the scales and noted my weight. Next,
he pulled out his stethoscope and
made sure everything was sounding
as it should. Handing me back to my
parents, he simply said, “I’ll be in
touch shortly.”
Two weeks later, Dr Spence sat my
parents down, offered them a glass of
water and began. “Mr and Mrs Ful-
ton,” he said, levelling his gaze over
his elaborate wooden desk. “Your son
has been born with achondroplasia.”
Mum asked a raft of questions and
Dad said nothing.
Dr Spence told them achondro-
plasia is the most common form of
dwarfism. It results in the shortening
of the long bones – the arms and legs- and enlargement of the skull. He
explained that achondroplasia was
not usually detected until the third
trimester of pregnancy and is often
confirmed at birth, or later.
Ashen-faced, my parents listened
as Dr Spence outlined what the
future would hold for me. “Ian will
probably never grow much taller than
four feet, two inches (1.27 metres),”
said the doctor. I ended up stealing
15 centimetres more and topped out
at four feet, eight inches (1.42 metres)
and a bit.READER’S DIGEST
Louise and Jill were waiting to meet
me. They had absolutely no idea I’d
been born with dwarfism and the
possibility wouldn’t have crossed
their minds. There was no known
history of it in our family, although as
I’ve since learned there doesn’t have
to be. When they looked at me, what
they saw was an adorable, chubby
baby brother. “He’s so cute,” my sister
remarked. Mark, older than me by
ten years, had already decided we’d
be great mates.
Two weeks later, my parents went
back to see Dr Sauer, who conduct-
ed his routine exam and then sug-
gested that my parents make an
appointment with Dr Spence, the
paediatrician, as soon as possible.
Mum had never been a big worri-
er, but there was something about
his tone that alarmed her. “Is there
something wrong?” she asked.
“I’m not sure, Mrs Fulton, but I
think a visit to Dr Spence might be a
good idea.”
Dr Spence cradled me in his arms,
carried me to his examination table
and took out his tape measure. He
checked my body length, the length
of my arms and legs and my head cir-
cumference. Then he placed me on
“MR AND MRS FULTON,” THE DOCTOR SAID,
LEVELLING HIS GAZE OVER HIS WOODEN DESK.“YOUR SON HAS BEEN BORN WITH ACHONDROPLASIA”
118 Augus t 2019