If you know me personally or have read any of my pervious posts you'll be aware that I was born with a physical disability and suffer from a condition named Complex Regional Pain Syndrome which affects my life drastically. Being born with a disability fortunately meant that I never had to go through adjusting to a new way of life using a wheelchair. I grew up with my disability and never thought of it is as something weird, I always saw myself as me and didn't really care what anyone else thought.
Initially, when I first went to primary school I was treated differently because of my disability alongside the fact that I had to use a wheelchair to help me get around. I despised going to school, I absolutely hated it! I was a quiet, mousy type of girl back then and just quietly went about my business despite how much I hated going to school.
Life completely changed for me when my family and I moved to another town. Both my sister and I were enrolled in a small rural school in the middle of the countryside. If we looked out one window we could see endless fields of green and usually a herd of cows grazing in the grass. Looking out another window we could see the sea far into the horizon. It was simply stunning.
With around thirty-six pupils at any given time, I felt completely normal there. Everyone excepted me for who I was and never made me feel different because of my disability. It felt like being a part of a big family and that most definitely was what I needed. Attending a small, rural school completely changed me as a person. I found my confidence and made so many wonderful friends. I am truly grateful to all of my friends there for accepting me and giving me the chance to feel normal.
Unfortunately, I'm too old to attend primary school and instead I'm now home tutored and find myself in my final few years of secondary school. In recent years I've been let down ALOT by people who I thought would always be there for me. If I'm being completely honest it really hurt and I felt extremely let down. Since my knee surgery in 2011, I've had a lot of ups and downs which has helped me mature and become the person that I am today. It's been really difficult at times but I've managed to get through it. I'm fully aware that the doctors are no longer able to do anything for my condition, with that in mind I have decided do my upmost to enjoy life as much as I possibly can and achieve all of my dreams and ambitions.
My intentions for writing this post and on a much bigger scale, creating this entire blog is to open people's eyes and help change things for the better. I'm sick and tired of everyone being classed as the same! I'm sorry, but we're not all the same! Each and everyone of us are unique and I don't care what anyone says, we should feel genuinely proud of who we are!
Like I said above, I have lived with a physical disability ever since I was born. But what I'm trying to get across to the world is that I am a person with real thoughts and real feelings; I am not the disability!
A few years ago I made the decision to take a firm stance and decided to truly express myself and dress in my own, unique and sometimes crazy style. I'm different anyway, so when people stare at me whilst I'm using my wheelchair, why not give them something else to stare at other than the piece of metal that follows me everywhere I go?
There have been a few professionals that I've come across of late who don't seem to accept the word "no". Yes, they have a job to do and I completely accept part of that is to provide me with information regarding what exactly I'm entitled to. However, I'm no longer a child and I am more than capable of making my own decisions that affect my own life! This means that if I say "no", particularly when I have good reasoning to back up my decision the professionals shouldn't persist with the subject and attempt to make me change my mind. I have had many conversations with my GP, who has always encouraged me to speak up and to make sure the professionals around me listen to my wants and wishes. I sometimes think they forget my age and forget the fact that I know my own mind-set and that I'm entitled to my own opinion.
With this in mind I've decided that rather than sitting back and doing nothing I really want to change things. If I have both the ability and knowledge that is required to make a difference, then I should do my bit to get the ball rolling. We need to work at changing people's outlooks and make the professionals around us listen. In order to get things right for each and everyone of us we need to be included in making decisions that affect us because no one knows us better than ourselves.
Unfortunately, I can't wave a magic wand and everything will be okay but what I can do is begin to set the foundation for change. I have created a twitter account for this blog and also plan on setting up a facebook page which I shall share on this blog as soon as it's up and running. Through my social media accounts I want to support other young people out there whether they have a disability, going through a hard time in their life or feel passionate about individuality. I completely understand how hard life can be sometimes and hate to think that there are young people out there who feel that they can't talk to anyone. So if anyone ever needs someone to talk to or needs some advice please do not hesitate to contact me through one of my social media platforms or via my blog's email address which can be found on my contact page.
Im pretty sure that there are so many people out there that can relate to this post and share the same thoughts and feelings as me. I hope that together we can make a change so that no one feels alone or that they're not listened to by the people who are supposed to be there to help and support us.
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