Wheeling with Pride: Embracing Disability and Celebrating Achievements

By: Tammy Culhane

Well, we made it! Summer has officially begun, and I couldn’t be happier! Summer has been my favourite time of year! How could it not be? The weather turns beautiful, you don’t have to layer up just to go for a walk, and everyone just seems to be carefree and happy. Ok, I’ll be truthful here. There’s another reason I love summer… July is my birthday month! I LOVE to celebrate my birthday; I love celebrating it so much that I have often extended it past the usual one-day celebration! It’s my time to celebrate my achievements from the previous year and to set myself new goals for the year ahead.

Just when I thought I couldn’t love July anymore, I found out (during the process of writing this piece) that July is Disability Pride Month. I will be completely honest and say that I had no idea that this month even existed until I did a good old Google search. In 1990, George H.W. Bush signed an act that prevented discrimination against people with disabilities in various sectors of the United States. As I continued my research, I came to realize that this was implemented to also help people with different abilities see that they can and should be proud of themselves and their achievements.

Early Years: Building a Foundation of Confidence

Reading a little more about Disability Pride Month, I found myself reflecting on where I am with my sense of pride. Being born with Cerebral Palsy in the 1970s, my mom, as a single parent, wasn’t given a very promising future for me. Everywhere we turned, someone or something tried to deter us from reaching our goals. Thankfully, she was determined that I would have every opportunity that any child should be given. She didn’t know how things were going to work out, but she just took things as they happened. My milestones were completely different from those of other children. They were achieved at my own pace, and right from day one, I was shown that everything would be possible if I at least tried. My entire extended family adopted the very same philosophy as my mom, and no matter who I was with, I had to try. I don’t remember my younger achievements that well, but the thing that does stick out is the happiness and love I received when I accomplished even the simplest things.

School Days and the Power of Adaptation

I’d have to say my earliest memories of having some sense of pride in my disability were in my early school days. I attended my local elementary school. My only adaptations in those days were having a teacher’s assistant with me all day, every day, and getting to use a typewriter. None of the other kids had either one of those privileges; I was special. That feeling was the best. I was proud to say that I could use a machine that no one else in my classroom could use and that I had a teacher who was with me all day and who only taught me.

A Graduation Triumph: Walking into a Limitless Future

Maintaining that sense of pride and confidence was tested a lot during my later elementary days and continued throughout my years in high school. I developed lower self-esteem and began thinking of my disability as the worst thing that could ever happen to me. Even though I was succeeding in my grades, I wasn’t proud of myself. All of that changed in my senior year. One day, my teacher’s assistant challenged me to learn how to walk without my walker. We didn’t tell anyone (not even my mom) about our goal. We decided to share the secret on my graduation day. My name was called, and I stood up, climbed the stage stairs, and walked across to get my diploma all by myself. I will never, ever forget the amount of pride I had in myself. That event was pivotal and completely life-changing! My future suddenly looked limitless, and I was ready to fully embrace my life as a proud disabled woman.

Embracing Opportunities and Life Lessons

If I fast forward my life to where I am currently, there have been so many different circumstances in which I’ve achieved goals that I, at one point, thought were impossible. I truly believe that my disability and everything that has come with it has (and will continue to) taught me several valuable life lessons.

Summer Reflections and Pride in the Journey

As we welcome the warm weather and everything that comes with it, I encourage people with disabilities to take a moment to think about what they have accomplished or overcome to achieve their life goals and dreams. Take pride in everything you are, everything you’ve accomplished, and everything that lies ahead for you! Never minimize your success, learn from your mistakes, and most importantly, take every opportunity to learn, grow, and help others gain the knowledge you’ve acquired.

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Header image (“Love Your Life”) via Randalyn Hill / Unsplash

I am a strong (and extremely stubborn at times) woman who lives with Cerebral Palsy. I’ve been involved with various disability organizations over the last 30+ years. I play and love Power Wheelchair hockey (I’m a goalie). I am a novice writer who has been published in local magazines and newspapers. My lifelong goal has been to write a book based on my life experiences.

If you would like to see what I’m up to, please follow me on Instagram: @tammyculhane