“When Maycie was in elementary school, things were great. It was so wonderful. The kids were nice. The teachers were great. And then junior high and high school just weren’t. Her school work wouldn’t be modified for her. The curriculum wasn’t accessible anymore. By ninth grade, she was being bullied.

“I remember when she was in track. They would go outside to practice, and she would need a friend to run as a sighted guide. The girls would argue in front of her about who was going to have to run with her. There were a couple times where she called me from the locker room because the other girls left her there by herself. So she couldn’t get out to the track. It took me a long time to get over that anger and that hurt.

“She started to flip into a really deep depression. It began in junior high. We just chalked it up to junior high being hard. It was for all my kids, not just for her. But by freshman year, she wouldn’t get out of bed. She was sad and angry all the time. She begged and begged and begged to please let her go to Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Austin. Ultimately, we decided that was the best place for her to learn and to grow. And it’s been great. She became happy again.

“So many school districts just aren’t equipped to handle totally blind children. Her main means of learning is Braille. In Austin, she was able to access her curriculum, and she was thriving. Sports was always a big deal for her. She played softball and ran track. But when she got to high school, it wasn’t easy. She never won a race because everybody was sighted, and she had to run with someone. When she went off to Texas School for the Blind, it was an even playing field. Whether you’re blind or visually impaired, everybody has to wear a blindfold. She started winning and excelling and advancing in sports. That does a lot for self-confidence.

“The biggest change I’ve seen in her is independence and happiness. Maycie’s 18 now, and she’s a wonderful advocate for herself. She’s done amazing. They say you’re not supposed to be prideful. But I have so much pride in my heart for her and how far she’s come in life.”

— Brandi Gonzalez

At Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Maycie is cheer captain, runs track, is on the swim team, plays goalball (chosen for the All-American team), is student body secretary, president of Leo Club, and a member of the National Honor Society. She plans to pursue a career as a child life specialist on a pediatric oncology unit.

Related:

• White dots in her eyes signified cancer

The post ‘I have so much pride in my heart for her’ appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“It showed up a couple times in pictures of Maycie. Instead of red eye, she had white. Then we noticed it every once in a while when she was in the bathtub or in her high chair. We thought it was a reflection from the white of the tub or the white of her high chair tray. But then it got to where her eyes kind of seemed empty. It was really strange. So we took her to a pediatrician. She told us there was an absence of a red reflex, and that we needed to go to Texas Children’s Hospital the next day.

“Maycie was diagnosed with bilateral retinoblastoma, which is cancer of the retina in both eyes. She was 11 months old. I was devastated. The tumors in her right eye were not in the optic nerve yet, but they were too close. They didn’t want it to spread to her brain. So the best course of treatment was to remove the right eye and try to save the left eye.

“Believe it or not, it’s day surgery. Her right eye was removed on October 24, 2002, which was our fourth wedding anniversary. She came home, slept half the day, and then she was up and playing. At first, we were pretty optimistic about the other eye. For about a year and a half, we tried to save it. We did six months of chemotherapy. We did laser therapy. We did cryotherapy. She had 28 days of radiation. But in the end, we couldn’t save it.

“I worked at a daycare at the time. Maycie would sit up against the wall and isolate herself, not wanting to be around people. If anyone would get near her, her first instinct was to bite. So she had a little harder time after the second eye was removed. When they’re that age, though, they’re pretty resilient. She bounced back. She ended up getting prosthetic eyes.

“But it was hard not to keep thinking, if only we had known the signs. Those white dots in her eyes in all the pictures screamed cancer, letting us know that something was terribly wrong. We just didn’t know the signs of retinoblastoma, and we sure didn’t know she probably had it since birth.

“Some days, the guilt that consumes me is mentally and physically crippling. I know it’s not my fault. I know there’s no way I could have known. But that doesn’t help. What does help is knowing I have spread awareness of retinoblastoma, so that it might possibly help someone else.”

— Brandi Gonzalez

Related:

• ‘I have so much pride in my heart for her’

The post White dots in her eyes signified cancer appeared first on The Baytown Project.

Name
Gina Bibb

Age
60

How long have you lived in Baytown?
In the area all my life, but in Baytown until about age 52.

Most interesting fact about you
I am currently legally blind and unable to walk due to taking an antibiotic (Zyvox; generic name is Linezolid) for about 10 months for a rare lung infection. It attacks your central nervous system and optic nerves. Optic nerves do not regenerate, but the other nerves should — in 12-18 months! I am only sharing this to warn others what can happen. My symptoms started in July. While seeking answers in the medical center in Houston, it was not discovered it was the medication until December. A neurological ophthalmologist discovered it. I stopped the medication then. My eyesight has improved some. I am waiting on the nerves in my hands and legs to heal.

Background
I graduated from Lee High School, Lee College and University of Houston-Clear Lake. I worked 20 years as a draftsman, a year as a teacher and several years as a substitute teacher. I finally landed my dream job as an administrator assistant working at the priests’ retirement home for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. I retired for health reasons, and we now live in Anahuac.

Challenges
In addition to the above mentioned health issues, I also have stage 4 lung cancer.

Happiest or saddest moment
Too many of each to list!

Advice
Seek the Lord! God is good all the time! Even during the hard times, He is with us.

Reading or watching
Not much of either.

Favorite thing to do in Baytown
Eat breakfast at First Watch.

This profile was received through the Submit Your Story page.

The post Gina Bibb: battling multiple health challenges appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“If I could change one thing, it would be some people’s attitude toward the disabled.

“I don’t think you should put a limit on a disabled person based on what you believe he or she can do. Each person is different. Some have great expectations and can go there, whereas others can’t. I’m not going to say it depends on the disability, because I know people who are totally blind and can do just about anything.

“So when you see someone walking with a cane and you know that person has a disability, it’s all right to show common courtesy. But don’t look at them or treat them like they absolutely depend on you. Think of them as independent, because that’s what they still want in their lives. I know I do.”

— Lynnette Hulett

Related:

• Birth control decision leads to loss of sight

The post Being disabled doesn’t take away independence appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“By the time I was 21, I had my fourth child. I thought that was enough, so I wanted to get my tubes tied. But my doctor kept telling me, ‘You’re too young for that.’ Instead, he introduced me to Norplant, which was this birth control system where they insert little stems in your arm. He said, ‘It’s really good. It’s working great for people.’

“I had it done four weeks after my son was born. Within a week’s time, I started losing my vision. I would see something, but then all of a sudden it got much darker. I asked my mom why she turned off the lights. She said, ‘Lynnette, the lights are not off.’

“Then I was in the kitchen cooking one evening when my eyes just went totally black. It felt like somebody had put shades over my eyes. My mom took me to the doctor, and they told me I needed to go see a glaucoma specialist.

“The specialist confirmed it was glaucoma, but he couldn’t understand why it was so extreme in someone my age. I went to him five times. After having surgery and everything else, he still couldn’t figure out why the pressure in my right eye wouldn’t lower. That’s when I raised my arm and said, ‘Do you think this might be the problem?’ He said, ‘What is that?’ I said, ‘It’s birth control.’

“I told him that I felt like I started losing my sight once I got it. So he said, ‘My advice to you is go get it taken out, and come back to see me in two weeks.’ I went to the doctor’s office that same day to have it taken out. When I returned to the specialist he said, ‘Wow. Your pressure is so much lower, back to where it should have been from the get-go.’

“By then I had lost a good 80 percent vision in my right eye. Within a few years, it wiped out that eye totally to where I can only see light in front of me. And then it started taking away the peripheral vision in my left eye. Even with the stems out, I guess the medication itself was still in my system.

“It’s challenging, but I get by. Today is a good day. I can actually see you. Then I have other days where I see more blackness than anything. It comes and goes like that.

“But I thank God that the saying is true: When one sense goes, the other ones kick in. My memory is great. My hearing is excellent. I can hear two conversations going on at one time. And my sense of touch is wonderful. Sometimes I can touch money and tell you exactly what it is. So I’ve got that going for me.”

— Lynnette Hulett, 46

Related:

• Being disabled doesn’t take away independence

The post Birth control decision leads to loss of sight appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“My girls are 4, 3 and 2 years old. They can be a handful at times, especially because I’m doing it all by myself and my youngest one is pretty much blind.

“She was born with coloboma, which affects the iris and retina in both eyes. DARS (Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services) works with her on mobility, vision and speech. She’s also learning braille. We take the classes with her so we can all learn.

“I’m bartending to help meet our needs, and a family member watches them while I’m gone. I’ll come home, get a couple hours of sleep and then I’m back to taking care of my babies. It’s a challenge but I have to do it. I’m determined. These girls are my pride and joy.”

The post Mother determined to be there for her girls appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I’d like to do something with neuroscience, like help create new technology. They have robotics nowadays that can help the brain with muscle movements. It would be cool to develop things like that, maybe to help blind people see again by activating neuronic sensors in their brain. I just find the brain really interesting.”

— Robert Mejia

Related:

• ‘Now I know how great I could be in the future’

The post He’d like to use neuroscience to help the blind see appeared first on The Baytown Project.