Imagine waking up one morning and not being able to get out of bed. Fast forward a couple of months and you still haven't found any relief from your pain. You are not able to do all the things you once could, in fact, you can barely cope with daily life. You get tired of the sympathy looks, their pity, so you stop telling people how you really feel when they ask. I'm OK, is all you say. Doctors brush aside your concerns.

In March 2009, I was accepted into the Creative Communications program at RRC Polytech (formerly Red River College). After six previous attempts over 13 years, I could pursue my dream career as a broadcast journalist. But I kept my focal onset seizures and history of adolescent brain tumours secret from the instructors and Creative Communications coordinator.

Who do you become when the world tells you you're different? When the barriers you face daily feel like chains to an indifferent society or another unachievable standard?

These are questions I had to ask to let go of the person the world told me to be and step into the person I am.

The process of scouring the internet for rental ads, contacting agencies and potential supports in hopes to find advocacy can be discouraging. Persons with disabilities have to be prepared for many roadblocks and yet build an inner resolve to keep understanding the processes and barriers. They need to shine the light and share their daily realities.  The low-income option waiting lists are long. 

How a service dog changed my life. Service dogs are different from Emotional Support Animals and Therapy Dogs because they are trained in specific disability-related tasks to work with one individual person. Although therapy dogs and emotional support dogs provide comfort and companionship to many, they are not granted the same access rights as Service Dogs…

Masking has, in a myriad of ways, negatively impacted my life. As I grew older, I was surrounded by the negative stereotypes of an autistic person because of social media. The “r slur” was being used like the class sharpener. Everyone would use it.

This is a call for people with disabilities to participate and work in the health and wellness industry. We need disability represented in the fitness space.

Why aren’t people with disabilities participating in yoga, Zumba, Pilates, and personal training?

They might not believe that it’s within their capability.

Living with Asperger's Syndrome (Autism Spectrum Disorder) has particular rewards and difficulties.

The rewards are noticeable. We tend to be good students, reliable employees and model citizens once we understand what the rules of institutions are and receive support in learning how to live by them. If we are given chances to participate in these institutions fairly and without prejudice, we can contribute to them, and even change them in positive ways.

Books are a critical tool to introduce children to stories like and unlike their own experiences. Representation and diversity in books help children to learn about the world around them and themselves.

Here are five books to share with your children this summer for some extracurricular reading! Find them at your favourite library, bookstore, or reading app!

What’s better than sitting outside on a summer day with a good book? These five books about disability, accessibility and inclusion are from authors with lived experience. These books include diverse nonfiction perspectives from people with disabilities, as well as fictional representations and stories. Find them at your favourite bookstore, library or reading app!