they provided.
Even now, while the tumor is no longer malignant, I still need some help when doing certain tasks that involve the use of my left side, but for the most part, I get along just fine. With the right mindset, a person really can do anything they set their mind to.
-Elise Christiansen