*comes in and waves to everyone* Hello

I'm happy to have found this forum for I found it through the Livejournal community that I just applied for~!

Anyway, I'll introduce myself.... I guess you could say I'm fairly new at "being disabled" and this is the first time I've really come out with it to a big group like this;

Back in late 2007 I fractured many, many bones: burst L1, broke L3-L5 (I believe), a couple of the lower T (T12 I think and some other T?)my sacrum, my pelvis and my humerus. (we'll just say that it was a bad accident)

They had to do MAJOR back, arm and pelvis surgery on me and I was an inpatient at the hospital for 2 and half months. (They put metal rods in my back, a screw through my pelvis and a plate in my arm btw) In the hospital I had to learn how to walk with a walker while putting all my weight in one leg (the hip is healed now so I can walk normally again) and with a backbrace. I left the hospital and a couple of months down the line I could be without a back brace and I learned how to walk normally again.

It's been an incredible journey and my body is still healing from all the nerve damage. It's been frustrating but the experience has heightened my spirituality to a level that I never imagined before! I feel closer to God and am very grateful for it.

Anyway, I hope me not being in a wheelchair isn't a problem :\? I wasn't sure because I googled the gimp girl definition and I know it has to do with people who are disabled but with the wheechair icon I thought "oh well I'm not wheel chair bound so does that not include me...?"

My nerve damage certainly gives me other "disabilities" though ._. Yeah lol, anyway I hope I can stay here

Hello Jen!

Ooh another person with metal/back stuff lol :D! Awesoooooooooome. Very nice to meet you and thank you for the greeting.

I'm late to the welcome train (was visiting babies yesterday), but welcome Neon! I also have a fused/metal spine. Its great to have you here! Hope you can make our meetings and meet even more amazing people.

I'm happy that I got a welcome so quickly!

Ashley,
Oh yeah? I didn't know that it was a common question, haha that's good to know. I really had no idea there really was that many disabilities until I started reading up on it recently.
Aww wow... I had no idea that this place would be like this but I am pleased so far. I wasn't sure how I would get a response since I thought maybe people wouldn't respond if they didn't have it happen but I'm glad to know that people will at least listen.
Yes! See.. that's what I'm searching for a group of people to connect with... in my day to day life it feels as though, even if these people love and care about me, I am isolated/alone and I hope to continue to interact here to not feel that way
Aah a chatroom! How cool.
Hurray, nice to meet you and thank you for the warm welcome!

Lucy,
Hi there! Ooh an event calendar, neat. Yes lol.. you could say that I've had a really tough time :\ Thank you very much for the wish of healing, I appreciate it!

Tyna,
Hehe awesome! *grabs some goodies* Aah scoliosis, I believe I knew someone in highschool with that.
Ooh good luck about the benign tumor! *sends positivity vibes your way*
Wow you're the first person I've ever talked to who has broke their pelvis as well !! Hello fellow I've broke my pelvis person, lol.
See.. this is interesting to me now because it makes me wonder about my own... but it's ok, I'm sorry I'm your break too though!
Thank you very much

Yes I hope talk to you all again soon!

Hi Neon!
(*waving back*)

I'm glad you found GGirl. No worries about having the "right" kind of disability (ha. as if there is one), or about being disabled "enough." Everyone is super welcoming here.
I have learned that wondering if you are disabled 'enough' is a really common question in disability groups/communities. There are lots of different experiences and disabilities here.
I have rheumatoid arthritis and it has been very active and hugely disabling sometimes, and in remission and not so disabling other times. My feet are pretty trashed now, with both the joint damage and also with nerve damage (probably due to a so many decades of inflammation). Many other joints are affected, but my feet are the worst.
About two years ago I came down with something additional that causes waxing and waning severe muscle weakness (primarly proximal muscles). No one has figured out what it is yet. Now some days I use a power chair, some days a walker. (I have some other stuff, but those are the 'highlights.' ha!)
Because my symptoms have waxed and waned so much, and because I don't have a diagnosis for the muscle weakness 'thing,' I've ended up without much help from the medical world w.r.t. "being disabled." (Although I also have learned that there is much less help there than I thought existed.) I rather thought that someone would say to me "you really need a powerchair that does these things, and here's where to go to learn how to use it and to get around." But.... that sure didn't happen! So I'm constantly learning how to make things work and to figure out how to continue to create the life that I want and like. (A non-stop process for everyone, of course.) In the past 2 years I felt like I went from someone that got to still visit The Land of the Healthy And Able every once in a while to having my passport revoked completely.
I was really thrilled to find GimpGirl because I finally felt like I found 'my people' -- a group that felt more like my peers than any other group I'd come across. I've been able to get some information that's really helped me in the little things and with the bigger things, too. I like the diversity of experiences and perspectives and that all aspects of life are discussed (not just mobility or medical issues or something). And of course, one of the most powerful things is to realize that you're not alone; that you're not as isolated as you might feel. Even if someone doesn't share your exact experience, there is someone that is willing to share and listen to your experience.
I hope you stick around and I *really* hope that you find support and information that is helpful. If you can make any of the support meetings, either in SecondLife or via chat, I highly recommend them. Sometimes it's a small group, sometimes it's bigger. But always welcoming.
- ashley e. (a.k.a. "aenw")

Hello Neon,

I'd like to join Tyna by welcoming you to GimpGirl! Our community is for anyone who identifies as a women with a disability. Please check our upcoming events on the calendar (we also post events on LiveJournal) and come along anytime. It sounds like you have had a extremely tough few years, I hope you continue to heal. If you have any further queries about our community please do not hesitate to ask.

Lucy
(GimpGirl Community Staff)

Welcome! There are ladies of all disability levels here, so grab a seat and some goodies, and settle in!

I'm fairly new here myself. I have a genetic disorder called Neurofibromatosis, and it caused scoliosis, and an array of other problems. I can walk, but with a gait that will go into an all out limp when I'm tired. I have a lot of nerve damage due to a tumor (benign) that is growing in my pelvic area, and across my lower back/bum and down my right leg. The doctors can't remove all of it, but I'm hoping to get some good news in the next few months about removing at least some of it.

I broke my pelvis a couple years ago too, I am so sorry! My break was fairly minor, and all they could do was give me some prescriptions and send me home to sit for five months. That was a trial, and I still haven't gotten back to the mobility I was at before.

I hope you find a comforting place here, like I have. Hope to talk to you more soon!

Tyna