Amputation and prosthetics: from coming to peace to a celebration of differences
This is a great episode of The Moth podcast which showcases true stories, told live. Here is Aimee Mullins discussing overcoming her families fear that show her prosthetics would make her ostracized, to expectations that continued to haunt her even after success as an athlete and model.
The Moth: Amy Mullins – A Work in Progress
Give it a listen!
photo credit: Andrea Rinaldi
Video: No Barriers USA
I just came across this amazing organization on Twitter. No Barriers USA is doing some amazing things to help individuals overcome their disabilities.
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Roger Ebert’s new voice
I just have to post this. I know many of you will probably have already seen this, either on Oprah, or around the web. But, as a huge fan of the way technology can make a difference in disabled* individual’s lives, I just think this is so cool and amazing.
*Of course, I am not trying to say that Roger Ebert is disabled. Even the loss of speech has not kept him down and he certainly has continued to be as prolific as ever.
“What I Learned From My Son”
This article from a mother with a special needs child is especially touching. The worry, the fear, and the hope that home schooling might help spare the child ridicule and help him develop to his full potential is palpable.
Since he was very young, there has always been something about the way my Baby Bear lines up his cars, counts his blocks and just cannot step away from a task that has bothered me. I recognized the signs. I grew up with it. But I pushed it out of my mind because I did not want it to be there. It is something I am powerless before. And …
Why doesn’t the VA provide service dogs?
I have written a bit lately about service animals (such as seeing eye dogs, as well as dogs for disabled individuals with seizure disorders and children with autism).
I recently came upon an article asking the question why doesn’t the Department of Veterans Affairs provide money for service dogs? There is no question about the benefits provided to disabled individuals by service animals.
… while the VA talks about “providing” dogs, the only thing they’ve really been trying to decide is whether to pay the same monthly stipend to disabled veterans with a service dog that they’ve been paying to those with guide dogs for many years. That’s it – there’s …
Help Jude! 4PawsforJude.com
I recently wrote about the amazing difference a service dog can make for a child with autism.
Colleen Bell contacted me about getting the word out about helping their autistic son, Jude, receive a service dog.
Jude is an amazing 6-year-old boy who loves to laugh and to make other’s laugh. He’s smart, handsome, funny, loving, lovable, clever, and honest. He tries harder than most anyone you’ll meet. He makes us proud every single day. He also has Autism.
Jude has qualified for an Autism Assistance dog from 4 Paws for Ability, Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit organization based in Xenia, Ohio, which …
Special ed student starts coffee shop
I thought this was a great story about a Greenville, South Carolina, special education student starting a coffee shop in his school:
Jarvis Rogers said he saw the need for the coffee shop and, in just two weeks, built the Ground Floor. … Rogers is in Special Ed, Greenville High School’s occupational diploma program.
The full-service Ground Floor shop is the most popular spot in the Greenville High School cafeteria.
“The corporate sponsor is Liquid Highway, who donated the cash registers and all of the coffee-making equipment,” Beth Brotherton said. “And, get this, in their first week in business, this was the highest-grossing Liquid Highway location in Greenville.”
The part …
How NOT to treat someone with deafness-severe hearing loss
I recently read this story from Dr. Mark Mostert about a major airline’s inability to deal appropriately with a person with severe hearing loss. If the Fail Blog had a corporate failure section, this would be on it.
…my wife, Deborah, has a severe hearing impairment – both ears. Deborah wears state-of-the-art hearing aids that are only somewhat helpful.
Last week my wife turned up at the United counter in Norfolk, Virginia, to check in for her flight.
United Airlines employee: Says here you have a disability. Do you need assistance?
Deb: Yes, I’m deaf.
Puzzled silence.
United Airlines employee (somewhat sullenly): Do you need assistance?
Deb: Yes, I have a severe hearing impairment.
United Airlines employee (now a little irritated): Do you need assistance?
Deb (sighing): Yes, it’s very difficult for me to hear anything. . .
United Airlines employee (obviously ready to move on): Do you need a wheelchair?
Brain Control Interface – 60 Minutes Video
Watch this 60 Minutes story on Scott Mackler, a man with almost total paralysis, who can communicate with a computer with just his thoughts using a BCI (Brain Control Interface).
Scott Mackler was a husband, father and successful neuroscientist when he received perhaps the worst news imaginable. At the age of 40, he could run a marathon in three and a half hours, but it was about that time he discovered he had ALS, Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Today, Scott Mackler’s mind is as sharp as ever, but his body has failed. Doctors call it “locked in” syndrome. Scott and his wife Lynn learned to communicate with about the only thing he has left, eye movement.To signal “yes,” Lynn says Scott looks at her; to …
Special needs kids may need extra help on Halloween
Having a happy Halloween may be especially difficult if you have a special needs child. K. Sayford-Wilson writes about the problems her child has.
Our youngest child has sensory integration problems with developmental delays and also a speech disorder called developmental apraxia. These challenges limit her ability to process information, so the way in which she understands information is different from the way other children would understand information. Telling a typical child that a scary, angry-looking skeleton half-buried in the ground is only plastic might work. Telling a special needs child with sensory integration problems and a speech disorder that it is plastic and will …
Son’s Down Syndrome Results in Denial of Permanent Residency
Here is a story of a doctor living and working in Australia to help with a shortage of doctors, denied permanent residency because his son has down syndrome.
Bernhard Moeller came to Australia with his family two years ago to help fill a doctor shortage in a rural area of Victoria state.
His temporary work visa is valid until 2010, but his application for permanent residency was rejected this week. The immigration department said Moellers 13-year-old son, Lukas, “did not meet the health requirement.”
“A medical officer of the Commonwealth assessed that his sons existing medical condition was likely to result in a significant and ongoing cost to the Australian community,” a …
Letters to the Next President
I recently came across this letter on the Letters to the Next President site:
I would like to know about changes in social security-specifically disability. … I worked as an LPN for over 30 years. I started having back, neck and arthritic probelems, and after several years of pain I applie for social security disability. The process was long. It took approximately 2 years from the time I applied untill I was finally approved, and then receive a paycheck. If it had not been for my family helping me financially, I don’t know what I would have done. Isn’t there any way to speed up this process …
Multiple Sclerosis – Faces of MS
