For me that's personal in a way that is hard to describe. I'm a mutant. Not just in the medical sense of the word but in many ways the Hollywood image of a mutant. Though I am closer to the world of Mr. Fantastic than that of an X-Men like Cyclops. I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome a rare genetic disorder in which the connective tissue that literally holds together my body is made of a different genetic makeup to that of a normal person.
It means that my joints are hypermobile with an almost supernatural range of motion. My fingers bend back to the wrist, the wrist can bend back to the arm, and the arm can rotate 360 degrees around itself. The elbows bend inward without me even thinking about it. As do my knees. They simply lock into place holding me steady when I stop for a long period of time. My torso can twist around like an action figures. I'm what many people dub a rubber man. But I'm not a Super Hero by any means, I'm sick.
Much of the mundane aspects of my life like holding a pen or even writing this article are affected by this mutation. I can't grip a pencil or pen like a normal person and my hand writing may make your doctors look like a founding fathers. As I'm typing my thumb keeps forcing itself painfully out of joint and it’s a struggle to continue. The truth is that Ehlers Danlos Syndrome is a chronic pain disorder and can even be fatal. Sadly often overshadowed by the more fantastic traits accompanying the disease are the very real difficulties that are also a part of daily life for people with EDS.
I wake every day with new bruises and scrapes with no offense greater than having just slept poorly. I don't really feel them and each day is just a dull ache in the background. It comes with some mitigation of pain because in many ways it’s a constant companion. There are occasions when it is harder to cope.
Physical pain can be shrugged off or overcome when an injury fades. Recovering from the anguish of a childhood where I could have been called a freak more times than friend is another matter. I was a constant target of bullying even having rocks thrown at me on my way home from school on more than one occasion.
As overwrought as it may sound the idea of being persecuted for being different is as much as part of my life as any X-man and for that reason to see dueling natures of Erik Lensher and Magneto play out on the screen with vengeance on the mind of one and the urge for peace in the mind of the other tears at me viscerally. But with an effort like this on the silver screen I'm able to stand up and smile. Why not be proud to be a real life mutant. Why not say it as publicly as possible that it’s ok to be different. It might even land you a magazine column or a spot on the silver screen. Just don't bet on me wearing tights or a shiny purple helmet.
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