After caring for my son Andrew for 20 years, this is what I wish I could tell my younger self.

11/5/2024 12:00:00 AM

My life was forever altered in January 2021 when what should have been a routine knee replacement surgery turned into a painful nightmare of unimaginable proportions. As I lay on the operating table, fate dealt me a cruel hand: a grave mistake during the procedure resulted in a catastrophic injury to my artery. What ensued was a whirlwind of medical interventions with five additional surgeries in just 12 days, all in a desperate attempt to rectify the damage. The excruciating pain was relentless. Despite the best efforts of medical professionals, I ultimately lost my right leg above the knee.

5/21/2024 12:00:00 AM

At only 20 years old, I gave birth to a nine pound, bouncing baby boy. I was overjoyed and I dreamed of the day when he would be a star athlete or an astronaut. I could see his future and the sky was the limit. But then, at the age of one and a half, my son Cory was still struggling to walk.

11/1/2023 12:00:00 AM

The reason I write is to help others. When I started out on this journey with my baby, I was young at age 23. I would have loved to have blogs from other parents and caregivers. The more advice, the better. That doesn't mean I would have had to use it all, and neither do you. But if even one thing helps you, then I have met my purpose. I hope all of you will use this piece of advice: focus on the joys!

6/23/2023 12:00:00 AM

If these famous people with disabilities share something besides their professional success, it is their ability of self-improvement. The lives of most of them have not been easy and precisely because of that, they are an example for the rest of society. Knowing and telling the story can be inspiring for others.

2/18/2020 12:00:00 AM

I was in a car accident in 2005, which, along with many other injuries, broke three vertebrae and damaged my spinal cord. I had an incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) at T-11. I've been walking short distances over the years, but have had many setbacks due to various things, mostly related to the trauma I experienced in 2005. It's always been one step forward, two steps back. I felt like my progress in terms of movement had reached a plateau.

10/2/2018 12:00:00 AM

I was born in Laos in 1978 where people were self-sufficient and farmed their own land to feed their families and animals. My father was in the military and like most people in my country, my mother and grandparents were part of the farming culture. We took nothing for granted and were happy to live the life that we did. We didn't have much, but we were content.

6/19/2018 12:00:00 AM

In 2007, Karen Toennis received an unexpected phone call. On the other end of the line was Dr. Stanley Appel, the neurologist who cared for Karen's husband, Mike, during his 13-year battle with ALS. They had not spoken since Mike's passing the year before, but Dr. Appel had a question for Karen.

5/22/2018 12:00:00 AM

I grew up in a military family. My grandfather served in World War II and my father served for 25 years in the United States Air Force. During my childhood, my dad was stationed throughout the world. We lived in Virginia, Guam, Texas, and England. I was able to meet numerous people from different backgrounds and I learned about different cultures. I had wanted to join the military since I was around 11 years old, but I wasn't sure what I actually wanted to do.

5/8/2018 12:00:00 AM

As a parent to a child who uses a wheelchair, I was honored to be asked to write a blog for LiveQuickie. I asked a few times what I should write about? Some of the suggestions included advice to other parents, Talia's story, traveling, traditions, basically anything I wanted. I agreed that telling my daughter Talia's story was the best way to begin.

1/23/2018 12:00:00 AM

Spencer West is a household name in our community largely due to his motivational speaking for WE, his role as ambassador, and his humanitarian efforts. Some of these efforts include Spencer's amazing journey on June 13, 2012 when he climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro to raise funds to provide clean water to over 12,500 people. His 187-mile (300 km) journey from Edmonton to Calgary on his hands and in his wheelchair continues to redefine what's possible.

11/28/2017 12:00:00 AM

My journey started while I was still in high school. I wasn't a model student. To be honest I didn't even like school, and I didn't even have a plan for life after graduation. One day during my junior year the school was doing testing for the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). I had no interest in going into the military, but it got me out of class for a few hours so I took it.

7/11/2017 12:00:00 AM

My name is Arturo Valdez and I am from Mexico City. Almost 23 years ago I had a motorcycle accident which caused a spinal cord injury at the T7 level. I have Luque wires in my back from T2 to T12. At the beginning of this journey, my life was like people told me it would have to be, as the medical books say: dealing with pressure ulcers while seated in a large, heavy hospital wheelchair. One day I decided I could, and must, do things differently.

6/27/2017 12:00:00 AM

When I was 12 years old, my dad and younger brother were in a car accident. My brother was killed and my dad was paralyzed. The only reason I survived that is because people around us showed us that my dad had a future as a quadriplegic. He now lives completely independently, drives himself to work every day, and even danced with me at my wedding.

6/20/2017 12:00:00 AM

Every day is an opportunity to live, love, laugh, and learn. Can you imagine growing up with a disability, confined to a wheelchair and being able to say those same words? Can you really live life to its fullest and make the most of it in that condition? I can and I did. My wheelchair isn't a prison; it's my chariot of freedom.

3/14/2017 12:00:00 AM

After three weeks in the Intensive Care Unit, Josh was ready to be airlifted by private jet to the Shepherd Center. This trip was delayed for several days due to his very low blood pressure. Finally the day came and he was loaded up and ready to go! I left hours before Josh did, in hope arriving before he got there. The timing was perfect. Within 15 minutes of my arrival, he arrived in a local ambulance that met him at the airport.

12/21/2016 12:00:00 AM

In addition to his C5-C6 incomplete spinal cord injury, Josh sustained a fractured pelvis, perforated bladder, fractured sternum, fractured left elbow, T4 compression fracture, and contused lung from nearly being impaled by a large stick just below his left scapula. The elbow fracture would require surgery to repair. However, we had to wait on this due to his dangerously low blood pressure.

12/13/2016 12:00:00 AM

It was a beautiful autumn morning on Thursday, October 18th, 2007. The morning sunshine was brilliant as it danced on the colorful leaves. Unbeknownst to me, hundreds of miles away in Kentucky, my son Josh climbed into an unfamiliar sports car for a quick spin.

12/6/2016 12:00:00 AM

Growing up confined to a wheelchair has had its ups and downs. At an early age I chose to make my life exactly as I wanted it to be. We all have the power to write our own story.

11/7/2016 12:00:00 AM