7-year-old uses gymnastics to fight back after rare genetic condition diagnosis
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A local seven-year-old girl is not letting her future be defined by her health as she fights against a rare genetic disorder called Familial Mediterranean fever.
The fever can affect her organs, so she’s using gymnastics to build up her body and fight back.
Emily Crowe is a talented gymnast. She’s only been competing over the last year and has already won a number of medals.
“She’s placed first in multiple events,” said Emily’s coach, Christina Gillette. “She just goes out there and she does her best every time and she’s rewarded by her effort.”
Emily’s condition flares up from time to time, limiting her ability.
“She can have some days that aren’t great for her, where she doesn’t feel good,” Gillette said. “So she misses practice occasionally when her fevers are spiked and she has some muscle aches.”
The disease doesn’t have a cure, so her life is going to be spent getting treatment after treatment.
“Every month she has to get a shot that her mom does,” said Jenna Davis, Emily’s coach. “And without insurance, it’s $15,000.”
But that doesn’t stop her from working hard. In fact, Emily ‘s coaches say it motivates her to work even harder.
“Even the times where she feels tired and achy, she’s still up there and never really wants to take a break even though we make her go get her water drinks and take her breaks,” Coach Sam Heck said. “She’s just an amazing kid.”
Emily is a pretty shy girl and wouldn’t say much about why she works so hard.
“‘Cause you get to do flips,” Emily said.
Some of her motivation might be to get noticed by her hero John Cena. But her coaches say she absolutely loves the sport and no matter what she’s going through, she can accomplish so much.
“She’s kind of just the, she embodies what gymnastics means to our team and to our team spirit that we have here,” Gillette said. “And she’s just one amazing kiddo.”
Westside Gymnastics is setting up a scholarship fund for Emily. If you’d like to know how you can donate to that, you can send an email to westsidegymnastics@sbcglobal.net.