Story submitted by Dawn Thiesen on October 14, 1999 at 00:04:46:
Dawn Thiesen is 44, from Texarkana, AR USA.
Family:married, 2 daughters, 4 horses, 2 shelties
Wow! Ashley was injured at birth and has Erb's Palsy in her left arm. She is now almost 17, and this is the first time I have EVER known of others with this condition. At first she had no movement, we were told to pin her little arm to her clothes to keep it from dangling and causing further nerve damage. In following months she recovered some movement, but not much. A friend, a chiropractor, gently manipulated the area, she seemed to regain more movement. I don't know if this helped, but of course I would have done anything. Over the years I have been told she has more movement than the doctors expected. I was even told by one neurologist that her arm would shrivel up and be like a useless little wing. Well, they were wrong. She does have much use of it and it has grown to almost the same size. She holds it in a permanent "L", her elbow may be frozen, but it seems to be a useful position anyway, allowing her to perform most tasks. At the age of two we moved to a town with a Shriner's hospital. They were wonderful, giving her free theraphy, and we saw many many experts. For years we debated on surgery, but somehow it never happened. Now that she is older we've been told it was good we never had it since she has more movement than many others with this condition and we could have lost what she has.
For those of you with little ones that have this, don't lose heart. Believe me I know how it hurts to see your child suffer in any way, but in many ways this has had it's blessing, too. Ashley has never let this keep her from doing anything. Only I had to learn to let go and let her try. She has been a cheerleader, a dancer, and now she rides horses in hunter/jumper. Yes, that's where the horse jumps rail and fences, etc. Her riding instructor even told her " if only you could keep your other arm in that position, you'd have perfect equitation." She responded " hey, I finally found the perfect sport for me." This has also made her so aware of the needs and hurts of others. She is one of the most thoughtful kids I know. Growing up seeing the other kids at Shriners, most with much more serious conditions than hers, has had a profound effect on her. Yes, the teasing at times was tough, but it has made her noble, someone that stands up for the different kid, the fat kid, the unacceptable child. She has the respect of everyone that knows her, and it makes me so proud to call her my daughter.
By the way, after reading some of the other stories I saw the familiar "Was it my fault", "Why did this have to happen to an innocent child", and the comfort I recieved for my questions like this was found in John 9:1-3. Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And his disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."
Believe me, God's works, His miracles, I see every day when it comes to Ashley. Thank you for letting me share.
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