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Let's do the work! Let me start this off by saying, “hi, I’m Erin and I’m disabled.” “Hi, Erin.” Ok now that that is settled. Let me tell you why as a disabled human, a person with disabilities, and as a kind and thoughtful soul in a slightly damaged—but never defective—earth suit, it is important to me that this be addressed. Y’all, disability and disabled are not bad words. If you haven’t noticed already, I have been trying to use these words multiple times in this article so far so you see how they can be used in context. (Tricky? Maybe. I used to teach middle school and have many more tools where that came from!) To say is that it bothers me a little, is a bit of an understatement. Y’all disabled people have a lot going on. If you have a disability or you or care for a loved one with a disability—you know this. Usually explaining why someone is disabled includes talking about medical conditions while out and about, and honestly that’s not fun to talk about. Read: 9 times out of 10 it’s not appropriate to talk about out in the world, am I right? Time...place...person. You get it. Speaking purely for myself, my medical diagnoses are complicated, and especially if I’m out, I’m on a mission. Then, talking about said diagnoses would drain my energy and good feels. Which defeats the purpose of me being out in the first place. Two things come to mind here: 1-it’s still emotional to discuss after over two years of knowing about my complex and inoperable brain diseases. Sometimes I can talk about it and feel alright. Mostly though—talking to strangers—it’s a hard ‘no’. 2-peoples eyes glaze over after one minute of explanation. So many acronyms, so little time! Raise your hand if this has happened to you. (Because I see you 100%). So those are some reasons that using “disabled” or “disability” as a descriptor saves time, and emotional baggage. It’s also beneficial when talking about accessibility. Since there are literally so many diseases, conditions, and physical reasons for disability: using it as a descriptor is a way to encourage finding community and commonalities within our differences. Something that YooCanDoAnything is all about! You can still be awesome and have a disability! Finally, (and as a heads-up this will get real, real quick) when I see things, like signs or people on social media, that are so intent on NOT using the word disability or disabled, they are straight-up diminishing it. This is what ableism is, something that we need to snap out of—and do the dang work for our marginalized community. Yes, disabled folks are marginalized. Maybe you don’t feel “disabled enough” or you prefer not to even use the word. Disability means you have limitations—and that’s ok! Disabled AND disability are descriptive words that allow people to describe a part of themselves in writing and in everyday language. I’m talking blogs, online dating profiles, when random people ask why you are using a chair (oofda), saying “I’m disabled and I need to make sure (x, y, z) is accessible” when calling ahead to a local shop to verify whatever access you need. Y’all there are zero things wrong with needing modification and relying on accessibility (although accessibility is a topic for another time, because ooof). Do I need to say this? Ok, I am. You can still be awesome and have a disability. You can still do amazing things or even just exist and do your own thing, and be disabled—visible or not. Try saying things like: -I’m disabled and... -he/she/they have a disability and... -they are disabled and awesome! -they have an invisible disability. I get it; we do the best we can with what we have. But if this resonates, you can do better. After all, you can do anything, including adding these words to your vocabulary. Disabled or not. If you yourself have a disability/are disabled, visibly or not, or are a parent of a disabled child, please don’t think of these as bad words. You have enough going on. How do I know? Well, “I’m Erin, and I’m disabled”, remember?

Finding out about his limb differences, while pregnant. I will never forget that visit on May 18, 2017. I was 20 weeks pregnant, and we were going to our anatomy ultrasound. During the ultrasound, everything was looking great! We had a healthy baby boy, we were SO thrilled! He was all over the place, our other 2 children were so lazy and chill in the womb, it was a pleasant surprise to see our little guy so active! The ultrasound tech then informed us she needed to go get the doctor so that we could discuss the ultrasound. That was weird, but we really weren't worried. Then the doctor came in and told us our baby didn't have anything below his right elbow, and his left arm only had one bone in the forearm, when it should have two. I wasn't really upset, I didn't even cry. I really just felt guilty, like this was my fault. What did I do wrong? God gave me so much strength, and gave me reassurance that everything was going to be ok. So I just turned it over to Him. what will we call this angel? While I was pregnant, my spouse and I kept going back and forth with names. We just couldn't agree on anything. He had to have a "Z" name in there someone. All of my babies have "Z" names, so finding that in itself was difficult. My spouse came up with Zee! I LOVED IT!! Now, of course we don't "have" to have another name, but we wanted a traditional first and middle name. I searched and searched, the name Gabriel just kept standing out. I looked up the meaning, and it meant: God is my strength. So it was settled! Gabriel Zee, expected due date October 14, 2017. The baby is coming! Throughout my pregnancy, we watched him grow. He stayed kinda small. However, me being only 5 foot tall, none of the doctors seemed too concerned. My pregnancy was fairly easy, nothing too extravagant was going on. I went to the doctor on September 19, it had been about a month since our last growth ultrasound and he had only gained 4 ounces! So the doctor decided to go ahead and schedule an induction, for September 20th. The nerves definitely began to set in. All I could do was pray. At this point, I have a fear of distressing my baby. We went in about 10:30 am, on September 20, 2017. After hours of unprepared complications and finally getting to start the induction. He came on September 21, 2017 at 1:19am! I was SO relieved! He was HERE! He was BREATHING! He was CRYING! Everything looked GREAT! A few hours after his birth We, (I) were so exhausted I hadn't slept in probably a few days. I was finally so relieved, I just felt like I could sleep for days! Throughout the night/morning, I was steadily trying to breastfeed him. He would latch for a few minutes, but nothing significant. BUT HEY! We just went through hours of labor, so I wasn't too concerned with it. I pushed it off on, maybe he just doesn't like the breast. So I had them bring in some bottles, and expressed my milk to see if that would do the job. He was drinking more, but now he was spitting up out of his nose. I am super paranoid with my kids sleeping, so the fact that he was spitting up out of nose and laying down just terrified me. What if he chokes, and I don't hear him. I pushed for his nurse to make sure he was ok. Diagnosing him with CdLS (Cornelia de Lange Syndrome) Later that day, (September 21, 2017) the NICU pediatrician came and told me that they suspected Cornelia deLange Syndrome. I was so scared, what is this lady saying to me? She was speaking a foreign language to me. Zee was then taken to the NICU, where he continued to stay for about 5 days. Once there, he then began to show no signs of wanting to eat. He was then put on a feeding tube. All I could do was start praying, and just continued to give it to God. Zee was God's before he was mine. God has merely given him to me to care for him and to show him love (along with all the other 15761324845 things being a mom entitles). Just as He has my other children. After about 3 days in there, and many, many, MANY prayers later, Baby ZEE FINALLY began to show signs of wanting to eat!

Accept Yourself with Muscular Dystrophy Duchenne My name is Christoph (@don.151), I'm 26 years old and I was diagnosed with a chronic disease called Muscular Dystrophy Duchenne. The muscles in my body lack the dystrophin protein, which means that I have less strength than most of you. Consequently, my daily life relies on the help of others in everything I do. As my disease has a progressive aspect I was lucky enough to walk until primary school giving me the opportunity to visit class just as everyone else was doing even later on in a wheelchair. This was only possible due to a strong network of friendships and my mother who truly fought for me and still does. There´s always a fighting mother behind every Duchenne child they used to say and that´s a fact you can´t deny. my legacy to society with Dystrophy Duchenne Despite my disability, I've managed to make my way to university where I did my bachelors degree in biology. After that, I found myself exactly in the job I wanted. Additionally, I had the best colleagues one could dream of and totally fell in love with the work I applied for. Unfortunately, the lung function I have is based on muscles that also decrease with Duchenne. Therefore, I have been using a ventilation machine for several years now. Since pneumonia two years ago, my life depends on pressure controlled ventilation and staying healthy has become a daily routine in my life. I use my ventilation machine about 10-12 hours a day now. Recently, I realized my advocacy capacity for Duchenne and for everyone struggling with chronic diseases. I want to break down barriers of fear not only for affected people but also for society. Creating awareness of ventilation systems, in general, is a huge topic as I feel people close their eyes towards this and there´s no open discussion. The most important message I can offer for everyone’s life: Do not lose your humor. There is humor in everything and with humor. yoocandoanything!

Blind Babe x Watson & Wilma Hi! I’m Hannah, I was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa in 2009. Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a rare eye disease that involves the breakdown and loss of cells in the retina. I am legally night blind, have limited peripheral vision in both eyes, and have no central vision in my left eye. After seeing various doctors and retina specialists and not receiving any guidance or direction on what to do, I turned to a more holistic approach for healing my vision. I am going to acupuncture, focusing more on nutrition, and taking herbs. I have been seeing improvements in my peripheral and central vision. I am starting @watsonandwilma in order to help raise awareness and healing for those with vision loss. A portion of the proceeds go towards charity. So many people are affected by some type of visual Impairments or blindness. Understanding more about vision loss is the first step in healing.

Perfect is overrated To Aydin nothing is impossible! Being born with Spina Bifida, you wouldn’t expect him to do so many amazing things from break dancing to even swimming! You continue to overcome every challenge that comes your way. God has a plan for Aydin and this is only the beginning!

Difficult for wheelchair users to find clothes Hello! My name is Mikaela Lastre and I run the Swedish blog wheelwear.se. My blog is about fashion and clothes for wheelchair users. I am, as fare as I know, the only one in Sweden to blog about fashion and clothing for wheelchair users. It's hard for wheelchair users to find clothes that are comfortable and at the same time don’t cost a fortune. I have done quite a lot of research on this subject, including a number of questionnaires, and if you look at the answers from those who responded the most difficult clothes to find in regular stores are pants and jackets. There are a lot of wheelchair users in Sweden who buy clothes which they later have to leave to a tailor or change themselves. The clothes that are available for wheelchair users in the market today, because there are actually a few possibilities, often are very expensive and therefore very few people have the opportunity to buy them. Why doesn’t the clothing industry do more fore this kind of customers? Looking at the number of people in Europe who have some form of disability, and according to European Commission, there are 1/6 of the whole population. This constitutes approximately 80 million people. And the number increases each year, given that we are getting older. visit my blog @wheelwear.se I am married to Kristoffer and he has been a wheelchair user since birth because of a spinal cord injury. I started my blog after I realized how hard it was to find clothes for wheelchair users. I wanted to explore if there was a market for this kind of clothing and how it looked like. I hope you will visit my blog at wheelwear.se and you are more than welcome to get in contact with me at mikaela@wheelwear.se. Also follow me on Instagram & Facebook: @wheelwear.se.

Inspired by Wilson Wilson is 2 and a half with Cerebral Palsy meaning he can’t sit up or walk, his big sister is 3 and a half with no disability and I’m always trying to think up activities for them both to do together! I’ve listed a few things below that we do which might be helpful, especially during the school holidays! #1. Baking This is my go to activity when it’s a rainy day! I always try and keep things in the cupboard ready for days when we are stuck in the house, even if it’s just one of those box mixes, it’s something they can both do together. A good one is crispie cakes! All you need is melted chocolate and rice crispies. 😁 It gets messy and most of the mix ends up in Wilson’s hair, but they both have fun and let’s face it, who doesn’t love to taste some cake they made themselves? #2. Pretend play This could mean anything pretend! It’s so good for children of all ages and abilities to learn through using their imagination. Some of the things we like to do are playing cafés, Wilson pretends to take my order and Ava makes my food in the kitchen. Or we pretend we are animals in a zoo, you’ll feel a bit silly at first 😂 but it’s good fun! Wilson likes to pretend he’s a lion. 🦁 We also pretend that we are going to the shops or going on our holidays and we pack bags! There’s so many things you can pretend to do at home! #3. Go to the park Your local park might not be very accessible, ours isn’t that great but I still always find something to do! Even if it’s chasing Ava with Wilson in his pram, he finds it hilarious (and it’s good exercise for me- ha ha!) We also pick leaves and feel the different textures and smell the different smells! #4. Do a singing contest Everyone loves a bit of competition! If your child can’t talk/sing you could maybe do a dance instead and play some music. I personally feel that nursery rhymes, singing, dancing and all music in general is good for everyone. Play the right song and your mood can be instantly uplifted. 🙂 #5. Let them help you! Children love to think they are helping (some of the time anyway!) Ava and Wilson both get excited when I ask them if they want to help me do the dishes or making the dinner, general tidying they don’t find fun, but something that they don’t often do can be exciting for them (as crazy as it sounds!) I put Wilson in his standing frame, which has a bowl in it to help me do the dishes. I fill it with warm soapy water and give him a couple of plastic spoons and a cup to wash for me while Ava stands up on a chair next to the sink helping. Be warned – your kitchen will be covered in water! For dinner maybe do homemade pizzas one night and let them put on their own toppings, they’ll love it. My daughter is incredibly fussy and never eats the end product but loves to help make it so this is something you could do even if your child won’t eat it. #6. Make a card for someone Just to say hello! Both Ava and Wilson love getting the pens and glue and all the crafty stuff out to make cards, even if it’s just for their daddy coming home! Or if it’s someone’s birthday coming up. I’m sure they would love a personalised card! Cheaper and more fun to do. 🙂 #7. Spend a day somewhere you have never been Not something you can do every day but it’s always fun to visit somewhere you’ve never been before! I don’t drive so I’m always searching for places I can get to by public transport. I found a good website called "Day out with the kids" to find out what’s on near. #8. Mess free painting This is a good one if you don’t like much mess! Buy some large sandwich bags or something similar that can seal, although I put tape round the seal too just to be extra careful none comes out! You can put some paper in and some different colour paints and seal the bag. Let them squish all the paint together (you can even do this without the paper in just for some fun with textures!) Once finished, take the paper out to dry and cut out a shape to make a nice picture 😊 #9. Pretend you’re making a fitness video! Ok, I know this sounds super silly but it’s a great way to get your child to do some physio! Ava loves helping too. So just be like “right guys! Let’s do some exercise! First put your hands right up and then right down!” You get the idea, try make exercise fun, and I guarantee you’ll have a laugh while doing this one! #10. Act out some story books Read a book and while you’re reading you can pretend you’re each a different character and make up a sort of play! Or after reading a book perhaps think of activities you can do around that book such as drawing a picture, or guessing what would happen next or play a memory game to see who remembers what’s happened in the book!

Advice about Special Needs & Quadriplegic Cerebral palsy Wilson is nearly 3 years old and has Quadriplegic Cerebra Palsy, meaning he can’t sit up, crawl or walk unassisted. Wilson was born just over 9 weeks prematurely, but we didn’t find out about Wilson’s Cerebral Palsy until he was 13 months old. He had an MRI scan and at this point we were told Wilson may never feed himself, he may never talk and most certainly would never be able to walk. They prepared us for the worst and we felt crushed. But not for long! It just made us that much more determined to prove them wrong, a scan or diagnosis won’t decide Wilson’s future for him! If you follow his Instagram account (@WillingWilson) you will be able to see just how wrong those professionals were. Wilson LOVES his food, is a chatterbox and is already starting to take some steps with the help of his walking frame. AMAZING!! We are also currently fundraising for a surgery called selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) and the surgeon performing the surgery has predicted great things for Wilson after the surgery and believes he will walk with the help of crutches in the future. If I was to give anyone any advice when it comes to speaking with professionals about special needs is yes, take in what they say. But most importantly use your instinct. Just because they say something will never happen doesn’t mean it’s true, Wilson can prove that!

open heart surgery When I was 28 I needed another open heart surgery to maintain my heart. As it was very difficult to get a clear picture of my heart via MRI scans and echos, the exact procedure of the surgery was somewhat open, and different scenarios were discussed. One of them involved getting a new valve another one involved a pacemaker implant. Doctors could only make a final decision once the heart was laid bare and was freed from previous scar tissue. If this uncertainty wasn’t terrifying enough, the thought of having a pacemaker implanted terrified me. It made me feel old and helpless. After a 16 hour open heart surgery an external tunnel made of Gore-Tex had been created to deal with the overflow of additional blood and a pacemaker had been implanted to support my heart. The surgeon had decided for the pacemaker as it was very likely that I would need one in the near future and it made sense to implant it now already. recovering from open heart surgery I didn’t know anyone else apart from my grandpa who had a pacemaker. Let alone someone my age. In my mind, pacemakers were for old people. People who are physically weak and required help. Not a young, sporty 28 year old. Dealing with these emotions was quite tough, as they were being piled on me during a lengthy and difficult recovery time. Every inch in my body was aching already. I felt helpless and quite frankly sometimes also useless already. There was no need to make me feel old on top of it. However, luckily this feeling passed pretty quickly as you couldn’t see the pacemaker from the outside anyway. Only nurses and doctors could tell where the pacemaker was in my body. Opposed to many other people, my pacemaker is on the left side below my ribcage, and the leads are going up to the heart. When I am lying flat on my back, there is a slight bump where the pacemaker is located, but only trained people will be able to spot this. Moreover, the implant did not leave an additional scar, as it was implanted during open heart surgery. It did take some time to get used to it though, as I could feel the device in my body at certain movements. After all, it is a 4cm x 3cm little piece of metal in your body that has not been there before. Of course your body has to adjust. I actually prefer this position of the pacemaker over its typical place near the collar bone as it is a lot less visible. However, the leads going to the heart do irritate my midriff occasionally and cause me to uncontrollably twitch for 1-3 seconds. When the pacemaker is being checked it still feels strange that it can be controlled from the outside. Via bluetooth a small computer mouse like device connects to the pacemaker and can change the settings. When it is being turned up and down, I can feel my heart to start racing and slow down again, without me doing anything, which feels very strange. life with a pacemaker Of course, now I can’t go through metal detectors anymore and have to carry my pacemaker registration card where ever I go. Somehow it makes me feel very special, but this time in a good way. My pacemaker is not MRI safe, which means no MRI scans for me anymore. Of course I know the medical benefit of these scans, but am quite happy not to do them anymore as they made me feel claustrophobic and were a bit painful. My X-Rays now look almost super human and I am thinking about getting one printed on a t-shirt as a halloween costume. The pacemaker, a Medtronic SENSIA®L SEDRL1, is supporting my heart quite frequently and the feeling of being old has passed. I am fitter than ever and often wonder were I am taking all the energy from. Maybe it is the little battery powered device in me that keeps me on my toes, I’m just hoping that the batteries last longer than the predicted 11-13 years. But by then, there probably already are a ton of new solution to keep my heart beating. https://optimisticheartblog.wordpress.com

The beginning My story begins in 2016. I was young, a student & ready to seize life. That year I travelled a lot, hung out with my friends and studied for my exams in college. In my spare time I danced, which meant a lot to me because when I dance I feel alive and free. Everything was just perfect. It was too good to be true. One decision changed my life forever. On July 2nd, I went to a festival with my friends. Then, I couldn’t imagine that something like having fun and enjoying life, could change my life forever. In the middle of the night, while everybody was dancing and having fun, there was a gun shooting. Everything changed in a second and my battle started. Because of that event, I become an above the knee amputee and injured my right arm. Life as an amputee Two years have passed. Every day is a battle, but I love my life. This made me stronger then ever. I struggled with a lot, but I am a fighter. I will never surrender. I know that I have some big purpose in this world. I will leave my mark. I still do the things I love. I still help people the best I can. I am still me, nobody and nothing can change that. So my message to you is: Live your life to the fullest because everything can change in a second. Nothing in life is terrible and you can conquer anything. You only need to be patient, motivated and strong. We don't know how strong we are until we need to be. Be what you are. Accept yourself. Love yourself and everybody is going to love you. Stop making excuses and start living. Love, make friends and go on new adventures, because you don't know what tomorrow is going to bring. You only have today. So, make the best of it.

How I became an amputee When I was sixteen years old, my dad accidentally ran me over with the car, and to say it has changed my whole life is an understatement. In a lot of ways, I can sit here and say that I am a better person since my traumatic experience. Before losing my leg, I was a depressed, angry, suicidal, lonely young woman, who never thought she'd have the courage to overcome anything and go after her dreams. I always wanted to sing and act, but there was always the little voice in the back of my mind that would whisper, "Who wants to listen to you?" "You can't be an actress" "Go hide under a rock". Finding the light It was a literal battle with myself every day to find something to even like about me, let alone love. When my accident first happened, I felt like the pain only doubled. I tried to find the light at the end of the tunnel, but it never made itself known. I struggled with my already broken self-image for about a year until my friends and family sat me down, and made me realize how much time I was wasting. It was good that I was taking time to feel everything, but I didn't realize I was drowning. I had to make a choice or I was literally going to die. It wasn't until I was put in a position where I seemed to be limited, that I realized that my life has no limits what so ever. I can be who I want to be. I can do whatever I want to do. Owning what I do I started putting myself out there more and facing my fears of being vulnerable and exposed. Yes, the world was going to see me in all my glory - and I would be ok. More than ok, actually, I would be amazing! I have learned to love myself so much that what people say doesn't affect me anymore. I don't take the comments and rejections personally because I know that is not a reflection of me as a human being. I go out into the world and own everything I do because I'm only wasting my own time by being anything other than me. Adventure Amputee Camp After being a camper for a couple years, I started volunteering with the organization called Adventure Amputee Camp (with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta), and it made me realize how grateful I was that I had lost my leg. All the amazing people I have met, the new perspective I gained about my life and the world as a whole added so much light to my life, it's indescribable! I've been told before that the world looks down upon people with disabilities and feels sorry for us because we 'can't do' what they can. To be frank, I feel bad for all of them because they think their lives would be over if they were in our shoes. IF ONLY THEY KNEW, MAN! I am living a fuller, happier life now with parts of my body missing than I ever was when I was able-bodied. I am strong, I am beautiful, and I am capable. I want to be an example for those with and without disabilities that what is on the outside doesn't compare to the light on the inside. My soul, my purpose is so much more than my body will ever be. It's just a home so that I can live my best life possible. Let's Get Real So, please, do yourself and the rest of the world the biggest favor; LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE!!!! Audition for that movie! Be the biggest YouTube star! Start a charitable foundation! Be the best teacher school systems have ever seen! Whatever it is you want to do, don't waste any more of your precious time and go out there and do it! You're only depriving the world of your light if you don't.

From Chronic illness to Inspiration I have Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy (MD); I was diagnosed at age 24. I was born and raised in Cambridge, MA and went to high school in Cambridge. I received my bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design and Merchandising and then furthered my education in getting my Master’s degree in Business. When I first discovered the symptoms of MD, it was crazy to me because I started to get symptoms around 2009. While in graduate school I began to repeatedly fall, and my leg would just give out on me without notice. I would fall to the ground and not be able to pick myself back up, I would need assistance from someone to lift me up with all their might because it was something I just wasn’t capable of doing on my own. I also began to notice when I tried to reach for certain things in the kitchen cabinets or try to exercise I was unable to lift my right arm up all the way. I kind of just thought to myself maybe I need to go on a diet and lose weight, but in the back of my mind, I knew it was something more. I went to see an orthopedic, but I was told that this was more of a neuro-muscular issue, so I then went to see a Neurologist. Once I saw the Neurologist, she then tested me and gave me muscle biopsy, MRI, an EMG and every other test you can think of. So after multiple tests, I was finally diagnosed with Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy. Limb-Girdle is a form of MD that affects the limb of the shoulders all the way down to the legs, which progressively over time eventually gets worse. The first thing I thought was how long am I going to live? Will I be in a wheelchair soon, and what is my life going to be like from now on? I knew I had to be strong and continue to do what I have to do, so I started doing some research on it and read that eating healthy and exercising would help. I joined weight watchers with my cousin and lost over 36 pounds and felt great. I’ve able to keep half the weight off, and I am still determined to lose more. They have multiple types of Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy, and 5 years later my doctor’s are still trying to figure out which type I have exactly. The only thing they know at this point is from the types I may have can affect my heart which is why I often have to go get an echo-cardiogram test that tests my heart to make sure everything is ok. Living with Limb-Girdle Muscular dystrophy is still new to me every day. I wake up every day not knowing how my legs are going to feel or what pain I may have when leaving my house. I try to be very careful when walking because I don’t want to fall because I won’t be able to pick myself back up. Although I am on my feet a lot for work, after a certain amount of hours, my legs start to weaken. I am currently a visual merchandiser at different locations a very popular clothing store. I enjoy my job because it keeps me and my legs active and I enjoy traveling to the different store locations and doing what I love in the fashion industry. I have the wonderful support from my family and friends but at the ending of the day, they have NO IDEA what I go through on a daily basis or what I’m feeling. I try to explain to them how my legs feel, but it’s just so hard to explain. I still go out and enjoy my life as normal, but sometimes I always have certain things in the back of my mind. When going out I find myself researching where I am going first, like does this place have stairs? Does it have an elevator? Do they accommodate handicap people? So all of these things I worry about when I go out and my friends and family have no idea. Living with MD has made me realize how strong I am and knowing I have no choice but to deal with this. I sometimes get stares because people wonder what a young girl like me is doing either walking with a limp, with a cane or parking in a handicap parking spot. But I don’t mind because they just don’t know me or know what I have. Although my MD has progressed over the years and is getting worse, I have learned to accept it and make certain changes to my life such as now walking with a cane in order to keep my balance and helping me not to fall. At this point, I am just taking everything day by day and staying strong. But there is one thing I want people to know by reading this quote. "There’s no “cure” or a pill will “fix it”, but at one point I thought it may help. And I thought the same with therapy and food. But it’s my endless support from family and friend that helps. It is the hardest thing that I have ever done, and I found myself much stronger for doing it. Never, ever underestimate the power of your desire. If you want to live badly enough, you can live. The greater question, at least for me was: How do I decide I want to live? That is the question I’m still working on?" Check out my story also at http://everythinggl.com/testimony-tuesday-living-with-limb-girdle-muscular-dystrophy-lgmd/ https://themighty.com/2016/04/living-with-limb-girdle-muscular-dystrophy/ You can also check out my t-shirt line at: https://www.girlschronicallyrock.com Also, check out my blog at kgreaves11.tumblr.com Instagram name: Chronicallyrocking_fashionsta