Ok, so I am a graduate student and the beginning of each semester is always fun because I meet new people who are completely unaware that I have severe scoliosis and I get interesting and often irksome comments.
So, I roll my bag. I don't carry it because those of you who have scoliosis know that carrying around loads of books will pretty much guarantee that your night will be spent with advil and a heating pad. Scoliosis for the most part is a hidden disability. My husband is hard of hearing and no one asks about his hearing aids because it is obvious or perhaps they feel awkward, but rolling a bag instead of carrying it leaves me wide open to receive all sorts of comments. I'm used to this and I calmly explain to people why I roll my bag. No problem.
Mondays are very long days for me. I teach and then sit through 5 hours of seminars. Luckily the first 3 hours are in a room with very comfortable chairs. However, my second seminar has those horrible wooden seats with a big hole where back support should be! So, I emailed my prof and asked her if I could sit in a different seat. Let me first say that I very much appreciate the fact that she does take my scoliosis seriously and is doing her best to accomodate me. However the chair today left my arm numb and me squirming in pain throughout the class. No problem again - I live with pain and I can carry on my life with a big ol' smile. However, this is where the problem came - I walk into class (slightly late from my last seminar) with about 20 students looking at me. My prof ANNOUNCES to the class that I have "SPECIAL NEEDS" and will need to "reserve" this chair for the rest of the semester. These are people who don't know me and all of the sudden I'm the girl with "special needs." Luckily I'm far removed from high school and am not totally embarassed, but spend the next 10 minutes fuming over the phrase "special needs." I proceed to roll my bag and roll the horrible chair past one girl who turns her head and asks if I have a "special bottom?" I politely answer, "No, I have a 'special back.'"
I'm sure I'm not the only one with experiences like this and it certainly isn't the first.
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2 comments:
Special Needs! Doesn't that just drive you crazy? Your professor could have accomodated you without broadcasting your situation to the entire class. I wonder if he/she would have done that had you been in a wheelchair or been hearing impaired?
Grrrrr!
You just gotta "roll" with it!! I have always taken those type of opportunities to educate those around me...I hate being known as the lady who walks bent over with the cane, I'd rather have people know than have them speculate!!
I was really happy to see your blog and hear about other lucky, special people...I'm 44 and found out I had scoliosis when I was 15. I've been fighting with it for a long time, including 2 other surgeries. I'm booked for full spine reconstruction/fusion on Oct 17/06 and I can't wait...I might be 5 feet tall before Christmas!!
You can see my blog "Crooked Karen's Search to be Straight". Keep on
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