i did everything except fly a plane, jump out of them and get into the navy.

i think probably your concerns should be orthopedic. joints, tendons, etc.
however as these things are limited you'll be less inclined to do the things
to keep the heart and kungs in shape.

-----Original Message-----
From: Brent Edwards [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Monday, March 04, 2002 4:40 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Introduction


Hello, my name is Brent Edwards.

I've been lurking here for about three weeks now, trying to get a feel for
the nature and "tone" of this list. I still have some questions about that,
but I felt I should introduce myself before posing them.

(Actually, I posted a somewhat snarky reply a few days ago to the person who
sent two unreadably html-formatted messages. Sorry if that was a violation
of this list's "culture", but html-tagged e-mail is a major pet peeve of
mine.)

I'm 41 years old, and have right-side hemiplegic cp. It is - from everything
I've been able to determine via net research - an extremely mild case. I
have sharply degraded fine motor control of my right hand. I am unable to
rotate my right wrist past about 85 degrees. I have slightly degraded fine
motor control of my right foot, yielding a very slight limp. I have some
extremely minor spasticity of my right hand, usually manifesting itself only
when I'm tired or stressed.

And that is just about it, at least as of right now. In other words, I can
"pass" as able-bodied in many circumstances.

Because of this, I have resisted self-identifying as "disabled" at all. I
felt for many years that I had no right to the label. My cp has never
stopped me from doing anything I really wanted to do (except perhaps play
the piano in real time, but that is trivial at best). I have no problems
getting around. ADA non-compliant facilities present no barrier to me. I was
simply too "lucky" to have anything to complain about. (Something my mother
used to tell me constantly.)

I'm married, have kids, a good job, house in the 'burbs, the whole bit. And
yet...

And yet, I don't know. I've started noticing over the past half-decade or so
slight creeping increases in the degradation of my motor skills. I wonder
how the damage to my left cerebellum is going to affect my cardiovascular
system as I age further. How will my condition affect my lifespan? *Will* it
affect my lifespan? Blah blah blah.

The answers that I've gotten from the few doctors I've seen can pretty much
be summed up as "No one knows."

So lately I've started to seek out other adults with mild-to-moderate cp, as
it seems we are going to have to figure out these things for ourselves. This
search has brought me into contact - for really the first time in my life -
with the disabled community and disabled culture.

So my question to you all is simple, really. Do I belong here? Someone
commented a few days ago that this list is populated mostly with disabled
adults, but I've seen several parents of disabled kids posting. Is there
anyone else here in similar circumstances to my own?

I welcome any and all comments.

Brent Edwards