At the age of 12, doctors discovered that Michelle had a gap in her spine that formed between C2 and C3. Nerve damage had already progressed down her entire left side, rendering her left arm limp and unusable, and had a teacher not caught her limping by subtly dragging her foot behind her, doctors would not have been able to catch it in time. Can you imagine being 12 and a world-renowned neurosurgeon telling your parents, "If she is in a car and the car is jostled, she is going to die? Bring her in for surgery immediately." Two surgeries took place to fuse C2 and C3, as well as the base of the skull to C4. After 3 months with a medical halo, a Frankenstein-like creation that holds the neck still by drilling into your skull and supporting the weight of your head, 12 months with a neck brace during her last year of middle school, and over 10 years of physical and occupational therapy (though her left arm is still essentially function-less), years of chronic pain and PTSD, Michelle is grateful to be able to still be here and express that joy at still being alive in a Kintsugi-like manner with gold leaf symbolizing both hope and dread.
