My Polio Story

It all started shortly after the start of first grade. I had a horrific headache and rigid neck and was sent home from school. This was in 1947, several years before the polio vaccine was available. My mother was a registered nurse and likely had an idea of what was going on with my body. I don't remember much until the next day but Mom said that she took me into her bed that night and I think she said I was burning up with fever but I can't remember. 

The next day I had a spinal tap that didn't hurt amazingly enough. It was performed by dr. Paul Kilmer who was my mother's boss as she worked in his office for years. Well it was polio so the next thing I was in an ambulance taking a 70-mile trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan. I was taken to Blodgett Hospital and subjected to a second spinal tap this time I very painful spinal tap. I remember there was a window washer and he heard me screaming in pain and looked so compassionately up through the window. 

Later in the day or early evening I was nearly undressed and two nurses or therapist put me through a series a physical test. I had total movement of my body. They had me bending over and doing turns and such. At that point there was no paralysis. I slept that night and the next morning my mother was visiting and had a friend with her. I was laying in bed and I remember picking up my left wrist and telling my mom I can't move anything on my left side. My left arm and left leg were totally paralyzed. Years later I sent for some of my records and found out that after two weeks I could walk with help, however, I was supposed to be on complete bed rest. 

 As I recall, I spent two weeks at Blodgett Hospital during what would have been considered the more contagious part of the disease. After two weeks I was transferred to a children's Rehabilitation facility called Mary Free Bed. There I had the sister Kenny hot pad treatment. The packs were so hot they nearly seared my skin but they did keep my muscles from seizing. I remember I had a cold and at that time penicillin was far more viscous than today and had to be given every 3 hours. I was having a hot pack session and I thought a nurse was coming towards me with a blue pen in her hand. No pen, it was a hypodermic needle and I got a shot of penicillin in my posterior. I don't remember the rest of the shots but they did hurt. 

While we were mostly children's at Mary Free Bed there was a woman there who was really bedridden and she had polio once before and then contracted again and it just wiped her out. It's funny even at 6 years old I felt sympathy for her. I remember one little girl who did not have polio, rather she had lost her 2 feet and I'm not sure how much of her legs. She had a doctor helping her with learning to use her prosthesis. The doctor had two artificial arms possibly from the war. I remember this courageous little girl wrote a tricycle and I think possibly roller skated. 

Like I said we were supposed to be on bed rest but after three months I found out I could walk, not only could I walk I could run. Although my left leg still has a few minor effects of olio such as a little bit of a drop foot and downward turning of the ankle, I was ambulatory. My left hand and arm were a different story. Even after four reconstructive surgeries the best part of my hand is my little finger which is almost normal. My thumb literally sticks out like a sore thumb but I'm very protective of it. 

I had a few small victories while at Mary Free Bed. I'm not sure what I did both times but I actually was restrained because I was being rather naughty. One of my fondest memories is getting ahold of a roll of toilet paper and getting to the third floor of Mary Free Bed. I looked down the stairwell and holding on the toilet paper, I let it unroll all the way to the first floor. I don't think the nurses were too mad at me but I remember being restrained in a chair until I settled down. 

Being in Michigan, we had a number of snow storms. Family was only allowed to visit once a week, on Sunday. I was told I had a phone call and it was my mother telling me the weather was too bad and she couldn't make the trip. I cried and I said I just knew you weren't coming today. I don't know who was more broken hearted of the two of us. I don't remember the occasion, possibly Christmas, we were sending cards to our mothers. I wrote the word mother on the envelope with the card and gave it to the nurse to mail. By the time Mom received it in the mail mother had been crossed out in the proper address was added. I don't know why the mailman wouldn't know where Mom was I sure did. 

 The Shriners were good to us kids in the hospital. One time they took us to the circus and I had two cotton candies and threw up. At Christmas time they gave us Toys and mine was a little Kewpie doll. After I was released from the hospital I was playing with the Kewpie doll at my friends house. Her father was the local Baptist pastor and by mistake he stepped on my doll and of course felt really bad for breaking up. Strange the things you remember.