- 2 weeks ago
Boy Band Confidential - Season 1 Episode 3 - Deep Cuts
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00:00Peace out from your lizard queen.
00:02Someone called me half-faced once.
00:05Bruh, I'm not that inflate.
00:07It's very scary, but it makes me, like,
00:10unique in my own ways.
00:12The physical effects are super flaky skin.
00:15I don't feel like leaving the house.
00:17I don't feel like moving.
00:19I do remember the first plastic surgeon
00:21saying they would fix you.
00:23Sorry.
00:25I'm still looking for answers.
00:28Get in there!
00:30You look like a dragon.
00:32Wow, that's pretty good.
00:34My mom has to let me live my life.
00:36Six toys.
00:38Four.
00:39The disabled.
00:40Don't tempt me with a good time.
00:42Do you still think I'm hot?
00:43Of course I do.
00:45I honestly never thought that I would find a girlfriend.
00:49I always assumed that no one could ever look past my face.
01:03My name is Lucas Caldwell.
01:04I'm from Omaha, Nebraska, and I'm 21 years old.
01:08I was diagnosed with Pararembric Syndrome when I was around 7 years old.
01:12It is extremely rare.
01:15Let's see what I get.
01:19Bruh, I'm not that ablate.
01:21It occurs in about one every 250,000 individuals.
01:25It's a syndrome where tissues on one side of the face start to atrophy over time.
01:30It usually starts in kind of late childhood and progresses from there.
01:34Basically, what ended up happening is my immune system got confused and ate away all the fat on the right
01:40side of my face,
01:41which is why my face is no longer symmetrical.
01:43It's a pretty disfiguring disease, to be honest.
01:53The earliest symptom I can remember was, I think, discoloration in the skin.
01:58And that's really the reason I went to go to the doctor in the first place.
02:03The hardest part of watching Lucas's face change was he kind of withdrew.
02:09During school, I'm not going to lie, I was an extreme loner.
02:13I did not try to make friends.
02:15I didn't really have many friends.
02:18People called me just ugly and weird.
02:22And people would often pretend that I was contagious and avoid me.
02:28It was upsetting.
02:29It makes you really upset, honestly.
02:33I had to sit by and watch my face deteriorate, and there was nothing that I could do about it.
02:40Unfortunately, there is no cure for Perry-Romberg syndrome, so I just had to wait for the condition to stop
02:45on its own and then get the damage corrected through surgery.
02:50I had low self-confidence and social anxiety.
02:54That's something that has shaped every aspect of my entire life.
02:57And honestly, I'm still dealing with even to this day.
03:01Boys, food's ready.
03:04Okay guys, have a seat before it gets cold.
03:07My family have always supported me throughout my entire journey.
03:11How are the eggs?
03:12Very good.
03:12It's a lot better than when I make them.
03:14I live in a household with my dad, my mom, and my identical twin brother, Ben.
03:21How's it going?
03:22Going good.
03:25Happy birthday to you.
03:29It was just kind of like almost uncanny in a way, us being identical in appearance, seeing his face change
03:36but mine stay the same.
03:37It was really kind of unsettling and weird seeing that happen.
03:40And it was also, again, seven, eight years old, kind of just distressing to see the person closest to you
03:45going through that.
03:46And so suddenly, within the course of a few months.
03:50Tell me this is Easter morning, 2010.
03:56Where is your first clue going to take you?
04:00I remember one day you commented about just he had this little dark spot on his chin.
04:05Lucas would have been six.
04:07We could notice it more.
04:09And so we're like, okay, it's time to go in and get this looked at.
04:13They decided to do a biopsy on his chin area.
04:17And it came back with the diagnosis with Perry Romberg syndrome.
04:21I think we're just in shock first.
04:24We didn't really understand a lot about what Perry Romberg syndrome was because it was such a rare disease.
04:32The right side of my face started collapsing.
04:35Where'd you get your corn?
04:37From the market.
04:39From the market?
04:41Do you like corn?
04:42Yeah.
04:44Okay, how was your first day, guys?
04:47It was good?
04:50People always ask why my identical twin doesn't have my rare disease, and I'm going to tell you.
04:55And it's simply due to the fact that my condition is not hereditary.
05:00It definitely does cross your mind, like, why didn't that happen to me?
05:04You have the same DNA and you're like from the same egg initially.
05:08It's kind of unfair that he has it and I don't.
05:11I can say there was never a time where I was envious of Ben.
05:14Is it unfair?
05:15Like, I suppose, but that's kind of just how life goes.
05:26I dealt with a lot of very challenging physical symptoms, whether that be face cramps, jaw pain, migraines, but also
05:35the emotional aspect was very challenging for me.
05:37I almost felt like I was so detached from the social aspect of school.
05:41I literally just thought I was never going to make friends at all.
05:44Or have a girlfriend.
05:45I thought it was impossible.
05:46But I'm going on a date today.
05:59My name is Stephanie Randall, and I'm 27.
06:02And the muscular dystrophy that I have is Duchenne, and it's rare.
06:07It's supposed to only occur in males, and I am, like, one out of 50 million females that have it.
06:18It makes me, like, unique in my own way, so it's kind of like, hey, this is pretty cool.
06:34Stephanie, you're coming to get your ass.
06:46I first got my halo when I turned 11.
06:50There are six screws that are pushed against the skull.
06:54The halo attaches to the pole, and it straightens me, takes all the pressure off my lungs and stomach.
07:02When I'm off of the halo, I'm putting so much pressure onto the lungs, and it does make it difficult
07:09to breathe,
07:09which is why when I lay down, I use my breathing machine.
07:13There's no pain at all that I feel from the halo.
07:19There.
07:20There.
07:22There.
07:22I needed to stay alive, so.
07:26Okay.
07:26I wish I was a little more independent instead of being closed off at home.
07:31Like, I'm just me.
07:33Like, you know, the wheelchair, the halo.
07:36I'm just this outgoing person.
07:38Can you just kiss the top a little bit?
07:41Okay.
07:41Is that good?
07:42Right there?
07:43Yeah.
07:44I need to rely on my mom for a lot of things.
07:47Make me feel suffocated a lot of the time.
07:50Just want to break free and go out with people my age and meet people my age and go on
07:56date.
07:57And just enjoy and have fun.
08:00It's my favorite part of the day, putting on my makeup.
08:05Something I'm able to do on my own.
08:22So me and Summer met on social media.
08:24We've known each other for almost two years now.
08:28It's a big deal for me to go out with someone totally new.
08:32And I'm very excited but just nervous at the same time.
08:36Well, it'd be nice for y'all to go out together, you know, and talk about stuff with somebody closer
08:44to your age.
08:45I know you want to meet guys and all that.
08:48Mmm, yeah, I see a smile.
08:52Whatever men come over here that you're interested in, I have to meet them first.
08:58Not gonna happen.
08:59Sorry.
09:01That's something you have no control over.
09:03We have a big issue because she keeps telling me that she's grown.
09:07I am grown.
09:09That she's grown, she's grown.
09:11Because of my situation, she thinks I'm still this younger person.
09:15I just want to prove that I can do all the things that people my age do.
09:19But it's a tough world out there.
09:22I feel like you'll meet them when I'm ready.
09:25Nah, no, girl.
09:26It's not when you're ready, it's when I'm ready.
09:29Huh.
09:30Okay.
09:34I'm still a woman and I still have wants and needs, like sexually and dating and things like that.
09:40How's it going ladies?
09:41Hey, how are y'all?
09:43Hi.
09:43Hi, what's your name?
09:45Nice to meet you.
09:45Nice to meet you.
09:48The dermatologist just told me, slanted this all over your body until it gets the reaction under control.
09:53I wake up, I look in the mirror and I go, another day of being a lizard.
09:57It's bad.
10:07I wake up, I look in the mirror and I go, another day of being a lizard.
10:16Peace out from your lizard queen.
10:19My name is Ellie.
10:21I am 27 years old and I have topical steroid withdrawal.
10:34Skin update.
10:36It's doing bad.
10:39The more internal symptoms are the temperature regulation is really bad.
10:44I can't go an entire night without a puddle of sweat.
10:49Sweat makes you itch.
10:50So I'm scratching all the time.
10:52My skin is red and flaky.
10:55I don't think anyone else is waking up with a pile of skin flakes next to them.
11:00I don't think people are vacuuming their nightstands the way I'm vacuuming my nightstand.
11:05It's very frustrating.
11:07My feelings are, I'm mad. I'm mad and I'm frustrated.
11:11My TSW is a self diagnosis, but that is because I have not met a dermatologist yet that even recognizes
11:18it as an option to diagnose me with it.
11:20They would go, oh, well, we can't really speak on that because it's not officially recognized condition.
11:27Looks like you have eczema.
11:28Looks like you should use steroids.
11:30That's been my experience and that really pisses me off.
11:46I am trying to heal naturally.
11:48I don't want really anything prescribed.
11:52Honestly, today's a good day for a compared relative to the last few days.
11:57Today's a good day.
11:59I've had eczema my entire life.
12:02I've been prescribed steroids since I was about six years old.
12:06So much steroid cream.
12:10They work so well so quickly.
12:13And that's what I did my entire life.
12:24The dermatologist just told me, slanted this all over your body until it gets the reaction under control.
12:30And as soon as I would ever stop doing that, like day one of stopping doing that, the full body
12:36rash would come back.
12:38So I kept doing that and I was like, maybe this is not good.
12:44So I made the conscious decision to just stop using these steroids.
12:48They need to be out of my life.
12:50I mean, I know it's going to be a really rough road, but it's for the better.
12:55Within the first two months or so of stopping the steroids, the physical effects that you get from that are
13:03really extreme.
13:05Super red skin, super flaky skin, super dry skin.
13:11Lots of cuts and wounds.
13:13Your skin is a lot thinner because the steroids over time, they thin your skin.
13:19So there's wrinkles that where you kind of shouldn't really have wrinkles, especially like at my age.
13:24Also, you're itchy all the time.
13:26Being itchy all the time is not fun.
13:27You're in public just like scratching everything.
13:31Honestly, it's very difficult to not like want to scrape it off my face because it is so flaky.
13:40The worst when my skin was completely white, it was all very intense.
13:46My mind went to tunnel vision of just get through the day, truthfully.
13:52The physical sensation was unbearable, like just taking off clothes, putting on clothes would make me come to tears.
14:01I get stares sometimes when I go out in public.
14:04I almost think they maybe have pity for me, unfortunately.
14:07I don't feel like leaving the house.
14:09I just kind of want to sit shivering in silence.
14:13Yeah, it was pretty rough in the beginning.
14:16All of it is so tiring.
14:19Can I look normal again, please?
14:23Dating the Lizard Queen is such an honor.
14:25I'm the king concert of all of the different lizards out there.
14:32Craig is my loving husband.
14:34He has supported me tenfold through this condition and he has been there with me through a lot of tears,
14:42a lot of mental breakdowns.
14:44Her TSW didn't progress and show itself until a year after we got married.
14:54We're only married a year and it's like up and now she's a lizard. What did I sign up for?
14:59The sickness and health did come early.
15:00Yeah, the sickness and health came very early on.
15:04My heart just hurts for Ellie when she's struggling with her skin.
15:08I wish there was something I could do, but just have to help and support her as a person and
15:13what she needs emotionally in those moments.
15:16I'm just ready to be done with it. I'm tired of it.
15:20I've tried everything under the sun.
15:23Every beef fat tallow, every supernatural organic seaweed based cream.
15:30I've tried salt baths, supplements, diet changing. I've tried cutting out alcohol.
15:36I've tried immunosuppressant shots. I have tried literally everything.
15:41I'm still looking for answers.
15:45But I'm not alone.
15:52We're best friends.
15:54And now we have the same skin condition.
15:59I wish that we didn't both have to go through this.
16:01Yeah, same. What the heck man?
16:03Do we look similar?
16:04The crust matches.
16:06But you can actually understand the symptoms.
16:09But it has definitely, I think, made us closer.
16:11Under bad circumstances, but it has made us closer.
16:15Yeah.
16:16We are looking for answers together.
16:19It just looks like, my sense of giving some help.
16:26I always felt like I was different from everyone else.
16:30I was often bullied.
16:32The worst names that people would call me, someone called me half-faced once.
16:42Whenever we were out, it was hard.
16:46You've got people just staring and whispering or wondering.
16:52It just, yeah, that was upsetting.
16:54It doesn't bother me as much now because Lucas stands up for himself.
16:58And it was more when he was smaller and he couldn't.
17:04That it bothered me.
17:05Sorry.
17:06Now I'm getting emotional.
17:09I remember the first plastic surgeon looking at you and saying that they would fix you.
17:15Sorry.
17:15It's a shame.
17:17And he said that because you look so sad.
17:24Ideally, you want this condition to what we call burnout or stop progressing before you provide some surgical treatment.
17:34It is helpful to follow these patients for a few years to make sure it's not getting any worse before
17:39you intervene.
17:48I started posting on social media about my experiences with peri-rombic syndrome when I was a sophomore in high
17:54school.
17:55I duetted a girl who was complaining that her face wasn't symmetrical.
17:59And I thought it would be funny for me to duet and say, what are you complaining about?
18:03Like, look at me.
18:09What would it look like if both sides of my face were sunken in?
18:12Let me show you.
18:13And I think this filter looks really weird because it basically shows what you would look like if you had
18:18no fat on your face.
18:22I'd say it was hard to stay positive just because it took such a long span of time to get
18:29to the point where he could have the reconstructive surgery.
18:33It got to be a lot.
18:50I thought that I would have a surgery, I would recover, and then I would look completely normal.
18:56And people would look at me and be like, oh wow, you look so different, that's insane, but it's not
19:02really the reality of it.
19:07I had double jaw surgery to completely realign the bone structure in my face.
19:12They broke my jaw and they put it back together with bolts and screws.
19:17My face was so swollen that it was hard to breathe and I would have blood that came out of
19:23my nose.
19:24It was hellish.
19:26I think this was the lowest point of my treatment.
19:29He had to drink with a syringe for weeks.
19:32You could tell it was just really painful.
19:36That's difficult.
19:37You know, nobody wants to see anybody suffer, but you watch your child suffer and go through that.
19:41It's hard.
19:43I've also had three rounds of liposuction.
19:46For this procedure, they harvested fat from my back and they injected it into my face to create more volume.
19:53Wow, that's pretty good.
19:59It'll go down a little bit.
20:01It's going to always look where she just got done, but he did fill in.
20:05And he took out over here, so that's why you have blood running down.
20:14In just a few days, I'm going to be getting a face transplant surgery.
20:19This procedure is a type of transplant surgery.
20:22However, I will be serving as my own donor.
20:25We needed more volume.
20:27So we performed a microsurgical procedure where we took a large muscle out of his thigh with an artery and
20:35vein.
20:35And we made an incision here, created a space for that muscle.
20:39Hi, everybody.
20:41This is my first morning after my transplant surgery.
20:45And I honestly feel terrible.
20:50I wanted to show you something that's kind of cool.
20:52If you can hear that thing that sounds like a heartbeat, what that is, is they actually implanted a microphone
21:00into the muscle that they put into my face.
21:03So that's how they're monitoring the flap to make sure that it has blood flow and that it isn't going
21:08to die.
21:09Hello, everybody. I'm about to go for a walk around the wing, and you're going to come with me.
21:15I couldn't walk for about a month after the surgery.
21:19And I had to go to PT for several months to completely relearn how to walk.
21:25Sometimes I felt trapped in the hospital.
21:28Life was passing me by.
21:31I've only ever known my condition and the treatment, so it's pretty much my normal.
21:41During high school, he never really attempted to go for girls just because I felt like because of his physical
21:49deformation and his skin condition, he had kind of just written himself off.
21:54People always ask if I've ever had a girlfriend, and the answer is actually no.
21:58I honestly never thought that I would find a girlfriend.
22:02It was really just something that I thought was impossible.
22:05One thing that I always assumed was that no one could ever look past my face.
22:17After I graduated, that's when he officially asked me to be his girlfriend.
22:27My favorite food to eat is probably like Chick-fil-A or chicken.
22:38You want syrup on your pancakes?
22:40Yes.
22:47They want her to weigh between 80 and 90 because her muscular dystrophy, you know, she got to keep weight
22:55on.
22:56But they also, at the same time, they don't want her to weigh too much because the traction can only
23:02hold so much weight.
23:03Right now, I'm sitting at a weight about 76 pounds.
23:07It's very scary because there's days where I don't have an appetite to eat anything.
23:13It's a danger point if she goes too low because they're not going to be able to bring it up
23:20real fast.
23:21You know, it would make her body just deteriorate.
23:32She don't get enough food.
23:35Stephanie could die.
23:37And I would lose her.
23:40Basically, that's what I'm doing, trying to keep my daughter alive every day because I want her with her, me,
23:46for as long as I can.
23:49I'm getting all emotional. Let me stop.
23:51Uh, that's my baby girl.
23:58Mom, please stop.
24:02My mom is very, very protective.
24:04But I mean, I understand where she's coming from.
24:06But I'm always telling my mom, like, just leave me alone.
24:10I just feel like sometimes she thinks that she has input on things that she really doesn't.
24:15Like, if I wasn't in this situation, she wouldn't have input in.
24:19So, that's where we disagree.
24:21Yeah, you wouldn't be living here.
24:25Oh.
24:27Okay.
24:40Hi.
24:47Finally.
24:48Me and Summer are going to go out to dinner.
24:51Destiny's going to take us over there.
24:53Since she's more familiar with everything that I have to use or like to load up the walker to the
25:00car.
25:04Yeah, it's good. That's good.
25:09With Stephanie going out, there's a concern with me.
25:13You know, because there's people that take advantage of you.
25:16And that worries me.
25:18I don't want her to be hurt.
25:21But we all are here on borrowed time.
25:23So, she has to let me live my life and make my own mistakes.
25:28Whether she wants to or not.
25:41Great to say. I think you look very nice today.
25:44You look nice too.
25:49I honestly never thought that I would ever have a girlfriend until I met Taylor.
25:54Me and Taylor first met on the internet.
25:56I think we've texted every day for, it's over a year and a half.
26:02Excited to play pool?
26:03Yeah.
26:05It'll be an interesting experience.
26:08He messaged me on Snapchat out of the blue one night.
26:12And then I looked him up on Instagram and I was like, oh my God, I know who this is.
26:17I already follow him.
26:19I've never been to this place either.
26:21I guess it'll be an adventure.
26:26I don't have a script for this or know what you're supposed to do in these situations.
26:32This is kind of me just winging it.
26:34In 500 feet, make a U-turn.
26:36Oh my Lord.
26:38Make a U-turn, then turn left onto Mockingbird Drive.
26:41Did it just want us to go the other way at that intersection?
26:50Are you excited to meet Maddie and Ben?
26:52Yeah.
26:54I think you'll like Maddie.
26:57I think going on my first double date with Maddie and Ben is something that is very nerve-wracking for
27:03me.
27:04I think it's mostly due to just not really having any experience in that realm.
27:12Are you competitive?
27:14I can be.
27:16I'm going to try and win, but I'm also not going to be disappointed if we lose.
27:20Because no, I'm not the greatest at this.
27:30I'm going with my sister to a place that has red light therapy.
27:34And we're also going to be doing cryotherapy, which is essentially super cold therapy.
27:48Hopefully it doesn't make me feel more dry and cracked.
27:52Yeah, we'll see.
27:53My hands are already in shambles from the dry air.
27:57In the healthcare system, I have been met with a lot of dismissiveness.
28:04It's really disheartening.
28:05Every day is trial and error with a new treatment method.
28:09Hey, welcome again.
28:10Hi, how are you?
28:21That's the back cryo-built chamber.
28:23It's 141 degrees negative.
28:27Huh?
28:27That's insane.
28:29That's really cool.
28:30Negative 140?
28:31Yes.
28:31That's terrifying.
28:33I didn't know people could survive being in that low of a temperature.
28:37The maximum of time that any person can be in here is three fitness at 30 seconds.
28:42It's for healing.
28:44Discomfort for healing.
28:45Discomfort for healing, yeah.
28:50Oh my God.
28:53Get in there!
28:57Oh.
28:58You're doing great!
29:01You look like a dragon.
29:03I step out and I get an instant sense of relief.
29:09That's great!
29:12So that's nice.
29:13How cold it was in there really lowers your inflammation in your body all over.
29:19The red light pod?
29:21Yeah.
29:21I feel like I'm getting into spaceship.
29:24See you on the next planet.
29:25Oh, that is so bright.
29:28Woo!
29:30Hey.
29:33Well, yes.
29:34Well, yes.
29:36There's no miracle cream, but there's little things that can speed up the healing by fractions.
29:43I think red light helps.
29:52The heat, it starts to make you itchy.
29:56It's almost like a mental toughness game of can you survive the really uncomfortable sweaty itch.
30:03Itching happens subconsciously.
30:05You don't even realize it.
30:06I thought you were done.
30:08I know.
30:08It's a different one.
30:09It's a different one.
30:09Sometimes it helps to like slap it instead or do any other kind of stimulation.
30:15Being a completely self-diagnosed condition, it's hard because we have to figure it out on our own.
30:21It's just like, that's a lot of responsibility.
30:25I really want dermatologists and doctors just to be curious about it and open to the fact that it could
30:31be a real thing so that more research can be done.
30:35The red light therapy treatment went so well.
30:39Like, we agreed that we're going to use these every day.
30:43Hopefully we see as good of results as we saw after doing the treatment.
30:47The maximum healing.
30:48Yeah, maximum healing.
30:50Exactly.
30:56Tonight is dinner with my husband for Valentine's Day.
31:01I do get self-conscious sometimes when I'm out in public just because, you know, I have this internal vision
31:06of what I look like.
31:07And my internal vision is what I looked like before TSW.
31:13I feel cute.
31:16Cheers.
31:17Happy Valentine's Day.
31:18Happy Valentine's Day.
31:20Do you still think I'm hot?
31:22Of course I do.
31:23I feel like I never like thought twice about like your skin like when you're gone.
31:27I know.
31:27You have always reminded me that you're like, nope, I don't see you differently.
31:31I still am attracted to you.
31:33I never saw you differently.
31:34I feel like you've always been like your same beautiful self.
31:38I feel like I'm maybe 80% healed.
31:41Even if it's two step forward, one step back, it's still like, hey, you're making progress.
31:45Keep doing what you're doing.
31:46Yeah.
31:51I definitely think I've made a lot of progress with healing, thankfully.
31:54Things have improved drastically.
31:58I'm really hoping my future revolves less around my skin.
32:03That one day it will just go back to being a little annoying side character.
32:16I've never done a double date before, so it's a little intimidating.
32:21It's going to be difficult to introduce Taylor to Ben and Maddie, but I think we can work through it.
32:29Hey, guys.
32:30How's it going?
32:30What's up, bro?
32:31What's up?
32:33Hi, Maddie.
32:34This is Taylor.
32:35Nice to meet you.
32:35I'm Maddie.
32:36Good to meet you.
32:40There we go.
32:42It was honestly kind of a weird experience just because for so long, dating hadn't even been something that I
32:48really associated with Lucas,
32:50just because he never really put himself out there for that type of thing.
32:54What made you guys like originally connect?
32:57She actually has pet turtles and I have a pet tortoise, so that was a big thing.
33:02Oh, my gosh.
33:02Finally seeing him gain that level of confidence to meet somebody and then getting to meet her for the first
33:08time obviously was a really big moment for him and for me, and it was just really cool, honestly.
33:13So move your entire body closer to me just a little.
33:16Okay.
33:16Okay.
33:17Now put your hand on there.
33:19Try and hit center and like follow through to the ball as well.
33:24There you go.
33:25Yeah.
33:26Pretty nerve-wracking having Maddie and Ben meet Taylor for the first time, but I think they're getting along really
33:30nicely.
33:31We've had some jokes, had some laughs.
33:33And make sure to really hit it and follow through.
33:35Try and hit it.
33:36Nice.
33:36There you go.
33:38If I make this, sign me up for the pro tour right now.
33:41Got it.
33:43Or do that.
33:44I'd rather date someone with a good heart and then like Mr. Perfect or whatever, but even before any of
33:51the surgeries, he was a really cute guy.
33:57Uh-oh.
34:00We just won!
34:02We win.
34:03Good game.
34:04Good game.
34:05Good game.
34:06Good game.
34:06Good game.
34:07Did I end the night with a kiss?
34:09Man does not kiss and tell, so I am not going to tell you that.
34:13We did seal our night with a kiss.
34:19My life has been completely transformed by my reconstructive surgeries.
34:23I think it would be very humbling and fulfilling to give that same thing to other people.
34:33He actually came and shadowed with me in the clinic one time.
34:36He wants to go to med school, maybe even be a plastic surgeon, which is super cool.
34:45Then over time, they've actually...
34:49Who's that?
34:49That's my phone.
34:50Oh, for goodness sake.
34:52Oh, it's Lucas.
34:53Hey.
34:54Hi.
34:55How's it going?
34:55Good.
34:56I'm actually in the interview.
34:58Uh-huh.
34:59So, how can I help you, son?
35:02Okay.
35:03I was just accepted to the University of Kansas School of Medicine.
35:06No!
35:07That's awesome!
35:08You got into KU Med!
35:10Seriously?
35:11Oh, did Ben here?
35:13Are you good?
35:14Oh, God.
35:14Yeah!
35:15That's...
35:16That's amazing.
35:17Oh, congratulations, buddy.
35:19That is really amazing.
35:21Yeah, you worked so hard and I'm really proud of you.
35:24I would describe myself as a new person.
35:28Someone who's come a long way.
35:30I had always dreamed about what it would be like to just be able to blend into the crowd
35:35and to just be, I suppose, for lack of a better term, normal.
35:44Thanks, Toys, for the Desai Zai Movement.
35:48Don't tempt me with a good time.
35:55Okay, girls.
36:07Go down a little.
36:09There.
36:09Right there?
36:10Yeah.
36:10Okay.
36:11I'm so glad you can make it.
36:12I know.
36:12I'm so happy to be here.
36:13How do you think your mom feels like when you go, like, when you go out?
36:16I think worried.
36:18You think she worries about you?
36:19Yeah.
36:20Yeah.
36:21Especially if I don't like drinking.
36:24Okay.
36:24Ooh.
36:26Nice.
36:27Okay, if you do the judge.
36:29Oh, you clearly like it.
36:31So do you ever see yourself, like, coming to a place like this, like, on a date?
36:36Yeah.
36:37Like, you want all the things, like, family, like, marriage.
36:41Yeah.
36:41And everything.
36:42Yeah.
36:43Like, the dream.
36:44Yeah.
36:44Someone to, like, just love me for me.
36:48Yeah.
36:48Treat me.
36:49Like, I'm just a normal person.
36:51Yeah.
36:51Because I am a normal person.
36:52You are a normal person.
36:53Yeah.
36:54With a few flaws.
36:55Still a woman, and I still have wants and needs, like, sexually and dating and things
37:00like that.
37:02Yeah.
37:02In terms of, like, intimacy, like...
37:06So, of course, I get those desires.
37:09I mean, who doesn't...
37:10You get booty calls?
37:12It's been about, like, a year, like, since I've had sex with anybody or hung out.
37:18Do you have to come off of your equipment?
37:22Yeah.
37:22I get off of the wheelchair.
37:24Do they take you off of it?
37:26Yeah.
37:27Like, I've showed them, like, how to...
37:28Oh, you show them how to...
37:29Yeah, disconnect me.
37:30Oh, wow.
37:30Exactly.
37:32If I want to have sex, I'm going to go have sex.
37:35I live life on the edge.
37:38Stephanie is no different than any other woman.
37:42Learning that her limitations are not really limitations, A, like, she's capable of doing
37:47all the things.
37:48Why not?
37:49But a year is a long time.
37:50I mean, it's hard.
37:52A little toy, like, a really long one.
37:55You could just...
37:56You could.
37:58Let's see.
37:59Six toys for disabled women.
38:04Like, are you able to hold things like a selfie stick and stuff like that?
38:07Mm-hmm.
38:07So, yeah.
38:08You'd be able to hold this easily.
38:10Or this.
38:15And then your mom wouldn't even know what it is.
38:18This would be good.
38:19I think it's a back scratcher.
38:27Yes, we could tell that it's a back scratcher.
38:29That's good.
38:30I think we should get you one step.
38:33I say let's do it.
38:34Don't tempt me with a good time.
38:36Yeah.
38:37Could you imagine your mom finding that?
38:41I don't know.
38:42I don't understand.
38:51How's it going, ladies?
38:53Hey, Ariel.
38:54Hey.
38:54Hi.
38:55How are you?
38:56Stephanie.
38:57Nice to meet you.
38:58Nice to meet you.
38:59Do you want to talk a little bit later?
39:00No.
39:02So when I'm at the bar and I make, like, eye contact with someone in the bar, it tells me
39:07that, like, my body heats up.
39:10You know?
39:11What all does it until?
39:12You saw her and you're like, oh, that's different?
39:14Obviously.
39:14Yeah.
39:15I mean, I'm not going to lie about that.
39:16Yeah.
39:17It's not a big deal.
39:18I mean, so what?
39:19But it is what it is.
39:20Yeah, it's not on my hands.
39:21Are you in it, like, 24-7?
39:23Yeah.
39:24Like, when I'm up, I'm in it.
39:26So, like, when you're sleeping, you're not in it, right?
39:28No, I'm not in it.
39:28That's what I was about to ask.
39:30Okay.
39:31That's one of my most asked questions, like, when I go home.
39:33Yeah.
39:33Do you sleep like that just straight up?
39:35They're like, I don't have that.
39:35I mean, hey, I've slept in some, like, awkward...
39:38They're really bad.
39:40The guys that came over were very respectful and they were genuinely interested in my situation.
39:47The one in the green was definitely good-looking.
39:51What is that like, dating for you?
39:54It's...
39:55I think it's, like, pretty normal to me.
39:57Like, if I'm gonna live life, I'm gonna live it how I want.
40:00Yeah.
40:01You're a cool person.
40:03It's been a while since I've had, like, a chat with a guy in person.
40:08We agreed to, like, you know, maybe hang out again.
40:12So it was really nice.
40:13I enjoyed it.
40:17I've learned that she's a little bit more adventurous than I thought she was.
40:21And I'm definitely gonna make sure that she gets her back scratcher.
40:25Oh.
40:29We're home.
40:32Thank you so much for inviting me into your home.
40:36I love you.
40:40I had so much fun.
40:42And when I come back to Lubbock, we're going to go get your back scratcher.
40:48Okay?
40:48That you want so bad.
40:58It's hard for me, her going out on her own.
41:02But the night went very well.
41:04So I feel much better now.
41:07I know that I need to let go more.
41:11I will try harder, my daughter.
41:13Bye!
41:16Bye.
41:18Having a good life is very, very important.
41:21I love you!
41:23So, I'm just gonna live.
41:26Like, I'm gonna do what Steph wants to do.
41:29Instead of Steph's world, it's gonna be Steph Takes the World.
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