And though She is but Little, She is Fierce - by Adriana Garcia

My journey began when I was 12 and my twin sister and I had a doctor's appointment with our pediatrician to get our 12-year-old shots to enter the 7th grade. My pediatrician noticed I was much shorter than my twin sister. She was a bit concerned about it and just wanted to make sure it was nothing. She suggested I see an endocrinologist to get his opinion and recommendations.

He decided to get some blood work to find out if there was an issue, or if I was just delayed in growth. I got the blood work done, and he asked us to schedule an appointment in six months to go over the results. Well, six months passed, and it was the day of my appointment.  He gave me the news that I had a chromosomal disorder called Turner syndrome, which is the reason that I was delayed in growth.

Since I was a late diagnosis, he suggested that I start on growth hormones, which is a shot that I had to take every night. He wanted to make sure I would be able to get as much growth in as possible, since I was only 4 ft. 3 in. at the time of my diagnosis. It was a bit of a challenge at first, as I had a bit of a fear of needles. But, after time, I got used to it. After five years of taking them every night since I was in seventh grade, I took my last growth hormone shot ever on October 16th 2019, in the Fall of my senior year. I am so grateful to my family for giving me the opportunity to get that treatment and can now say that I am standing at 4 feet and 11 inches tall.

But, I would be lying if I didn't say that there wasn't more any challenges with having TS during my school years. I was often asked how old I was or what grade I was in due to my height, which caused me to feel different than my classmates. This helped me decide that I wanted to work with kids, Now I am more than happy to say that I am currently in my second year as a pre-k paraprofessional at the same elementary that I went to! Crazy right?!?

An unforgettable experience that truly helped me to have a feeling of a sense of belonging would be when I was able to attend my first Annual TSSUS conference last year! I truly enjoyed it so much and am so grateful for the life-long friendships I made during it! I’m definitely looking forward to attending this year in Orlando, Florida! ◡̈Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story!