Growing up with any medical condition is not, especially any debilitating condition that finds a person confined to a wheelchair for the rest of their life.
Such is the case for Logan Cover, a freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Before she was conceived, the doctors found that she has spina bifida, a condition where a part of the spine and the spinal cord do not form properly, leading to a deformation.
Spina bifida can range from very mild to severe, leaving a person wheelchair bound. “Ever since I was 13, I have not been able to move my legs,” says Cover. “It can be very frustrating when you want to do the things that you used to do but then you remember that you cannot do them because of it.”
Before she lost all motion in her legs, there is times that she can recall of being able to move her legs. “This condition was diagnosed at birth, but did not get severe until much later,” she says. “I could walk, play with friends, and even play games like any normal child should be able to do.”
This condition varies from person to person, but no matter the severity, it will always come with its challenges. When in a wheelchair, doing anything from simply going to class or even getting into bed at night can be challenge. Cover tells me that these are a few of the many struggles with this condition.
Spina bifida is not the only condition she has to deal with, however. It has led to hydrocephalus, which is the build-up of fluid inside parts of the brain.
“Once in a while, it will come up, and I will be in the hospital for weeks on end, having the fluid drained, and having a shunt put in,” says Cover. “A shunt is like a stent for the brain.”
There are treatment options, but neither of them is good to think about. “A pre-birth operation can take place or right after the baby is born,” says Cover. “But spina bifida is a lifelong condition that I have to live with and work around, no matter what operation took place when I was born.”
Although it is rare, spina bifida is very real, and can impact the quality of life for a person. Life can still be lived to the fullest, even when suffering from this condition.
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