Disability Pride Month yippeee
Uh anyways mine isn’t really big but
You know these two bones in your arm? The Ulna and Radius?
Yeah so mine are fused. Like this: (not my own x-ray)
(More under the cut)
I have what’s called Congenital Radioulnar Synostosis. It’s a lot more present in my left arm but I still have it slightly in my right. It doesn’t hurt, but it does prevent me from rotating my wrists fully. I cannot turn my hands face up. My left arm is also permanently bent.
We didn’t realize I had this until I fell off my bike when I was little and my mom thought I broke my arm cause she finally noticed my bent arm. A few hospital visits later and a few x-ray’s and we found out my radius and ulna are fused.
Now how does this affect me daily? I cannot pick up boxes or heavy objects from the bottom, I have to hold the sides or compensate by using my forearms to carry something from the bottom. I also have to modify certain yoga poses or workouts in order to be able to do them correctly.
But honestly the place where it affects me most is in music. I can play piano perfectly fine, however with instruments like guitar, bass guitar, ukulele, etc. I have to use left handed versions (even though I’m right handed) in order to reach the frets and finger chords properly.
I’ve pretty much accepted ukulele as my primary and likely only string instrument unless I pick up cello or something. With guitar, the neck and fretboard is too wide for me to easily finger ordinary chords, and barre chords are highly uncomfortable and even painful, because I cannot rotate my wrist enough for it to work.
So, because of this I’ve practiced ukulele as my main string instrument. The neck and fretboard is much narrower and I can finger even complex or difficult barre chords with much more comfort and a lot less pain, although sometimes it still does hurt. Luckily, I find the ukulele super charming and there are so many types I can try.
I also fail to do most marching drum rudiments, as I cannot rotate my left wrist the same way I can my right, so I don’t have the control over the drumstick and the angle I hold it in the necessary way to get those nice rolls and drags. But it’s alright, because I can still use my left hand on the hi-hat when I play drums.
Anyways, there’s my disability. I think it’s cool even if it is inconvenient. Happy Disability Pride Month!
