How My Physical Abilities Have Changed My Life

I was faced up, looking at the ceiling as I was being pushed down the hallway in a stretcher. I was able to see my reflection in the ceiling and thought that I looked funny with my hospital cap and gown. Everyone kept asking me if I was nervous for the surgery but for some reason I wasn’t. Instead I was more eager to get the surgery done. At this point, nothing is in my control and my life is in the hands of the doctors. A 50 degree curve in my spine had caused my ribs to become dangerously close to my heart and lungs. The surgery was common so I trusted the doctors at the hospital.

I was being taking to the operating room where my spinal surgery would be performed. It was surprisingly hard to believe that I was to get surgery because for my entire life I thought I was healthy, but apparently not. It never crossed my mind what life would be like if I wasn’t healthy. What if the surgery goes wrong, and I end up spending the rest of my days not being able to use any of my limbs? What if I can’t do the things I enjoy doing anymore. I just hoped that fate would be on my side and for the next few hours.

The trip to the operating room felt like it had lasted forever, but after what seemed like hours, I was pushed into the large metal doors. I was greeted with a white room and blaring white lights. I’ve only ever seen operating rooms on tv and never thought that I would actually be in one. Two surgeons introduced themselves and began getting me prepped and put an anesthetic mask over my face. I took just a few deep breaths and before I knew it I went into a deep sleep.

During recovery, there was plenty of time for me to rest and regain my strength. I was relieved to hear that my surgery was a success, and all other parts of my body were functioning properly. The pain and stiffness caused by the surgery would go away overtime. I was both glad and relieved to finally get the operation done. During my time in the hospital, I had a lot of time to think and reflect on myself. I thought about how quickly my life could’ve dramatically changed when I woke up from surgery. I was also so worried about how my scar would affect my physical appearance that began to wonder what defined me as a person. What image do I want to portray to others?

About halfway through my recovery, I have been able to acknowledge two changes in me. One was the twelve-inch scar on the middle of my back, and the other was my viewpoint on life. I eventually came to realize that I could have lost my physical abilities and my life would have been forever changed dramatically. This enabled me to better appreciate it and other things in life that I may take for granted. In the past I have always let my physical abilities define who I am, but now I realize that it is my personality that I want to set apart from others in the future. I want to earn the respect of the ball boy, the referee, the rookie, and the best basketball player on the court. The same thing goes for the janitors in the school, the principal, the athletes and those with disabilities who don’t take what they have in life for granted. It was the fear that I could have possibly lost any part of my physical abilities that helped me see that it is my non-physical traits that I want to define who I truly am.