Advocacy, Resources

Mix Some Blogs by Adults with Disabilities into Your Parent Blog Reading Routine

When parents first join the disability community by way of their child who has a disability, it’s like entering a whole new world. This new world has a different way of moving, thinking, processing, hearing, seeing, or being; it speaks in new ways and comes with a whole new list of acronyms. Just as moving into any new culture is rarely easy, moving into the disabled world isn’t easy either. Like exchange students in a foreign land, parents often turn to each other, grateful for the company and shared support. You can talk with one another about how things are really hard, or hard to understand; frustrations are understood and you know you are not alone. But sooner or later, it’s a good idea to venture forward.

Expanding Your Blog-Reading Horizons

There comes a time when, like those exchange students, you'll benefit from becoming friends with the natives. So, too, will parents of children with disabilities in becoming friends with adults with disabilities. In expanding your friendship and reading circles to adults from the disability community, you will likely see things from an altogether different perspective, and one that is often highly enlightening! Blogs are an excellent avenue by which you can forge forth and figure out who sounds most like someone you want to get to know.

Seven Blogs to Sample

Here are some excellent blogs by adults with disabilities. These blogs are not always about disability, but disability is an intersection in that person’s life.

1. Tune In to Radio Carly

http://carlyfindlay.com.au Carly is an appearance activist in Australia.

2. Curb Free with Cory Lee

http://www.curbfreewithcorylee.com Cory’s a wheelchair user who is hooked on traveling.

3. Michelle Sutton Writes

https://michellesuttonwrites.com Autistic mom of autistic kid, musing on life, disability, and more.

4. The Disability Visibility Project

https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com Alice Wong interviews people and builds community.

5. Slow Walkers See More

https://slowwalkersseemore.wordpress.com Musings from a disabled life.

6. Tales from the Crip

https://talesfromthecripblog.com Life and stories.

7. Disability Pride

http://www.disabilitypride.com Mom with a disability parenting kids with disabilities, These are a few to get you started, but I encourage you to bookmark Disability Blogs, which has an ongoing list of blogs by people across the disability spectrum. The community of adults with disabilities is enormous. It’s varied, vibrant, and vocal. It’s diverse. There is an enormous range in our disabilities (I am deaf, with bi-polar disorder, PTSD, and TBI, for example) as there is also enormous range in the ways in which we express ourselves and experience life. Reaching forward, you are sure to be able to find voices that speak to you and that you can connect with. When you do, I have no doubt that you’ll be grateful you tried.