The Girl in the Pink Suede Sneakers

I was born on May 4, 1962 in Morristown, New Jersey. I was three weeks premature and weighed only 4 lbs. 1 oz. I was small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. I am told that the placenta (which carries vital nutrients and oxygen to the unborn child) was very small. This increased the odds of there being developmental issues in my life. However, I appeared to be in excellent health, with no defects of any kind.
I was a smart little girl and even began speaking at an early age. But, my physical development was not as smooth. I had trouble with small motor coordination. Things like tying my shoes were difficult, and I learned to do tasky things more slowly than other children my own age did. I am also left-handed, which increases the difficulty of mastering new skills.

When I reached school age, I was one of the smallest children in my grade. The other children laughed when I struggled to do certain things, and sometimes got angry at me for staring. My mother seemed concerned about the staring episodes. She wondered if it was seizures. I don’t have a memory of staring spells, or absence seizures, though I do have a clear memory of other people being angry that I was looking at them. I remember going to the hospital to get tested. I don’t remember much, but I do recall the electrodes being attached to my head. They were sticky, and I had to stay very still during the procedure. The doctors told my mother that I had Epilepsy, and put me on medicine. After a year or so, the doctors took me off the medicine, saying I was not having seizures. My family rejoiced! I was a happy, healthy little girl once more, until I reached junior high school. When I was 14, something happened that would forever change my life.