My Disability

ABOUT ME AND MY JOURNEY FROM

Disability To Possibility 

This is my journey from disability to possibility; from not being able to stand up or walk to making the decision I was not going to suffer anymore. No matter my suffering, the pain, the set backs, I have always picked myself up and carried on. I might stumble and fall, but I will never stay down!

Here Is Part Of My Story

I was the passenger of a very bad car accident when I was 18 years old. My senior year of high school!  I have a traumatic brain injury that has gotten worse over the years. So many “people” have told me I’m depressed or some sort of mental disorder. Often telling me I need to take an anti-depressant, when the truth of the matter is.... 

NO I DON’T! I HAVE A BRAIN INJURY! I AM NOT DEPRESSED. 

Treat me like the person I am or get out of my life!

My spine was shattered, both my ankles were shattered, and I was in a coma. Upon awakening from the coma I didn’t remember anyone or anything. I couldn’t walk or use the bathroom on my own. I couldn’t stand up, I couldn’t even turn over in my bed by myself. It took a long time to recover. The first set of Harrington rods broke. So when I was 19 they put a second set in. As for my ankles, my right foot gave me the most problems after several surgeries on both of them nine months I was able to have the cast removed and stand with assistance. Learning to walk again is not easy but I was determined.

In 2015, twenty-four years after harrington rods were fused to my spine, I started experiencing severe posture issues. I developed flat back syndrome, lumbar scoliosis, kyphosis, and a severe pelvic tilt.

My breathing was affected as well as my bowels and bladder. The nerves at the base of my spine were compromised and I develop drop foot. Which is the inability to lift ones foot due to nerve damage. After working with several physical therapists and visiting different neurological and orthopedic specialists without any hope, I became withdrawn and did my best to accept the fact that I was going to be disabled for the rest of my life. For five years I let myself believe there was no hope and I think into the fact that I was gonna be bedridden for the rest of my life obviously felt hopeless.

One day, and it happened just like this, I woke up I decided enough was enough. I had been a very active person my entire life I was not gonna let this happen to me. My journey is difficult and it is ongoing. I have to constantly work out for the rest of my life so my posture will stay aligned. That combined with Physical Therapy is helping so far.

The fact I don’t take any kind of pain medicine makes my every day pain so much worse! I like a clear head. I find that normal exercises such as, yoga, pilates along with weightlifting and other workout routines are not easy for me. An example: squats, because of my physical limitations due to my spinal fusion squats are not easy.  I have restructured many workout routines to fit my posture and physical limitations. I love yoga and wish I could do it the way most people do it but I have to modify my movements. I’ll start posting videos of my modified exercises in case anyone else out there is having the same problem I have due to a permanent injury. 

I slowly went from using a wheelchair to a walker then a cane. Now I don’t require the assistance of any walking apparatus to help me get around. This is my journey

THIS IS MY TRUTH... WHAT IS YOUR TRUTH?