Today’s post on how to cope with a disability is actually about the purpose of this page.

I am planning great things for this page. My goal is to talk about what it takes to live and cope with disability and still have a meaningful life.

I am not disabled. Just so you know. Some quirks and some minor aches and pains but I am not disabled.

I am not going to pretend I know what it’s like to live with a disability. But I’m around the disabled all day long and I see their suffering.

What is it like to be disabled?

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My clients have shared what it’s like to deal with the difficulties of the simplest tasks and how they cope with disability. I have interviewed, represented and defended many disabled clients. Their stories are present every day in my practice.

What I’m trying to say is that I hear you. Loud and clear. And I want to share your stories. Your victories and how you overcome your impairments: Every minute, every day, every year.

I also want to share stories of people working to make your life easy. I will include the occasional review of products, new treatments and anything I find that will interest you. Or that will make your life easier.

Whether it’s a mental or a physical disability the struggles are real and sometimes not always visible.

We all hear stories about some “holier than thou” person who decides to leave a note on a disabled person’s car. All because that disabled person parked in a handicapped spot and “didn’t look disabled” in that person’s opinion.

People are quick to judge the disabled even when they don’t have all the facts

It’s up to you and people who live with the disabled to get out there and tell the stories: Your story!

And I’m not talking about a “pity party” story. I don’t want people to feel sorry for you. I want them to see a champion!

Someone who gets up every day despite all the pain, the suffering, the discomfort.

That’s a champion in my book! And that, my friend, is your story! 

You may not see it that way because all you did all day was lie down in bed because your dizziness was catching up with you. Or you had to be in a dark room all day because your migraine was an “11” today.

And even if you had to be in your underwear all day. All because your Fibromyalgia pain was so bad you couldn’t even put clothes on. You are still a champion! 

A champion is not about receiving recognition from others only. It’s not about a medal or fireworks.

To Cope with Disability, it Takes Courage!

 

Your courage to get up every day. Courage to just open your eyes every day! The only one who needs to recognize that is you.

You need to accept you are a champion. You need to recognize that if, by any chance (if you’re religious or not), you were put on this earth to “win” a battle with yourself and “overcome”: you are already there!

I hear my clients saying, “I feel useless, hopeless“. All they want is to provide for their families or themselves. I hear that “they want to work“. But they can’t. Their bodies are simply saying NO!

We all face our challenges every day. They don’t always involve being disabled but they are challenges nonetheless. Some cope with the loss of a loved one. Others cope with poverty, hunger, persecution.

Even in the face of these challenges, we keep going.

And despite the fact that all you do is sit at home or lie down unable to work, know that you are still contributing to society.

That’s right! You do!

You go to the doctor, the doctor treats you. That doctor employs people who depend on patients like you to pay their bills, Those employees pay taxes and get out there and spend money with their purchases. Their purchases generate more taxes and more employment. The circle goes round and round until they get back to you with disability benefits being paid to you (Click on the link to learn if you qualify).

You worked hard, you paid your taxes and the circle goes back to you. Which means you do contribute to society!

Just realize you still support people. A lot of people!

Maybe not the way you envisioned for your life. But you do contribute to the lives of others! And that is very significant in the large scheme of life!

So you are not able to work. It sucks!

But now that you realize you are still contributing to society, it’s time to find some level of happiness in your life. Even if for 5 minutes.

What makes you happy? Is there a hobby you like? If you can’t do that anymore, is there a new hobby that is related to the old hobby that you physically can do, even if for 5 minutes?  Hugging your pet?

Do you like reading?

Here are some great reading materials for coping with disability:

Do you like writing?

What if you created your own blog to talk about your disability and how you deal with it? Imagine how many people would benefit from it! You can start with a paragraph today. Two paragraphs the next and so on.

If you do that, Let me know and maybe you can guest post on this very blog!

Do you like speaking in public?

You could be a guest speaker in events for the disabled. You could speak in support groups or awareness events. You can even do videos in the comfort of your home, and with a simple cell phone camera and share it on your blog or a podcast.

I actually wrote a post about How to survive financially when waiting for your Social Security Disability Claim (click on the link). There are tons of ideas there to make a bit of money while keeping yourself busy.

 

Finding a smile every day

I want you to find at least one little thing every day that makes you smile. Even if it’s watching videos of cats!

If you crack a little smile, take note of that.

I want you to find meaning in your life, one smile at a time.

Let’s do this, champion!

 

 

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Books By Realtactics4DisabilityClaims

Learn the ins and outs of filing your Social Security Disability Claim with Real Tactics For Filing Your Disability Claim. This book was written by Yours Truly and it was created for those claimants who wish to learn more about the process in language they can understand.

You will also learn how to read your medical records so you can see if they are supporting your claim, and learn how to organize your file so you never lose track of your treatment.

Finally, I offer an exclusive Facebook group just for the book where you can ask questions about the concepts you learned in the book.

My book is available on Amazon Kindle and paperback. Simply click on the image below and grab your copy today!

 

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Courses by Realtactics4disabilityclaims

If you were denied disability and you are looking to appeal with “better” evidence, I created a course about using a Residual Functional Capacity Report to add to your medical records. This is a form you can take to your doctor to complete in support of your claim. The course includes forms for physical or mental impairments and instructions on how to ask your doctor to complete them. You can take a “free sneak peek” to see if this course is for you. Click on the image below and you will be directed to the course page:

 

Also, if you are looking to file for disability and don’t know where to start, I created a course called the “5 Day File your Disability Claim” Guide where I teach you every step you should take to file your claim.

Simply click on the image below and it will take you directly to the course page. Take a “free sneak peek” of the first lesson to see if this course is for you.

You know the blog, now you can take one step further and learn the process of preparing and filing your claim.