How Being a Film Writer Helps Me Cope With Having Cerebral Palsy
I have always had a love for films and how the stories are told through the creative art of filmmaking and writing stories. Some of my favorite movies that had a big influence on my decision to become a film writer are “Margarita With a Straw,” “Simon Birch,” and “Forrest Grump.”
Being a film writer has allowed me to be able to tell my life story on how I creatively overcome cerebral palsy. It has also allowed me to help others become inspired to overcome their obstacles and the challenges. There is so much power that comes with being able to say and share, “I can do it and I will achieve my dreams and goals.”
Whenever I’m working on a scene for a film that reflects my life story, I feel a sense of relief knowing that I can spread awareness about cerebral palsy in a positive way versus a negative way. The sad truth is that the world tends to see a person with my condition in the latter.
When I write, it helps me feel empowered to overcome the challenges that come my way. It helps me create the strength I need to look forward to the adventures I’m about to face each day.
I get more and more inspired as I write more scenes and watch the pieces of my life story come together. It feels like a message to the world saying, “I can achieve anything that I set my mind to despite what society thinks of me.”
It reminds me that I have to keep going despite the odds that society has against me. I want to be the advocate, the author, the film writer that changes the world and the way society sees someone like me.
Being a film writer helps me escape from the lack of my mobility and during those times I feel like I’m unstoppable. When I’m writing, I finally get to layout my inner thoughts about my disability and the challenges that come along with having a condition that society doesn’t know much about.
Being a film writer has allowed me to be in a creative world freed from the barriers that I have in society. When I’m writing a film it makes me feel my creativity is endless and nothing could stop me —not even the lack of mobility on the left side of my body.
As a writer, I could tell my story freely without a single worry in the world. I feel empowered and inspired to change the way the world looks at someone like me. I’m in control of telling my story in my own way and who better to do it since I tell my story best.
Photo credit: fabioderby/Getty Images
Tylia L. Flores is a twenty-eight-year-old born with Spastic Cerebral Palsy. Despite her condition that affects her mobility, she does not allow it to affect her will and determination to make a difference in the world. Through her many life challenges and obstacles, she discovered her passion for writing. Tylia’s goal in life is to share her stories with the world. In doing so, she hopes to help others with disabilities realize that they, too, have the potential to make their dreams come true. Tylia is not only an author. She’s a radio show personality and a disability activist. Tylia has written about disability-related topics for Yahoo Life, Your Tango, The Mighty, ReadUnwritten.com, Words Between Coasts Project, Wednesday, Spilwords, and Goble Thrive. Worth Living Among her other appearances are Disability on the Spectrum and Why I was Afraid of Sexuality. Previously, Tylia was nominated to Diversabilities list of the most influential Disability Impacts of 2022. Additionally, Tylia holds the position of chairman in the creative director role for the North American Association Of Cerebral Palsy Advocates. She serves as a mentor for the Disability EmpowHer Network as well. Tylia also works for Write It Up Publishing as a sensitivity reader focusing on disability representation. Tylia has also been involved in many movie press releases for Samuel Goldwyn Films Come as you are Piece of me which was the short film directed and written by award winning filmmaker Bruna Cabral as well as the film adaptation of the book Calvin can’t fly by Jenifer Burnes Tylia is also a keynote speaker at 2020’s Cerebral Palsy Awareness conference. She has also been a guest speaker at Northeastern State University Broken Arrow where she talks to college students about disability and inclusion in education. She has also been a guest speaker at Plantation Middle School, where she discussed inclusion and disability with classmates. Tylia is fully certified in Education for All: Disability, Diversity, and Inclusion through Cape Town University. She’s also certified in Understanding Diversity and Inclusion through Purdue University. She’s also certified in creative writing at the University of East Anglia. Tylia hosts the Stomping On cerebral Palsy radio show with DJ Ty on Asheville FM with DJ Mouse during the Come On In the Kitchen segment once a month she also helps the staff behind the scenes, help bring awareness to disability awareness and inclusion within the radio broadcasting industry .
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