Warrior Beads (my medical journey in one picture)

I came across something called "Warrior Beads" last month after 2 of my facebook friends posted pictures with theirs. Warrior Beads is very similar to Beads of Courage. For anyone unsure on what this is, it's mainly based in America (however is also available in the UK for children with cancer). It's a way of helping a child tell their medical journey in a fun, positive and colourful way. They receive a glass bead for going through things medically. Unlike Beads of Courage, Warrior Beads has no age limit, no limit on which countries can apply and no medical conditions are excluded (both mental and physical).

I choose to back date mine to the start of my medical journey (2008 with essential tremor/2009 with asthma) however you can choose the date in which to start yours. I guessed a great deal of the things as some of the categories were too challenging to give a proper answer on. There's a colour of bead for basically everything!

These are my Warrior Beads:

In this picture I have 2,814 beads. Each bead represents something I have gone through medically. You also receive special beads for reaching 50 and 100 within any colour of bead as well as special beads of medical milestones and everyday accomplishments. 

Illness is something that is so negative. It causes you to go through a great deal of both emotional and physical pain and hurts those closest to you. Warrior Beads brings a positive out of every negative experience I have been through. Some may not understand how a mass quantity of beads can mean so much to me but they mean more than words can say. They show me how strong a person I have been and continue to be. I have been through a great deal medically, and it's shown visually using warrior beads, however it helps me to see just how brave and strong I truly have been. I've gotten through so much and will continue to fight :)

292 doctor/clinic visits (dark blue bead)
221 inpatient days in hospital (yellow bead)
24 HDU/ICU stays (gold bead)
43 isolation stays (tan bead)
234 A&E visits (red bead)
206 ambulance rides (white bead)
423 needle pokes (black bead)
219 IV medications (orange bead)
1 hair loss (dark brown bead)
32 no food/drink before a procedure (light blue bead)
303 x-ray's/CT Scans/MRI Scans/Ultrasounds (olive bead)
163 ECG's (copper bead)
6 procedures (star bead)
206 oxygen required (pink bead)
8 catheter's (lime green bead)
9 days with a feeding tube (when applied for) (green bead)
2 respiratory therapy's (khaki bead)
1 EEG (clear purple bead)
4 seizures (purple bead)
1 glasses, 1 contacts (clear bead)
394 days of school/uni/work missed (clear yellow bead)

If anyone would be interested in finding out more about Warrior Beads check out these links:

Application form: http://www.1boy4change.org/warrior-beads-application.html

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/1Boy4Change?fref=ts

Website: http://www.1boy4change.org/