For my simulated disability, I had hemiplegia. To mimic this disability, I tied my right arm, my dominant hand, in a sling. Despite having this disability I still had many activities I had to complete. These tasks proved harder than expected and I had many difficulties getting ready in the morning, going out to lunch, and practicing golf. As a college student, I have become a master at getting ready for my day quickly and efficiently, however, without access to my right arm I had many problems. One issue was doing my hair, prior I had planned to braid my hair. Without my second hand, I was unable to hold the three sections of my hair in order to braid it. Through a lot of trial and error I was able to do a simple, single braid, however, it was not tight and smooth, it was loose messy. I also had difficulty putting on my …show more content…
Going out to lunch with my family was supposed to be a fun, stress free event, however, without the use of my right arm, the lunch became a hassle. My family and I went to The Fix Burger Bar and I ordered a cheeseburger. When my meal arrived it was a huge burger so I took out my knife to cut the food, however, I did not have my other hand to brace myself. This resulted in my burger slipping and sliding across my plate, I had to slowly and meticulously cut my food, and even with this precision, my cutting skills were atrocious. I also had problems when eating with my non-dominant hand. Although quite simple it proved a challenge for me. I was constantly trying to use my right hand and then restricted by my sling. And even when I used my left hand it felt foreign. I felt frustrated that my brain could not process my impairment even being denied multiple times of using my right hand. Although cutting my food and reaching for utensils are usually effortless tasks, my disability heightened their complexity causing my frustration and
Think about all the physical feats your body can do and how you use your body every day. There are many people across the globe who do not have this privilege. Hold that thought. The essays, “On Being a Cripple”, by Nancy Mairs, and “Living Under Circe’s Spell”, by Matthew Soyster are both about how each author deals with multiple sclerosis in their life and their opinions on it.
What comes into one’s mind when they are asked to consider physical disabilities? Pity and embarrassment, or hope and encouragement? Perhaps a mix between the two contrasting emotions? The average, able-bodied person must have a different perspective than a handicapped person, on the quality of life of a physically disabled person. Nancy Mairs, Andre Dubus, and Harriet McBryde Johnson are three authors who shared their experiences as physically handicapped adults. Although the three authors wrote different pieces, all three essays demonstrate the frustrations, struggles, contemplations, and triumphs from a disabled person’s point of view and are aimed at a reader with no physical disability.
“I ain’t much good with one hand. I lost my hand right here at the ranch.” You will consider this as a handicapped person. What else will you include in this category? Mental disorder, parallelization, amputated, etc., everything that makes you depend on others or any other things including loneliness, emotionless, discriminated or anything that you can do but there is something stopping you from what you want to do.
Kevin uses his imagination to minimize his disability in his every day life. In Preschool Kevin would march around the school with his leg braces and use his imagination to pretend that he was a robot. The fact that he uses his imagination to see his leg braces as “astounding” is a great example of Kevin using his imagination to minimize his disability.
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it,” says Charles R. Swindoll. This statement, although seemingly inaccurate, is brought to life by the testimony of Nancy Mairs. After being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Mairs had every reason to give up on life, but in “On Being a Cripple” she shows her audience that pushing forward was worth the challenge. Her life as a cripple isn’t easy, but through her writing, Mairs hopes to explain and create awareness about her life living with MS. Through her personal experience and positive attitude, Mairs shows her audience that not only is she a source that others can trust but that life is exactly what you make it, no matter what cards you are dealt.
Mairs, Nancy. "On Being a Cripple." Mercury Reader. Ed. Kirk Perry. New York : Pearson 2009. 193-205. Print.
This model defines disability as a complication with an individual’s body structure or function, which affects the individual’s ability to carry out everyday tasks thus resulting in ‘restricted participation in the environment’ (Alperstein et al., 2009: 239). Dylan’s disability explains this model, as he has no function in his legs, which affects his ability to carry out everyday tasks e.g. being in an environment, which is not suitable for wheelchairs hence restricting his participation in those
As an Occupational Therapist, it is crucial to consider the wellbeing of Martha as a whole person. She is not merely a stroke patient. She is a homemaker, wife, and game enthusiast. Two conditions hindering her accomplishment of these meaningful occupations are her motor planning deficit and the lack of functionality in her right upper extremity (RUE). Martha has difficulty following multi- step commands, and relies heavily on the assistance of others with mobility, transfers, and activities of daily living (ADLs). Despite these, two of her strengths are her abilities to consistently answer yes/no questions by moving her head, and the mobility of her left upper extremity (LUE). She is alert and oriented to herself, and the strength and sensation in her LUE are within functional limits. These factors shape a client’s Occupational Therapy experience.
There are many other instances of disabilities or diseases that can cause disadvantages in life. Goering lists deafness and color-blindness, but I think that paralysis should also be included in thi...
In 1972, Geraldo Rivera with the help of Dr. Michael Wilkin of Staten Island's Willowbrook State School gained access to the institution and filmed the deplorable conditions the residents were living in. Now 25 years later the documentary reflects on four survivors of Staten Island's Willowbrook State School and their families. The family members give testimonials on how it felt to discover that their child had a disability, leave their loved ones in an institution, and the quality of care and services provided. The film also focuses on the progress made by the members that now live in group homes and the quality of their lives.
As a young child, I remember how my grandfather's disability affected my life. I don't think that I even knew what the purpose of his wheelchair was. To me, it was just a toy, just another toy that my cousins and I could play with.
What do you do without either of your arms? What do you do for a living constrained to a wheelchair? What do you do without control over your own body? Many people in the world today spend their lives wishing things were not as they were, attempting to forget how they are, or trying to change how they are going to be. When "disabled" people succeed, it is commonly thought that those individuals are amazing for overcoming their disabilities and thriving in life. Is this really what they are doing? The following three women, Mary Duffy, Frieda Kahlo, and Vassar Miller transform their disabilities into the ability to create complex forms of art that force the audience to gain a different perspective on disabilities. Their disabilities become their power. The artists use this power to force their audiences to look at their disabilities in an utterly new way using the "stare and tell" method. These women do not succeed despite their disabilities, but instead succeed because of them
Disabilities are commonly used in many metaphors. Metaphors can help greatly with understanding a new concept, and many professors use metaphors in lecture. Metaphors make it vividly clear what is occurring. However, disability metaphors can represent a stereotype or prejudice about disable people that is not true. These metaphors at time can make disable people seem flawed or unable to function like others, which in most cases is
In middle school I was diagnosed with a disability with the way I expressed myself through writing. Ever since, I have gained multiple values and learned several lessons about self confidence. I was taught to push past my limits, in order to be successful in reaching my goals along with my dreams. Today I am a senior in high school who was once thought to struggle, but was able to succeed beyond expectations. To some, a disability may seem like a setback from achieving goals, but to me I used it as a challenge for myself. I accepted myself for who I was and looked at my disability as a unique trait of mine. I was able to provide a message to others that anything you set your mind to is possible with dedication and hard work. It might take
French, S. & Swain, J. 2008. Understanding Disability: A Guide for Health Professionals. Philadelphia: Churchilll Livingstone Elsevier: 4