ACCORDING TO MY OWN CLOCK...

Hey,there!
I'm Emma,nice to meet whoever is reading this.
So..after thinking about it for a long time-and after a couple of failed attemps- I finally decided to start a blog.
I decided to call it "From CP to MD" which,to me,is the perfect title. In fact, it says a lot about me and about what the purpose of the blog is.
Let me explain it a bit more clearly.
CP stands for "cerebral palsy",which is a  chronic condition I have had since I was 2 years old.  Like many of you probably know already,cerebral palsy is a condition that affects the brain when it's still developing..which is why it's often associated to prematurity(which is my case) or other obstetrical emergencies that may put  babies' brains in danger.
There are many types of CP: they go from the least severe type(which affects only one limb) to the most severe one (quadriplegia,which affects all four limbs,and often bounds people to a wheelchair). Beside walking and balance problems,CP can also cause problems with speech,drooling,mental retardation and other issues.
I've been relatively lucky,since I have spastic diplegia,which is more severe than the kind that affects only one limb but definitely less severe than quadriplegia.
It affects mostly my legs and it causes me to walk funny( I move my shoulders back and forth-kinda like I were drunk- and I walk on my toes without putting much weight on my heel or on any other part of my foot...this way of walking is technically called “toe walking”,if you’re wondering) and to have some balance and coordination problems( for example,I’m not able to carry a cup full of water from a corner of the room to the other without spilling it all over the place). Luckily I don’t have any speech problems or  mental retardation problems.
Now that I’ve told you more clearly what the first abbreviation stands for..let’s talk about the other one.
Once again,as many of you probably know, MD stands for “Medicinae Doctor”(Latin for “Doctor of Medicine).
So yeah,I want to become a doctor. I’ve been wanting to become a doctor my all life actually.
As far as I can remember,it has always been the only thing I wanted to do with my life.
For example,I remember that,when I was about 8 years old,my parents gave me a book about the human body for Christmas.
I loved that book so much...to this day,I think I read it more than 10 times and I  can still remember some sentences and pictures from it! I remember I used to read and re read through it every evening before I went to bed. I just was so in love with it!
That book taught me basic stuff about the human body and made me fall more and more in love with medicine.
Then,when I was 10,I took human biology in school..it was the most beautiful class I had ever taken. It was just so intersting. I remember that every time I had that class I looked  forward to go to school and learn new stuff..and when I was sick and I had to miss one lesson..I remember I cried so bad.
So...my love for medicine has grown stronger and stronger by the years..from kindergarten to High School.
Last year I applied to med school and,unfortunately,I didn’t get in  because of a variety of different reasons.
Once I found out I hadn’t got in.. I cried so bad for two days straight and I’ve been sick and extremely sad for a lot of time afterwards. Yes..unfortunately for me, I am an overachiever and I hate failing.
In the meantime,I graduated High School with honors( I don’t know how I managed to do that..I was really sad and tired and I  cried a lot during those days..because of  what had happened to me with a “friend” of mine who had broken my heart with her mean words)and I got into a Biotechnology university program.
The program I’m in now has a lot of courses in common with the ones they take during the first year of med school..so hopefully,attending to those courses will help me getting into med school next year. I’m not giving up!
So..essentially this year is kind of a training year for me. An year which will prepare me for med school.. Academically and in many other ways.
I’m learning a lot of new stuff..like walking without any help by anyone but my awesome walker(I’ll dedicate an entire post to it,later),learning how to drive and how to be as independent as I possibly can.
I actually have written a list of goals I would like to accomplish...I’ll probably talk about that list in a post.
The deadline for most of them is next September,which is exactly  1 year from when I written that list. I hope I’ll be able to accomplish at least some of them.
I decided to create this blog to share my adventures and my journey to med school( because I know I’ll get there,sooner or later) and beyond.
 I’ll get there,if I keep working hard.. like I always have done..since when I was six.
 Paralympic champions and other wonderful people are living proof that a person with a disability of any kind  can still do the same things an able bodied person can..it might take her more time than usual,but that person definitely can.
This blog.. I hope it’ll help me through my journey.
I hope it’ll remind me that the fact that I have a disability doesn’t mean I can’t be a doctor.
I hope it’ll remind me that my disability shouldn’t stop me..it should inspire me to do more and better..it should challenge me. It should make me a better person and(in the future) a better doctor.
It shouldn’t be something I hate and I want to forget.
It should be a part of me..a part that- I’m glad to notice- I’m slowly starting to accept...day by day.
This blog will document my journey from now to that day when I finally say:
 “Hi, I’m doctor ............ ,what can I do for you,today?”...like many doctors told me when I was sick.
Does anybody out there want to join me ?