Page 9 - Nutshell 4

“We should tell you that we have already consulted a therapist—
and not one for children. She helped us arrive at this point, and with
this level of certainty regarding our choices. So we also have to be
ready for Tommy’s reaction when the time comes for the surgery. He
cannot be forced to undergo it. You must know that.”
“I do.” Doctor Manus nodded. “When it is the right time you may
bring him here to witness the hands being grown. Your job will be to
keep him from suffering any psychological problems as he goes
through childhood. That will not be easy. His best friends may be
other children with apparent—but superficial—disabilities. I cannot
predict how he will do with others his age. It is not my field of
expertise, but I can tell you that individual personality characteristics
make all the difference in such cases. Now, I have some papers for
you to sign, and we will take a small vial of Tommy’s blood.”
Thus began a very unusual life.

As Tommy advanced in life, he passed many milestones. The team
of physical and emotional therapists working with him anticipated
those potentially upsetting challenges and tried to prepare him and
his parents well in advance of their occurrence. First they had to
decide if he should be treated as disabled. The counselors advised Mr.
and Mrs. Tennyson to wait until he discovered his differences on his
own. That did not take long.
Tommy was not aware that he was under greater surveillance than
most infants, and that his behavior was being noted carefully both by
his parents and the caregivers presented as family friends. It was no
surprise to anyone that Tommy took longer than the average baby to
stop thumb-sucking: he had several from which to choose, and never
settled on a favorite. Inevitably he developed unique methods of
using his hands to grasp and twist and throw and catch. His primary
thumb on each hand was dominant, of course, and could oppose any
of the four others. But he could grip things with more than one
opposing thumb, enabling him both to control some objects with
more flexibility and range of motion, and others with less. Of course,
everyone praised him when he mastered manipulating utensils in a
socially-accepted manner, and he learned his own techniques for
washing and dressing. The researchers were particularly interested in
how Tommy would improvise dactylonomy—counting with the
fingers; in this, a cultural habit requiring manual dexterity, he could
not unconsciously imitate other people whose hands had four fingers.