While still pregnant with me, my Mom was sent to UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles for high risk pregnancies. The doctors at UCLA decided to try an experimental surgery to correct my condition while I was still in the womb. At that time, fetal surgery was on the cutting edge of technology. They performed two brain surgeries, to relieve the pressure on my brain, while I was still inside my mother’s womb. I was the first baby in California to have this surgery and the first baby in the world to survive. I had other complications at birth, including epilepsy, vision problems, hearing loss, and scoliosis. Altogether, I have had 12 surgeries to correct many of these problems.

My early challenges were learning to do basic functions such as sitting up, crawling, and walking. I went to an early intervention program at UCLA for children with disabilities where we were taught, using special devices, how to strengthen our bodies in order to perform these tasks. I used to sit in a corner box to strengthen my back muscles which helped me to learn to sit up. I would practice crawling using a carpet roll under my stomach supporting my body which helped me to stay on my knees and learn how to crawl. I used a child-size walker to help me walk. As I got older, I think the hardest thing for me was my balance problem. I never learned to ride a bike or skateboard but I can do those things now when I play video games. I do like to rock climb and play Challenger Baseball, which is baseball for kids with disabilities. I have no directional sound, since I’m deaf in my left ear, but I’ve learned to adapt by asking people where they are.

My biggest challenge was in my junior year of high school. That year I had three surgeries and had to miss a lot of school. One of the surgeries I had was for my scoliosis and I had to wear a body cast 23 hours a day for six months to straighten my spinal cord after a 10-hour surgery. That was really uncomfortable. The only time I could take my brace off was for one hour a day to take a shower. I also had a spinal cord surgery and two eye surgeries that year. 

I continue to see specialists on a 6-month to 2-year basis. I have an MRI every two years to check on my shunt, which is a flexible tube surgically placed in the ventricle of my brain. The end of the shunt is in my abdominal cavity and the shunt drains the excess spinal fluid that accumulates in my brain. Sometimes the shunt malfunctions and has to be replaced. I’ve had 5 shunt revisions, so far, and I am not sure how many more I might need.

As long as I take medication every day, my seizures are controlled. I am capable of doing almost everything. Some things, like cutting my nails or toenails, are difficult because I have fine motor problems. That also affects my writing, but I use a computer as much as I can. At this time, I’m very dependent on my mother for driving but I’m working on getting my driver’s license someday soon.

I graduated from Granite Bay High School in 2001. While I was there, I was mainstreamed in almost all my classes. I started working at Blockbuster Video while I was in high school and still work there part-time. I just graduated and received three degrees from Sierra College in Administration of Justice in May of 2006. One was for AA in Courts, one for an AA in Corrections, and one for an AA in Law Enforcement.

After finishing college, I took a 51-hour course at the Rocklin Police Department Volunteer Academy. So far, I’ve helped them log in evidence and assisted in a SWAT Team Exercise for crowd control at a simulated high school take-over. I’ve been on ride-a-longs with police officers and I’ve helped to maintain squad cars with pertinent information and supplies.

In addition to volunteering for the police department, I started volunteering for ATOU in 2006. It has been an incredible experience for me. I’ve been able to share my story with children and make them more aware of people with disabilities and how to act towards them. I tell them that we are not all that different and we all like the same things, even though disabled people may have to do some of the same things differently. I encourage students to never doubt what they can accomplish if they put their minds to it and tell them how important education is in helping them reach their goals. My motto for everyone, including those with disabilities, is: FOCUS on what you CAN DO…not on what you CANNOT DO! Find another way to do the things that are difficult for you….and always remember, it’s OK to be DIFFERENT!

ATOU has been as valuable to me as I think it is to the students. I’ve met so many wonderful people who have so many life experiences to share. I believe we open the eyes of the students in a way no textbook ever could. The “hands-on” experience with the wheelchairs, canes, Braille cards, assistive devices, mirror boards and the messages of the presenters are life-changing for these students. It’s just an incredible disability awareness program.