Making history (Photo: Emily O’Dell)
I made history yesterday when I gave the first public lecture on
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in the Sultanate of Oman (patient perspectives in public are virtually non-existent here — come to think of it, it was probably the first talk of its kind in the entire Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf!). I was very honored to be asked by a team of doctors from Sultan Qaboos University Hospital to offer a “patient perspective” of my medical (mis)adventures as an “elastic girl” in the United States and the Middle East (I even mentioned
acupuncture and
tai chi in Beirut). I’ve also done my “freak show” of dislocations for doctors and medical students in the United States, Lebanon, Turkmenistan, Mongolia, and South Korea. It brought me great joy to share with an auditorium of Omani doctors what I have experienced and learned along the way to help increase their understanding and awareness of this rare syndrome.
Elastic girl (Photo: Emily O’Dell)
As a
disability advocate and
scholar on disability, I have been fortunate to speak about disability with activists around the globe — like
Laila Atshan, a blind Palestinian Harvard-educated therapist treating Yazidi victims of ISIS, and even
His Majesty, the Dragon King of Bhutan, at the Royal Palace in Paro. Raising awareness about physical, emotional, and mental disabilities through
workshops and public events (in
high schools and
universities) in Lebanon and Oman has greatly enriched my life in the Middle East and Persian Gulf over the past five years. Further, working with Syrian refugees in Beirut as a
professor,
yogini,
mentor, and
volunteer has made me more aware of the intersections of
disability and war. The positive reaction of the audience yesterday was a welcome reminder of how important it is to increase awareness, understanding, and compassion for people with disabilities around the world.
After I spoke, the doctors gave wonderfully informative clinical presentations on how to treat a patient with EDS (particularly in the field of anesthesiology). I was grateful for their expertise and knowledge — I learned a great deal from them and was proud of our group effort. After the talk, a group of Omani medical students came over to talk to me, insisting that I do a Ted Talk and write a memoir about my experiences because they found my presentation so inspiring. Who knows — anything is possible, I suppose — even for a gumby gal.
Go team! (Photo: Emily O’Dell)
