what disability do you have and how d you deal with it?

I have several disabilities, some of which I'm born with and some that I acquired later in life.

I have Asperger's syndrome, which is an autism spectrum disorder. I've had that all my life, but I wasn't diagnosed until adulthood, which made things harder for me in many ways. My social skills are very bad, which makes me pretty much socially isolated, causes a lot of misunderstandings and frustration and causes me to not relate much to other people and vice versa. It's like being an alien among people. On top of that there are sensory issues (for example normal light is painfully bright for me), meltdowns and other unpleasant symptoms. On the upside, Asperger's syndrome makes me very good at certain things that few people can do and I'm very intelligent. This helps compensate for the downsides.

I have fibromyalgia, which causes chronic pains all over my body, sleeping problems, fatigue, swollen and sore joints, stiffness, dizziness and dry eyes and mouth. I've had fibromyalgia for around 8 years. I've learned what makes my symptoms worse and I've adjusted my lifestyle to help keep the symptoms as mild as I can, but environmental factors like weather effect me a lot too. I've learned to live with the symptoms and although they cause a lot of discomfort and problems I try to take my mind off them.

I have old, badly healed injuries in my feet. I can't stand or walk for long without discomfort, pains, mobility problems and swelling. There are times when I can barely walk. If for some reason I'm forced to stand for too long it can result in days, weeks or even months of recovering, during which the pains are worse and I can handle even less standing/walking than normally.

I lost a part of my hearing four years ago. Hearing aids cannot help with my type of hearing impairment, so I've practiced lip reading and use that to help me understand when people are talking. I hear some sounds and some not (there are certain frequencies that I cannot hear), so when people talk to me I only hear parts of the words. Background noises interrupt a lot and make it nearly impossible for me to understand oral speech, because I can't filter out the noise. Also I find it difficult to recognize some sounds, because I no longer hear the subtle differences in sounds that I did before. The hardest part about adjusting to my hearing impairment has been people's impatience with my hearing problems.

I have dyspraxia, which means that I have poor motor skills and poor coordination. I'm constantly tripping over things, falling (half the time in stairs), dropping things, bumping into things, spilling drinks and doing other excessively clumsy things. Dyspraxia makes me very prone to accidents.

I also have mild dyslexia, which makes me a slow reader, makes it hard for me to get the whole picture of what I'm reading about and messes up my spelling, but luckily I have a good visual memory, so when I read a few times over text that I've written I can correct most of my mistakes eventually, but this is very time consuming.

I'm deaf and I was born that way. I've never had normal hearing so I don't know what it's like. Then again, I can't miss what I never had in the first place.

I can hear somewhat with my hearing aids but without them, I can't hear at all. I adjusted and accepted because I had no other choice. The only things I really did were to learn how to talk (I'm capable of speech), learn how to lip read and learn some sign.

I don't consider myself to be disabled at all. I just can't hear. I'm a normal, every day, run of the mill person who works full time, has a family and is a productive member of society.

It was difficult in my childhood years because I was teased and bullied a lot but as I got older, I realized that there's nothing wrong with me. It was just other people's perception. Kids can be cruel and use the smallest things to make a person's life miserable. I tried to hide my deafness when I was young but I haven't in years. So what if I'm deaf? We all have some form of disability...in some people, like myself, it's more obvious.

EMT

Oh...did I forget to mention that I also have juvenile diabetes? Again, I don't consider that a disability either. It's a disease that I have and I just deal with it and live it.

These are my Congenital Disabilities. I was also born with a rare genetic syndrome that I inherited from my late mother.

1. I have several Speech Disabilities in which I had speech therapy.

A. Speech Articulation

B. Occasional Stuttering

C. Some other Speech Disabilities

2. Deformed hands and deformed fingers which makes it hard or even impossible for me to do various things.

3. Deformed feet and deformed ankles in which I wear bilateral foot-ankle braces and special shoes.

4. Some other Congenital Disabilities.

Acquired Disabilities

1. Constant pain due to a botched up major surgery.

2. Arthritis which is mild but is slightly painful.

I am forced to use a wheelchair a lot of the time and sometimes I also use a quad cane to help me walk. I have state given permanent Disability Parking tags for my motor vehicle.

My only child's Congenital Disabilities are these.

1. Autism

2. Mental Retardation

I am an Adult Survivor of Peer Abuse (Teasing, Bullying, Physical Abuse) that I experienced on a daily basis while growing up. This has resulted in life long emotional damage and life long psychological damage.

It was only when I found a Peer-To-Peer support group in 1996 that I was finally able to accept myself knowing that I am not alone and there are other people like myself who have the same various types of genetic syndrome that I have.

Also, when I found Disability Pride within the PWD Community and other PWDs expressing Disability Pride, this also helped me to accept myself and to express Disability Pride.

I have adult onset Miyoshi Muscular Dystrophy. Its a very rare condition and double recessive and I was the first in my family to exhibit symptoms.

Its where my muscles are slowly degenerating due to a missing protein essential for building muscle. It was diagnosed after my first child was born, and we decided to quickly have another before it progressed too far. The most frustrating part is that every day I am weaker then before. I got ankle braces 3 years ago, but broke my foot while pregnant and had to use a walker, then progressed to a wheelchair. Its been difficult to adjust to the constant weakening.

I deal with it one day at a time. It is hardest on my husband.

One thing I will ask of you: Make a friend with one of those you are seeing all the time. People tend to avoid those with disabilities because they are uncomfortable around it, or don't know what to do/say. Treat us like you would anyone else. We are just people trying to make it through life as best we can and suffer more then most with loneliness and isolation because of the stigma most people unconsciously have. Luckily for me I already had a strong family/friend network before I became disabled.

These are true stories and I laughed when told how the second story unfolded. First parking offender A clients parent of mine went to pick disabled child from school, found car park was being used by some non disabled person in a official designated disabled parking bay at a school, they (client) called the parking inspector, the person was booked, most annoyingly it was a teacher. Second parking offender On another occasion same client had an appointment and the designated disabled parking bay, out the front of building, where they had appointment was occupied by non disabled person, they drove around to find another disabled spot, but as it was raining any car park close by, was taken up. And walking in the rain with a disabled child is not fair. So they squeezed their car into the disabled car park, next to the offending car, calls the parking inspector, they then climb out of car and plops their bum on the bonnet of the offending car (putting a dent in the bonnet) and then proceeded to remove the wheel chair from their car, making sure they scratch the other car, by this stage the parking inspector has turned up who assist in taking the disabled child out of car. The parking inspector writes a hefty ticket, as well as a note stating how the dent and scratches occurred, and the offender has no legal right to claim for damages. Apparently it was a repeat offender. Moral of this story is don't mess with this client.

Well for one, I have Asperger's Syndrome, an autistic disorder and an emotional behaivoral disorder...

I used to deal with it by psychiatric sessions and prescription anti-depressants to calm my mood swings and behaivoral issues, but after a couple of years that went out the window.

Now I fight it by article reading, getting myself around other autists and aspies online so I can feel more around people like me and learn some new ways of dealing with things, and I do a lot of personal soul searching, strategizing, and second guessing of my actions, words, perceptions, etc. It's one of those kinds of things I do a lot, but it's hard to really describe unless you know me and can see inside my head.

As for the emotional behaivoral disorder, my mother never told me about for over ten years. I'm rather pissed off at her for not telling me because my life could have been MUCH easier had I known. I'm just learning how to deal with that.

But all in all, I really don't use official professional help anymore. Personally for me, I consider it weakness on myself if I have to have someone else help me and not help myself. I'm 23 and old enough to handle my own problems.

I'm a paraplegic, so I'm in a chair. I don't really consider it a disability though, at worst it just makes getting around during the winter a pain. On the plus side it's given me muscles and it's surprisingly helpful when it comes to getting girls ;)

well, i'm not sure if my fibromyalgia would be classed as a disability, or my arthritis in my hips, lower back and knees, but i just get on with it. i'll possibly need to have crutches/sticks soon as i'm finding it hard to walk at times,but it;s ok as i'm alive!

Forewarning Notice: Some dark depressing stuff ahead. If you can't stand negatives, please do not read past the disabilities section for your own good. This has been your safety warning for the day.

Disabilities that I was born with (due to a 2 month premature birth caused by Abruptio Placenta):

- Mild Cerebral Palsy (Right Spastic Hemiplegia w/ Paralysis)

- ADHD

- Low Testosterone

- Mild Epilepsy (Complex Partial Seizure).

- Undescended testicles, fixed with surgery at age 2.

- Cryptorchidism (micropenis), fixed with hormone therapy (testosterone shots), also at age 2.

Disabilities attained with age mainly due to the Cerebral Palsy:

- Left knee (worker's comp): Meniscus tear and knee cap dislocated (age 22), fixed with surgery at age 23 (6 months later)

- Left wrist (worker's comp, due to knee dislocation), popped back into place, plastic dual sided cast ACE bandaged together to heal.

- Left Foot: Plantars Fasciitis (recurring)

- Arthritis: Both hands, all fingers and all toes, plus both knees

- Loose and damaged joints: Every single joint in my body.

- Left hip: occasional pain and tightness in the front (abdomen area) of the hip.

- Muscles (all over): Loss of flexion and re-bounce after years of muscle spasms.

- Pain and spasms: Worsening each year.

How do I deal with it:

I don't really know. It's the CP that's the worst beast of them all, all my other born disabilities I deal with okay. But the damage the CP has caused me: The physical, mental, and emotional losses; The potential lifestyles and potential possibilities that I've tried to obtain over the years but that it has always taken away from me; The normal life and normal wants and needs that it has kept me from attaining; the loss of physical intimacy and relationships that it is taken: it has torn my soul to shreds. The number of losses are so great, so astronomical, that it is immeasurable to figure out. It has taken my life and has touched and basically ruined every part of it right from the beginning right in front of my face and there has been nothing that I could do about it but sit and watch it happen.

So how do I deal with it? Ever seen House MD? I guess that it's a lot like that. I have moments without pain where I'm content with life and believe that I might have a chance at more, but then reality sets in during the parts of my day when the pain overcomes me and my failing body acts up and slowly worsens and I just can't take it.

I loose myself completely to the pain and to the darkness that accompanies that pain. I do everything that I can to get rid of it by any means neccessary, but more often than not, I fail, miserably. All life drains from me, all hope / ambition / drive / wants, I lose it all and have to wait to begin from scratch again until after it ceases and my soul and body feels normal again (whatever normal is). I have no choice but to fully succumb to it and it creates a darker version of me, one that I can't stand and wishes that it was not a part of me but is none the less very real and very there.

There's nothing that I can do but live with it, I try to fight it everytime but that never works, and after 33 years of it, I'm battle-worn and sick of it. I'm burnt out, the walking dead. I don't like it, but it's a part of who I am and it takes control of me and my life every time no matter how hard I try to avoid it. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with it. It's incurable and it's continuing effects will continually degrade my body further and further until one day, I'll just cease to be able to do anything at all ever again. God willing, I'll pass away of natural causes before that day arrives but I have a feeling that I'm just going to have to learn to deal with that change too when it happens.

Anyhow, that is it in a nutshell. I'm in constant pain, have lost the potential for a normal life, my body is aging faster and degrading faster than any normal body. But I am who I am, and that's all that I am, and I can't be no more than it. It sucks sh*t, it's a horrible life, I wish that things were different for me, but alas they are not. The end.

I told you it was negative. You should've listened to the warning. LOL.

Good night, Gracie.

(Sorry, I was trying to end a good note.)

i HAVE TWO DISABILITIES, ONE PERMANENT AND ONE THAT IS POSSIBLY TEMPORARY (TRYING TO GET THE SURGERY).

tHE PERMANENT DISABILITY IS BLINDNESS. i AM LEGALLY BLIND DUE TO A CHEMICAL BURN TO THE FACE LAST jUNE. mY LEFT EYE SEES LIGHT AND DARK ONLY NOW (WITH A BLIND SPOT IN THE INNER CORNER THAT MEANS i DON'T EVEN SEE LIGHT/DARK ON MY RIGHT SIDE WITH MY LEFT EYE), AND MY RIGHT EYE SEES WITH ENOUGH VISION TO SEE THE LARGE e AT THREE FEET AWAY FROM ME WITH A BLURRED 'HALO' AROUND EVERYTHING.

tHIS IS, FOR ME, THE EASIER DISABILITY TO DEAL WITH. i CAN SEE WITH MY FINGERS, EARS, AND CANE. i HAVE MANY ADAPTAVE TOOLS (SUCH AS A SCREENREADER, TALKING CLOCKS, AND BUMPDOTS), AND i CAN'T REALLY IMAGINE BEING FULLY SIGHTED ANYMORE...IT'S VERY NATURAL FOR ME NOW TO SEE WITH MY FINGERS, NOT MY EYES.

mY TEMPORARY DISABILITY IS A BRAIN STEM HERNIA...A CEREBRAL SOMETHING-OR-OTHER. iT BASICALLY IS THAT PART OF MY CEREBRAL LOBE HAS SLIPPED THROUGH THE NATURAL HOLE THAT EVERYONE HAS AT THE BASE OF THE SKULL IN THE BACK OF YOUR HEAD. tHIS PUTS A LOT OF PRESSURE BOTH ON THE CEREBRAL LOBE AND ON MY NERVES, CAUSING CONSTANT PAIN, BALANCE ISSUES (i HAVE FALLEN ON MY A$$ A FEW TIMES...MOSTLY i JUST STUMBLE LIKE A DRUNK), AND A FEW OTHER MINOR PROBLEMS (MEMORY AND SPPECH ISSUES, BUT THEY AREN'T MUCH). i DEAL WITH THIS BY LEANING ON MY WHITE CANE AS NEEDED (yES, i KNOW IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE USED THAT WAY, AND MY o&m INSTRUCTOR GETS IRRITATED WITH ME, BUT IT'S DO THAT, OR FALL FLAT ON MY FACE OR A$$), TAKING MY LOVELY PERCOCET PILLS (ONE EVERY SIX HOURS DURING THE DAY, AND ONE RIGHT BEFORE BED), TAKING LOTS OF WARM SHOWERS AND GIVING MYSELF MASSAGES AFTER THE SHOWER, AND USING MY ICE PACK AS NEEDED. oRAJEL IS ALSO GREAT FOR WHEN THE NERVES IN MY JAW GET INFLAMMED.

i AM SUPPOSED TO GET A SURGERY FOR THE HERNIA SOON THAT MOST LIKELY WILL RID OF ME OF ALL THE PAIN AND BALANCE PROBLEMS, AND i'M CROSSING MY FINGERS. mY EYES...i DON'T CARE IF i NEVER GET MY SIGHT BACK, BECAUSE i'M COMFORTABLE WITH WHO i AM AS A BLIND PERSON, AND i HAVE ADAPTED TO BEING BLIND AND DON'T REALLY FEEL LIKE HAVING TO ADAPT BACK. bEING BLIND ISN'T BAD, IT'S JUST DIFFERENT!

eDIT: oH, i ALSO HAVE BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER, BUT i DON'T CONSIDER THAT A DISABILITY ANYMORE...i HAVE IT UNDER CONTROL MOST OF THE TIME, AND IT'S JUST REALLY PART OF MY PERSONALITY, AND IT DOESN'T AFFECT MY DAILY LIVING AS MUCH AS PEOPLE MIGHT THINK IT WOULD.