Aches and Pains: Cerebral Palsy, Growing Up and Ageing
DISCLAIMER: I AM ONLY ONE PERSON WITH CEREBRAL PALSY AND I AM NOT A DOCTOR. THOUGH MANY OF THESE SYMPTOMS ARE COMMON SYMPTOMS OF AGEING WITH CP, MY EXPLANATIONS MAY NOT BE MEDICALLY PERFECT AND I WILL MOST LIKELY EXPERIENCE THESE ELEMENTS OF CP DIFFERENT TO SOME OTHERS WITH THE SAME DISABILITY.
Hey All!
Anyone who knows me in person will know that I often joke about feeling old for my age, whether that be due to my taste in tv shows or my taste in music or my general personally. Indeed, I am an outspoken Golden Girls fan. However, the presence of Cerebral Palsy in my life does have the ability to take this feeling to a whole other level. I feel as though despite the increasing presence of both children and adults with CP in the media, discussion around the symptoms and impact of the condition focus far more upon the perspective of the child experience. Of course, many of the symptoms we experience never fully go away and the extent to which they effect you will depend upon the severity of your CP, but at least within the NHS a lot can be attempted at a young age to try and manage these symptoms, with both the present moment and the future in mind. But how does CP change our experiences of growing up and getting older?
From my own experience, as a child the primary symptoms of my Cerebral Palsy were things such as, delayed walking, difficulty walking (at an early age I would walk on tip toes), poor balance, poor coordination, impaired fine motor skills (affecting writing, eating, etc.) and impaired facial muscle function (causing dribbling). A lot of these symptoms relate to the fact that a key characteristic of Cerebral Palsy is spasticity, with many of my muscles remaining incredibly 'tight' to this day. What this created was an incredibly strong but often flawed muscle memory, making it uncharacteristically difficult to get my muscles to behave in the way that I wanted them to and the way that the needed them to in order to do many things that are considered the most basic of tasks to some, primarily walking. It would be virtually impossible for any small child to walk probably constantly on tip toes, and of cause with out correction this muscle behaviour would only cause more problems further down the line.
The two primary things put in place to allow for a reasonable amount of long-term correction were physiotherapy and Splints which both worked on a basis of stretching the muscles, with physiotherapy actively and intensively stretching the muscles for a short period of time and splints keeping the foot in a correct stretching position that was actually pushing the foot slightly forward to promote positive progress. The idea of putting both of these types of treatments in place at a young age was to intervene with the formation of the muscles by encouraging the muscle groups to lay down correctly. Now at the age of 19 I no longer walk on tip toes, finding it a lot easier to walk in a heel-toe movement, and I sway a lot less than I did and could have done.
Due to various treatments a lot of the symptoms mentioned above are far easier to manage, but that does not mean that I don't still experience them to a degree. It does not mean that my CP is 'cured,' CP is not 'curable,' Cerebral Palsy is a non-progressive but also remaining neurological disorder which does not have a fix as such but is rather managed with support and treatment. Cerebral Palsy is something which you carry forward with you throughout your life and which in fact shifts in the way it can impact as you age. It is a noted characteristic of CP that as you grow older it can create a sensation or experience of accelerated ageing and this is because in many ways the body is reaching certain milestones earlier than that of the able-bodied person. Problems such as joint pain/weakness, chronic pain and other forms of physical deterioration can arise at a younger age. Furthermore, something that is also a potential issue in children but can poke it's head back is scoliosis. This can mean that an individual with CP might need to start using a walking stick at a younger age (what is reassuring is that there are so many cool designs available nowadays) or they might need certain surgeries often linked with ageing earlier on. I don't say this to scare anyone or to make CP sound horrific because I wouldn't call my own experience of CP horrific, it's simply the truth and it's why sometimes I feel old. Somedays my back is playing up and it's a little harder to get out of bed and sometimes what may seem like a reasonable walk can really screw up my knees. However, the reality is that nowadays there's a lot more help available and the situation can only be improved by talking about it.
I am only 19 but I have already began to notice a few of these issues. For me the biggest things so far has been the aches and pains, particularly in my back and lower legs. This is why it is really important to me to have a decent mattress because my bad back can make a bad night's sleep a real hassle, especially now I live in halls so there is no one to pull me up in the morning. I can also find that a bad sleeping position can really mess with my sides and hips. As someone who sleeps on their sides a lay in can actually cause more harm than good in some cases. This chronic pain has also been interesting to manage living in London because while TFL is amazing the accessibility of everything in the city centre can cause a lot of people my age to suggest walking to places (the horror), plus it isn't always easy to figure out the bus routes...this can lead to significant knee pain, as well as pain in my left foot/ankle.
I think what is also interesting to mention is the potential relationships between more childhood symptoms and adult symptoms. My balance is still extremely questionable, I am nearly always the clumsiest person in a room. However, this is always without question worsened if I am tired. This has been a fascinating hurdle, as bad balance is in no way a new thing to me but increased physical tiredness and muscle fatigue kind of are. I have gotten a lot better at catching myself over the years but if your friends with me for long enough you'll get to see me nearly go on plenty of pathing slabs and maybe if I'm tired enough you'll get to see the whole shabang. This means that those typical student late night library seshs are a big no no for me. Yes, as I've gotten older I've managed to reduce the number of accidents I have but that in no ways means that I'm now steady on feet.
Although treatment can make the earlier symptoms of Cerebral Palsy easier to cope with that does not mean that they vanish as such and that does not that the list is not added to. It is very likely that I will physical age a bit quicker that my peers, I mean I already complain about my knees giving way after too many flights of stairs! However, that doesn't mean that I can't age with all the disgrace and adventure that I had always planned to. I may be needing a walking stick sooner than most but it's okay because I've got my eyes on one with a funky floral design.
Later Alligators!
Freya x
Hey All!
Anyone who knows me in person will know that I often joke about feeling old for my age, whether that be due to my taste in tv shows or my taste in music or my general personally. Indeed, I am an outspoken Golden Girls fan. However, the presence of Cerebral Palsy in my life does have the ability to take this feeling to a whole other level. I feel as though despite the increasing presence of both children and adults with CP in the media, discussion around the symptoms and impact of the condition focus far more upon the perspective of the child experience. Of course, many of the symptoms we experience never fully go away and the extent to which they effect you will depend upon the severity of your CP, but at least within the NHS a lot can be attempted at a young age to try and manage these symptoms, with both the present moment and the future in mind. But how does CP change our experiences of growing up and getting older?
From my own experience, as a child the primary symptoms of my Cerebral Palsy were things such as, delayed walking, difficulty walking (at an early age I would walk on tip toes), poor balance, poor coordination, impaired fine motor skills (affecting writing, eating, etc.) and impaired facial muscle function (causing dribbling). A lot of these symptoms relate to the fact that a key characteristic of Cerebral Palsy is spasticity, with many of my muscles remaining incredibly 'tight' to this day. What this created was an incredibly strong but often flawed muscle memory, making it uncharacteristically difficult to get my muscles to behave in the way that I wanted them to and the way that the needed them to in order to do many things that are considered the most basic of tasks to some, primarily walking. It would be virtually impossible for any small child to walk probably constantly on tip toes, and of cause with out correction this muscle behaviour would only cause more problems further down the line.
The two primary things put in place to allow for a reasonable amount of long-term correction were physiotherapy and Splints which both worked on a basis of stretching the muscles, with physiotherapy actively and intensively stretching the muscles for a short period of time and splints keeping the foot in a correct stretching position that was actually pushing the foot slightly forward to promote positive progress. The idea of putting both of these types of treatments in place at a young age was to intervene with the formation of the muscles by encouraging the muscle groups to lay down correctly. Now at the age of 19 I no longer walk on tip toes, finding it a lot easier to walk in a heel-toe movement, and I sway a lot less than I did and could have done.
Due to various treatments a lot of the symptoms mentioned above are far easier to manage, but that does not mean that I don't still experience them to a degree. It does not mean that my CP is 'cured,' CP is not 'curable,' Cerebral Palsy is a non-progressive but also remaining neurological disorder which does not have a fix as such but is rather managed with support and treatment. Cerebral Palsy is something which you carry forward with you throughout your life and which in fact shifts in the way it can impact as you age. It is a noted characteristic of CP that as you grow older it can create a sensation or experience of accelerated ageing and this is because in many ways the body is reaching certain milestones earlier than that of the able-bodied person. Problems such as joint pain/weakness, chronic pain and other forms of physical deterioration can arise at a younger age. Furthermore, something that is also a potential issue in children but can poke it's head back is scoliosis. This can mean that an individual with CP might need to start using a walking stick at a younger age (what is reassuring is that there are so many cool designs available nowadays) or they might need certain surgeries often linked with ageing earlier on. I don't say this to scare anyone or to make CP sound horrific because I wouldn't call my own experience of CP horrific, it's simply the truth and it's why sometimes I feel old. Somedays my back is playing up and it's a little harder to get out of bed and sometimes what may seem like a reasonable walk can really screw up my knees. However, the reality is that nowadays there's a lot more help available and the situation can only be improved by talking about it.
I am only 19 but I have already began to notice a few of these issues. For me the biggest things so far has been the aches and pains, particularly in my back and lower legs. This is why it is really important to me to have a decent mattress because my bad back can make a bad night's sleep a real hassle, especially now I live in halls so there is no one to pull me up in the morning. I can also find that a bad sleeping position can really mess with my sides and hips. As someone who sleeps on their sides a lay in can actually cause more harm than good in some cases. This chronic pain has also been interesting to manage living in London because while TFL is amazing the accessibility of everything in the city centre can cause a lot of people my age to suggest walking to places (the horror), plus it isn't always easy to figure out the bus routes...this can lead to significant knee pain, as well as pain in my left foot/ankle.
I think what is also interesting to mention is the potential relationships between more childhood symptoms and adult symptoms. My balance is still extremely questionable, I am nearly always the clumsiest person in a room. However, this is always without question worsened if I am tired. This has been a fascinating hurdle, as bad balance is in no way a new thing to me but increased physical tiredness and muscle fatigue kind of are. I have gotten a lot better at catching myself over the years but if your friends with me for long enough you'll get to see me nearly go on plenty of pathing slabs and maybe if I'm tired enough you'll get to see the whole shabang. This means that those typical student late night library seshs are a big no no for me. Yes, as I've gotten older I've managed to reduce the number of accidents I have but that in no ways means that I'm now steady on feet.
Although treatment can make the earlier symptoms of Cerebral Palsy easier to cope with that does not mean that they vanish as such and that does not that the list is not added to. It is very likely that I will physical age a bit quicker that my peers, I mean I already complain about my knees giving way after too many flights of stairs! However, that doesn't mean that I can't age with all the disgrace and adventure that I had always planned to. I may be needing a walking stick sooner than most but it's okay because I've got my eyes on one with a funky floral design.
Later Alligators!
Freya x
Comments
Post a Comment