To Those Who Can't Imagine Living a 'Disabled Life'

It is quite interesting to note that many able-bodied people I have come across in recent years and in the past have told me they can’t imagine living like I do. Meaning they could not imagine leading a disabled life. To me that sounds sort of funny, because this is the only life I have ever known.

I will be the first person to tell you that in my experience, the disabled life is not easy and not for the weak or the faint of heart. To be fair, though, no one’s life is easy. Everyone is thrown their fair share of curve balls and has their fair share of storms to trudge through.

Of course, when you are disabled, it can add to the frustration because you must adapt things to work for you. This is especially true when it comes to entertainment and eliminating boredom when you are unable to work a 9-5 job. I’ll be honest. In the beginning and in my teenage years, I was not as efficient at entertaining myself as I am now. When I look back on writings I wrote as a teen, it makes me happy that I am no longer so unhappy and bored with the current state of my life. It makes me glad that for the most part, I have aged out of boredom.

I am homebound for the most part during the week because my parents and the rest of my family have to work. Many people cringe at the sound of the word “homebound” because it sounds like you are stuck. I am stuck in the sense that I am unable to drive and cannot go to stores or anything independently. However, I am not stuck mentally.

Since choosing to write as my niche, which by the way was the best thing for me, I no longer have much time to think about being bored. I am always busy occupying my mind whether it be with writing, reading, or coloring. I write for two different sites, and in December, I will be writing for a third.

I also contribute to my own personal blog when I feel like writing something quick and easy. My personal blog is where I do most of my freehand work, which is used to improve my skill. After all, even the best writers in the industry need practice to keep on top of their craft.

To someone who is freely able to wake up and drive their car to an office job, a life like mine may sound like torture. The truth of the matter is, it is not. I love writing, especially when it means I am impacting others. I do not just write for myself. I write for the entire disabled population and all my other readers. To me, my life is just as normal as everyone else’s. I simply do not see it as boring or traumatic. I see my life as taking what I have been given and making the best out of my circumstances.

Living with chronic conditions in addition to fatigue and everything else that comes along with cerebral palsy makes working very difficult if not impossible for me. I do not let this rain on my parade or ruin my life, because I feel the work I am doing from home is making just as much if not more of an impact than a simple clerical job. I see writing as my talent and an infinite blessing. This admittedly makes my life a lot easier. For those of us with disabilities, there are so many obstacles and hoops to jump through in the world. If you find something you can do from home and you think it makes an impact, I say jump on it! Even if you are not able to make money right away, that’s OK. What truly matters most is if you are happy.

Sure, there are times when my life gets in the way, and I wish I did not have to be dependent on others for things. It can be mighty hard not to feel like an inconvenience when you are required to lean on others. However, for the most part I see my life as a blessing that will only continue to grow.

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