I was born outside of Philadelphia in 1965 - in a time before amniocentesis, ultrasounds, and genetic testing. My parents were of normal child-bearing age. My dad was 27, my mom was 24. There was no reason to believe that they would give birth to a daughter with Turner syndrome - but here I am! (note: parental age in not a factor in Turner syndrome). I'm not sure what gave it away to my doctors - it could have been the webbed neck, the Jimmy Dean breakfast sausages where

The three most important dates in my life are April 26, 2009, January 9, 2010 and March 17, 2017. April 26th was the day my husband Michael asked me to marry him. January 9th was the day we became husband and wife, and we became a family of three and welcomed our beautiful baby boy Elias Raymond Carlson on St. Patrick’s Day last year. I received my Turner syndrome diagnosis at age 15, after questioning the pediatrician why there was no period yet. Up until that point, my symp

“My endocrinologist says I have a 4 percent risk of fracture on the hips and a 2 percent risk of fracture in the spine. S/he was only able to calculate my fracture score based on someone at age 40, so it is only downhill from here” Around and around on the therapy-go-around for another week, another session with a psychotherapist. “S/he did not recommend treatment, though. It causes a softening of the jaw … and the rest of the body does not even build up bones…or it does but

I was born in Ohio in 1962. I had some feeding problems as a baby, frequent ear infections, and I was small for my age. I was a normal kid and did average in school. I was a cheerleader and went to dances. But the older I got, the more disconnected with my peers I felt. I would come home from school and tell my parents 'everyone makes fun of me,’ and they'd say 'well, you're from a small family. You'll catch up some day.’ But I never did. I was always known as the 'short gir

See this picture of me and my amazing beautiful butterfly Gracie, who is 10 years old? As the old saying goes “A pictures says a thousand words,” like how I love my daughter to the moon and back, but most of the time they don’t show the reality of the struggles families go through. For instance, this photo session with my family was scheduled for a half an hour. Well, this particular session took an hour and a half and a very patient photographer to get these amazing shots.

Hello Everyone. My Name is Rebecca, but I prefer Becky. I guess my story starts when I was 12. I was going to the doctor for a routine checkup and to get updated on vaccinations. The doctor had been my doctor for a while. They did the usual checking of my weight and height. When the doctor got to the room, he looked worried and concerned. He told my mother and I that it had been a year and a half since he had last seen me, and that I had not grown even a single inch since t

My name is Stephanie Weaver. My daughter, Alyssa Cadence, was diagnosed with Turner syndrome at birth. The day of her birth was definitely an unexpected experience. We had no idea she had TS. When the doctors noticed her puffy feet and tiny cry, they were concerned. Even though her lungs were working fine, she just couldn't project her cry. They told me to follow up with my doctor when we left the hospital. But as a mom, I just had a feeling I needed to know more. A few year