รายละเอียดกระทู้

http://www.ithacajournal.com/article/20130410/NEWS01/304100136/Independent-Living-Support-key-living-happily-disability?nclick_check=1 Over my years as a peer counselor, I’ve come to realize that there are two prevailing schools of thought around living with a disability. One is that people with disabilities are incapable of having regular, fulfilling lives. The other is that people living with disabilities are somehow heroic for leading normal lives. While I agree that there are some undoubtedly heroic people living with disabilities (like Aron Ralston, the man who amputated his own arm to survive after a rock-climbing accident), I think both ideas are inherently false. I think most people live happily somewhere in the middle. The trick is finding a balanced middle ground where you thrive. As a peer counselor, I often try to help people find peace and stability in their new reality with a disability. The journey is different for everyone, but I find that an individual’s outlook on coping with a disability is contingent on their personal support systems and on when their disability developed. For example, I’ve had my disability from birth, and my parents educated themselves on my condition and made sure I had access to supportive services I needed to ensure proper development and education. I received physical, occupational and speech therapies from an early age, and my parents taught me the value of self- advocacy. Most importantly, they expected me to live as normal a life as possible. I was expected to go to college, get a job and learn independence. My parents raised me to be a regular person with regular responsibilities. Since my disability was a normal part of my life growing up, I never saw myself as heroic, and others around me didn’t either. So, I found a balanced middle ground early in life. As an adult, my life is still very ordinary. Every day, I ride the bus to work. After work, I go home. I pay taxes and student loans, and occasionally, I go out with friends. However, different generations often have different perspectives on disabilities. I often work with older adults with newly developed disabilities who are angry and bitter about the way their lives turned out. Typically, they are coping alone and they are overwhelmed because they don’t know where to turn for resources and help. Unfortunately, people may have these thoughts at any age, because they are dealing with the uncertainty of adapting to a condition. Some were raised to think that people with disabilities are sick or incapable of living fulfilled lives. Consequently, they often see people with disabilities living an active community life as heroic and inspiring. Regardless, the Finger Lakes Independence Center has many resources and programs that can help you adapt to living with a disability. To talk to a peer counselor, or for more information about available services, call the center at (607) 272-2433. Emily Papperman is a peer counselor at the Finger Lakes Independence Center. Call (607) 272-2433 or visit the center at 215 Fifth St.