transabled.org

Ron’s Comments

by Sean - 26 July 2004

Here are a few thoughts from my viewpoint as a wannabe/pretender.

I recall at a rather young age, perhaps 10 or so, playing games with my brother and friends, where I was disabled, paralyzed from the waist down. It was a common fantasy when we were playing super-hero games that my secret identity was a crippled person.

Belonging

by Sean -

For years, I tried to fit in. I wasn’t conscious of it, mostly feeling perhaps a general malaise that I couldn’t quite put my finger on (well, one of many!). Then, I got involved in the disability community, and it was very much a feeling of coming home. At last I was surrounded by people who were my Brothers and Sisters, people who shared my own experiences, understood the frustrations, and could relate to me on the same level

Self-Identity

by Sean -

Identity, what is it?

Who creates our identity? Can one be defined by a label? I think not. But perhaps a collection of labels. Labels, of course, being there only to help define what is going on. Identiy is such an evanescent concept. One’s identity is not necessarily the same from one day to another.

Getting an SCI? Yes? No?

by Sean - 25 July 2004

I’ve been saying for years that I didn’t think that becoming paraplegic would actually solve what ails me. I have been opposed to people wanting to become amputees, or paraplegics (including myself), if they’d hoped to suddenly be cured after a surgery.

But I am changing my mind on this. Let me tell you why