Confessions of a Teenage Leper by Ashley Little

Author:Ashley Little
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: PRH Canada Young Readers
Published: 2018-09-10T16:00:00+00:00

My first day of therapy at the clinic went pretty much as you’d expect. I got fitted for orthotics and was told by Charlotte, the physiotherapist, that I should wear them all the time inside the special support shoes they gave me. The shoes were brown and shaped like livers and literally the ugliest footwear in existence.

“So, you’re saying I have to wear these all the time?”

“All the time.”

“What about at the beach?”

“Definitely at the beach.”

“What about when I want to wear heels?”

“You shouldn’t ever be wearing heels, Abby.”

“But…I’m…I have to.”

“Why do you have to?”

“Because. I’m seventeen.”

“Look. This is what happens to people with nerve damage in their feet and ankles like you have. They step off a curb the wrong way and break their ankle, but because there’s no sensation, they don’t feel it. They don’t know they’re injured. And so they keep walking on the joint, doing more and more damage to it. In some cases, it gets so bad that the foot needs to be amputated.”

“Ugh!”

“That’s right. See, that’s what most people don’t realize about the effects of Hansen’s disease. It’s not the disease itself that causes people to lose digits and limbs, it’s the absence of sensation that’s the most dangerous.”

“Pain,” I said.

“Yes! Pain! Pain is a great gift. Healthy bodies experience pain. Pain keeps us safe.”

“I have pain.”

“I know you do, Abby,” she said gently.

“Just not in my feet and hands.”

She nodded. “That’s why you have to be so careful to protect them and keep them out of harm’s way. These shoes are one way of doing that.”

I knew I would still wear my flip-flops at the beach. I knew I would still wear heels to dress up. But I just nodded and said okay because I knew that Charlotte was trying to help me, and that’s what she wanted to hear. We talked about ways to protect my hands and fingers. Like don’t stick them into boiling water (duh!); be extra-vigilant when using scissors, knives, and sharp tools; wear mittens and gloves in the fall, winter, and early spring, even if you don’t think it’s cold, even if you think you don’t need to. Frostbite is the number one reason people with the disease lose fingers.

She gave me a stress ball with a yellow happy face on it and had me squeeze it twenty-five times with each hand. I was supposed to do that four times a day. Then Charlotte wrapped both my feet and hands in hot, white towels and gave them all a little massage. It was no Pink Orchid Day Spa, but it felt pretty nice.

“Thanks,” I said when she was finished.

“You’re welcome. I’ll just let you rest here for a few minutes.”

“Okay,” I said.

She dimmed the lights as she left the room and I dozed off. I don’t know how long I was out for. The next thing I knew, a short, round woman was knocking on the wall beside my head.

“What? Oh. Sorry. I—”

“Abby?”

“Yes?”

“I’m Dr. Gabriella Rodriguez.” She extended her hand and I unwrapped the towel from mine and we shook.

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