Cause and Effect Essay: A.D.E.M. and Me

            Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is an inflammatory disorder very similar to multiple sclerosis (MS); both disorders cause deterioration of the myelin sheath surrounding the nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord (Moore, 2007). The incidence rate is about 8 per 1,000,000 people per year. It happens mostly with children five to eight years old (ADEM, nd.). With that being said, I find it very amazing that I, a then 10-year old Filipino boy with no prior neurological case, caught this very rare disease, since it is more likely to happen in Africa. This paper aims to look further into the effects of Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) in terms of physical, medical, and personal aspects.

            What does ADEM do to someone? Medically, ADEM causes inflammation in the brain and spinal, particularly in the white matter (ADEM, nd.). the nerve cell coating (myelin sheath) is partially destroyed (ADEM, nd.). In simpler terms, the disease causes the brain and spine to be inflamed and the cover of the nerve cells to be destroyed. In effect, some functions of the brain are affected and the nerves of the person can be damaged beyond repair, causing them to be either sensitive or unresponsive. In my case, the left side of my brain was more affected than the right, which caused weakness to the right side of my body. This disease also caused me to be in a 10 – day coma, which also led to my paralysis for over a month. Furthermore, the disease caused me to lose some of my fine motor skills, muscle strength, and coordination.

            Since I was bed-ridden, and had been in a 10-day coma – for almost a month – the physical effects of ADEM already showed. My legs had undergone muscular atrophy. Atrophy is the partial or complete wasting away of a part of the body (Atrophy, nd.). I could not even move my legs, let alone stand, due to the decrease of muscle mass in my legs. Another effect would be my slurred speech. This was caused by the shortening of my tongue. I could not speak for almost two weeks because of what had happened to my tongue. I could only communicate through texts because my handwriting, too, was affected. My hands were always shaking uncontrollably and I could not control it, even if I tried. The effect of this was bad handwriting and the loss of my talent (playing the piano).

            There have been many things that happened to me and my family because of this disease; most of them are too emotionally painful to mention. One example of a positive personal effect on me was that my will to succeed increased. I had undergone many months of rehabilitation with one goal in mind: to become normal again. I also become more religious since I realized that with God, I would not have survived the ordeal. I strived to become stronger physically, mentally, and emotionally, since I knew that only I could help myself for what had happened. Finally, I became more open to criticisms and observations, for I knew that the people who gave these were only trying to help.

            ADEM has caused me and my family a lot of problems. Sometimes, I believe that it was a curse that I had to live with, a speed bump in my otherwise smooth journey towards my goals and aspirations. But I also believe that this disease was a blessing in disguise, because my experiences from the sickness taught me to never give up, never surrender; rather than weaken me, it only made me stronger. It taught me to appreciate my family and friends even more because they give me their full support always. And most especially, I learned to appreciate God, because He kept me safe and gave me a 2^nd life, one that would give me the chance to do the things I never did and to succeed in my dreams and aspirations, hopefully.

Reference List:

1. Moore, E. (Nov. 3, 2007), Disseminated Encephalomyelitis,                     Retrieval Date: Aug. 4, 2010,

http://autoimmunedisease.suite101.com/article.cfm/disseminated_encephalomyelitis#ixzz0vdvjE

2. Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) (nd.), Retrieval               date: Aug. 4, 2010

http://adam.about.com/reports/000096_1.htm

3. ADEM, (nd.), Retrieval date: Aug. 4, 2010,                                        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADEM

Reflection:

            The hardest part about writing this essay was not the finding the information and making a smart essay. For me, it was remembering all of the experiences that I underwent. Although I am satisfied with the essay I wrote, I could have improved it by not repeating my information. A topic such as ADEM calls for a lot explanation, as it is a complicated disease to diagnose and understand. I still could have added more information, or elaborated more on my experiences.