I thought it would scare her followers.
Instead, it became a success.
Never have so many people liked and commented on an Instagram post from Ebba Årsjö, 21, as when she first showed off her right leg.
“I thought it looked a little scary and unusual,” she tells Sportbladet.
Klippel-Trenunese Syndrome. It’s the name of the muscle loss suffered by the showrunner athlete Iba Orcho He was born on the right leg.
I did everything to not show it. But she decided a year ago.
For several months, Orshaw planned to post the photos on social media. When the time came, her sister had to help. That night, the 21-year-old was so nervous he couldn’t click the button.
Orshaw thought people would choose to follow her Instagram account when they saw what she herself calls her “little leg”.
– I thought it looked a little scary and unusual. Maybe someone is thinking…or yeah, I don’t really know what I was thinking, says Orshaw.
Ebba rsjö woke up to success
I went to bed and woke up the next morning to what had become of her most liked and commented on the post I had ever made on Instagram.
Hockey player William Eklund, alpine star Sarah Hector and former biathlete Magdalena Forsberg were among those who left a comment.
– It’s really cool that everyone is writing.
One of the reasons Orshaw posted the photos was to prove it to those in the canopy who questioned it. But she understands them. Because with the pants on, she doesn’t seem to have a disability.
– They are obviously wondering, but I’m a little tired of it. So, now I wanted to display it very carefully.
“No need to talk or be nice”
When Sportbladet arrived in Orcho by phone, she was sitting at work, on an excavator. Not because they need to work. Because with the money from the umbrella, she was able to support herself. But it’s more about helping her father’s company when the other men are on vacation, she said.
I can’t get up and go to any shop or restaurant. It was not a perfect day. Now I sit in a comfortable chair and drive my car. It is perfect for the leg. Orshaw says and laughs before she continues:
– It’s very good to be with dad too, although it can be rocky.
Return to the family. Her parents hardly want to talk about her daughter’s hospital visits, all the surgeries and everything that was difficult when she was little.
– I don’t know much about her, but I know what they’ve done for me over the past ten years. They did everything for me to become an athlete. Alpine star Orcho, who left his first Paralympic Games last winter with two gold and one bronze medals, says it almost did a little too much.
accepted the situation
Orshaw says there isn’t a lot of research on KTS, and very few have it.
– Lose hope a little. We (the family) tried to leave it because you just feel sad every time we go to the hospital and I have to explain to the good doctors what I have. At this level it is. It’s the same all the time, says the 21-year-old who has nevertheless accepted the situation.
– I came out like that, I still look like that.
How does it feel when you live in uncertainty where you don’t know how your leg will feel in the future?
– it’s boring. My parents have struggled all my life trying to improve it. It’s hard and bad for them. I can do much more than that. I can do plastic surgeries and go outside and try. But I kind of lose more in that. It won’t get much better and it will only hurt. It’s very good that you are. I can live a long life as it is now. I’m fine with this and it should be the same.
The pain is hard to explain to Orcho. She doesn’t know what it’s like to live without Klippel-Trenaunay. But she still tries to describe it.
– It hurts constantly. Exactly all the time. I probably feel nothing when I have nothing on my legs and lie on the couch or in bed. It is also swollen and brittle and there is no skin. As soon as you touch it, it hurts, and she says and continues:
Swelling. It’s hard to explain, but it feels like you’re pulling a rubber band over your finger and squeezing it.
“It’s All About Appearance”
The phone call led us to our upbringing. What it was like to grow up with a disability at a time when the idealistic world of social media has such an impact.
Then Orshaw mentioned that it worked.
– I have to click a button and the sound will appear for a while.
He howled for three seconds before she answered:
Influences and the media do not affect much. It was more when I was young and old. Among friends at school and other athletes form. It affected me.
In which way?
– Now you can all see what the leg looks like. It was hard when I was a kid and especially in my teens. That time was not fun. It’s all about appearance and kids say what they think. They have no filters and you believe what they say.
Now she is focusing on her skating career. But there will be time after that. Although for a 21-year-old it may seem far-fetched. Preferably give a lecture on motivating people with disabilities.
But there is a plan B.
– Otherwise it would be so with my father, says Orshaw, laughing from his chair inside the digger.
What did you say during a lecture?
I just want to encourage others to look at me and see what I’ve done. It works if you dare. It doesn’t have to be into sports. It could be anything. As long as you don’t lie on the couch all the time. Because it can be very common to be limited when you are born with a disability.