Comment by lrkrsBlurkn

I cant and wont talk about blindness. I'll say a thing or two about living with disabilities though. My friend's kid and my own kid's.

My best friend's kid has some neurological thing that stumped his ability to control his left half of his body. Without therapy, this results in muscle atrophy from lack of use.

My friend very bummed out about it. But I told him not to worry [1]. Specifically, with the right therapy and proper attention from the parents, the kid was going to end up being the toughest of the three boys.

Long and behold that kid is eight, trying out for soccer for the nine year olds and my buddy told me that the kid is the toughest of three.

Lesson: you cant make the disability go away, but if you have the right support they can help mold you into someone better.

My kid is allergic to everything (including contact anaphalaxis). His diet is very specific.

I wield the threat of the ADA as a bludgeon against anyone who tries to exclude him by not being reasonably accommodating. Out if fear, my wife considered pulling him out of day care [1], but I refused. First we couldn't afford being on one income, second he needed peers and was turning two.

He's doing very well in day care. He's a social and charming little bugger. We worked out that he cannot have lunch with the other kids and he is aware.

Once a month my wife makes lunch for the whole class. Then he can sit w/ everyone and he comes back with a big smile ranting about how he sat next to his buddy or girlfriend.

He's only three but he's starting to understand that he has a personal challenge he has to manage and start taking responsibly (i.e. the day he stole a cheese puff he ended up vomiting and in the ER)

Lesson: always go for bat for the kid. Never accept that he's unreasonably excluded or accommodated. Don't be afraid. we've probably put in 100 hours of time just on accommodation for him thus far (last year and a half).

Lastly, we know a family that has twin, teenaged, severely autistic, boys. No matter how bad it gets, I always remember that I have it easy.

[1] Both my wife and friend are the real stoics roll with life's blows types. Im not at all stoic, but I learned a bit from them. I was only reminding them what they already knew. Difficulties can be opportunities to grow.