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Kara's Story
April 16, 2002
Hi Everybody! My name is Kara and I was born in 1978 with a bilateral cleft lip. I am my parent's fourth daughter. I have 3 older sisters who are 7, 9 and 11 years older than me, so needless to say, I was a surprise! I've had four reconstructive surgeries, beginning when I was just three months old. I had three surgeries that made no difference at all with one surgeon. When I was thirteen, my parents decided I should have another surgery with a new surgeon before I started high school. And that was the last surgery I needed. I had a wonderful doctor who did a fabulous job and now there is no evidence that I was born with a cleft lip.
Finding this website and reading other people's personal stories has brought back many memories. To be quite honest, since my last surgery, I have nearly forgotten that I was born with a cleft lip. I suppose I sort of blocked a lot of memories. I had forgotten how painful childhood was at times. I remember feeling horribly insecure. I would do things like pretend to bite my nails just so I could have my hands in front of my mouth.
While there were moments I felt horribly un-confident and insecure, I had a rewarding childhood in general. Mostly due though the endless support of my parents and sisters. They suffered with me through my operations and were always there with comforting words, but they never let me feel sorry for myself. They were always quick to remind me of other children who had much worse ailments. I was an active and outgoing child who had many friends who were also very supportive. I was involved in many activities growing up. I became a cheerleader when I was 11 years old and cheered until my junior year in college.
Like many of you reading this, I often asked the question "why me?" growing up. Why did I have to look different from all the other kids? And my Mom had a simple answer to this question.... "when you were born God told you a secret and told you 'shhhhh', placing his finger on your mouth and leaving a cleft." To this day I feel like I hold one of God's precious secrets.
I am now 23 years old. I graduated from college last May, where I studied Broadcast Journalism. During the last three years I had the opportunities to work at ABC and PBS affiliates in small markets producing and anchoring newscasts. I moved back home to Chicago to be near my family. I now work at an IT recruiting firm. I'd love to offer my support to anyone needing it, or just swap stories. My e-mail address is Keeks1978@aol.com . Thanks for listening and take care!