{"id":581,"date":"2011-10-28T05:41:29","date_gmt":"2011-10-28T05:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.micaminar.com\/en\/?p=581"},"modified":"2014-02-24T14:42:57","modified_gmt":"2014-02-24T14:42:57","slug":"walk-and-roll-for-spina-bifida-for-laurita-who-stands-tall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.micaminar.com\/en\/walk-and-roll-for-spina-bifida-for-laurita-who-stands-tall\/","title":{"rendered":"Walk And Roll For Spina Bifida For Laurita Who Stands Tall"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>What can I say about a woman who stands tall in spirit and born with Spina Bifida? She rocks!!! \u00a0She inspired me the day I met her with her beautiful smile and she keeps inspiring me every day as I see her passion in sharing not only her beautiful shining personality, but her cause that \u00a0is very dear to her heart. You can read more of why I love Laurita here. <\/a><\/p>\n

But today, I would like to share some information about a Blog Carnaval I am proud to participate in for Laurita.<\/p>\n

Promoting Awareness of Spina Bifida<\/strong><\/p>\n

October is\u00a0Spina Bifida Awareness Month<\/a> and to help increase awareness about Spina Bifida, we\u2019re joining Laurita Tellado of\u00a0HoldinOutforaHero.org<\/a>in a Blog Carnival Fundraiser to raise funds for Laurita\u2019s Walk-n-Roll event on October 29th.<\/p>\n

To Donate $5 or more, click\u00a0HERE.<\/a> Gracias!<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a letter from Laurita:<\/strong><\/p>\n

October is an eerie month, filled with monsters, mummies, and the macabre. But while the occasional witch or skeleton might freak you out, one must concede that there are indeed more frightening things\u2013 like finding out your child will be born with spina bifida.<\/p>\n

And yet, each day in the U.S., an average of eight families welcome a child with spina bifida into the world. Annually, an estimated 1,500 infants are born with spina bifida each year in the U.S.<\/p>\n

I was born with spina bifida nearly two and a half decades ago. The diagnosis came as a total shock to my family, along with an entire set of secondary complications. I was also born with hydrocephalus, or \u201cwater on the brain.\u201d During the first ten years of my life, it seemed I was in the hospital every other week with a bladder infection or shunt malfunction. I\u2019d be lying if I said this wasn\u2019t really scary at times.<\/p>\n

But then, at age ten, I discovered a fantastic way to defeat my worst fears\u2013 knowledge. I vowed I would educate myself and read up on the condition that, up until that point, seemed to be taking over my life. Much like a child who imagines a ghost is in his closet, grabs a flashlight and realizes it\u2019s only an old coat, I had come to the realization that, when you take the time to learn about something, no matter how terrifying it may seem at first, everything is less scary in the light of knowledge.<\/p>\n

According to the\u00a0Spina Bifida Association of America<\/a>, \u201cspina bifida remains the most commonly occurring birth defect in this country.\u201d Just how common is it overall? PubMed Health, the Web site of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, reported in March of this year: \u201cMyelomeningocele [the most severe form of spina bifida] may affect as many as 1 out of every 800 infants.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a 21-year member of the\u00a0Spina Bifida Association of Central Florida<\/a>, I\u2019m doing my part to shed light on this condition by raising money for the\u00a0Walk-N-Roll for Spina Bifida<\/a>. When my parents and I moved from Puerto Rico to Orlando, Florida in search of better educational and healthcare opportunities for me in 1990, we found a support system away from our family and homeland in joining the SBACFL. My personal search for a public spokesperson for the spina bifida cause, as well as my work as a current member of the SBACFL board of directors, have helped me find my true purpose\u2013 galvanizing as many people as possible to support the spina bifida community.<\/p>\n

So, in the spirit of shedding light on a little-known condition, and in honor of October, which is Spina Bifida Awareness Month, here are some statistics about spina bifida that might spook you a bit:<\/p>\n