Hemifacial Microsomia i.e. facial differences

So, where do I start. I could start all the way back "in the beginning", but not yet. I'll get there some day. Ever watch the movie "Benjamin Button". Not the same condition as mine, he just got back to the beginning in the end and I guarantee you that I will get there with this blog at the appropriate time.

My blog title "facial differences", so I've learned today, is the politically correct and much simpler term now associated with "Atresia-Mircotia Hemifacial Microsomia". That's me. When I was born, I had no right ear and my right jaw bone was underdeveloped. Apparently, this congenital (meaning it happened in the womb, not genetic, not inheritable), birth defect occurs in anywhere from 1 in 6,000 to 1 in 10,000 depending upon which websites you visit. One website actually indicated that the chances of my offspring inheriting this condition to be 1 in 33. Yikes! My doctors always told me that it doesn't happen since my condition is congenital, not genetic, however, 1 in 33 has more of a chance of a facial difference than 1 in 6,000. Thank God, both of my children came out perfectly normal.

I was born in 1965 (see? we're already back at the beginning) at a time just prior to the pioneering days of "plastic surgery". I make that statement with the understanding that many reconstructive surgical techniques were "invented" and practiced in the fields of the Vietnam war. My first "corrections" occured at the Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego. Those corrections involved skin grafting and a plastic insert to build an ear and bone grafting from a partial rib to lengthen and reshape my right jaw bone. I was about 5 years old when those surgeries occured. This was my first exposure to a hospital- military hospital- a ward full of children with a variey of infirmities. That was also back in the days when they knocked us out with a form of engine starting fluid, you know, ether. I remember being terrified and I seem to remember that my folks didn't get to stay there after visiting hours, maybe they did and I just don't remember it correctly- sometimes remembering back to my 5 year old days when I'm now 44 is a bit scewed. I remember being a very sensitive child growing up. Crying a lot about a lot of things. Of course that may have just been my born-in personality. I did manage to grow up with the average bunch of kids- did the average kinds of things kids did. One thing that was NEVER in question was my parent's love and acceptance of me regardless of my condition. I do know that it was a burden to them both financially and emotionally. They never expressed that to me, but I could tell.

And since this is a blog and it is getting late and I have to tuck my kids in for the night, I'll end this session. Please feel free to visit from time to time. I will try to dialog with myself and hopefully I can offer some sanity, encouragement and hope to parents of kids like I was or those of you out there that share my condition.
Until then-
Have a great day!
James