Recently, I shared about an incredible experience I had at Providence Hospital. You can read more about that week on my previous blog (Caregivers Part 1: Healthcare Workers). I spoke with over 2,500 caregivers – medical professionals who have gone into this line of work. These nurses, doctors, and therapists have chosen to give their… Continue reading Caregivers Part 2: Family and Friends

Any One Of Us Any One Of Us is a documentary film that illustrates how quickly life can change. The film, released in 2019, is a glimpse at prominent mountain biker Paul Basagoitia’s 2015 spinal cord injury and his recovery journey. The exceptional aspect of this film is that director Fernando Villena brought together stories… Continue reading SCI Can Happen To Anyone At Anytime

I started a YouTube Channel in 2010 and joined the Shield Healthcare family in 2016. Soon we saw the need to showcase how accessibility really looked...

Quality Sleep Can Be Elusive With a Spinal Cord Injury Waking refreshed in the morning has been a rarity for me over the years, frequently disrupted in the night for a variety of reasons. For one, like clockwork, every one and half, to two hours, my neurogenic bladder triggers, causing the urge to urinate. Second,… Continue reading Sleeping With A Spinal Cord Injury

How Toys Can Reflect Diversity & The Differently Abled Growing up, my favorite toys were always cars, trucks, motorcycles, and action figures— He-Man, Gi-Joe, Superman and Star Wars. My sister preferred Barbie, My Little Pony and Care Bears. However, when I look back at the early objects that influenced me, they were all able-bodied with… Continue reading Toy Diversity: Inclusive Youth

Bodywork Can Make a Difference For SCI Throughout the years I have explored many methods for managing pain, stiffness, spasticity, and stress, all of which are common repercussions from a chronic spinal cord injury. I have tried it all— doctor-prescribed medications, holistic tinctures, natural herbs, Yoga, Pilates, Watsu and exercise— just to name a few!… Continue reading Pain Management: Massage Matters

September is Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month, and to highlight all of the different stories out there, I wanted to share some great books written by people who have spinal cord injuries. I have not read all of these books, but what I can attest to (since writing about my own injury and recovery process)… Continue reading Twelve Authors with a Spinal Cord Injury

Definition: Pressure injuries (also known as decubitus ulcers, pressure sores or bedsores) are damage to an area of the skin caused by constant pressure for prolonged periods of time. A pressure injury forms where the pressure from body the body’s weight presses the skin against a firm surface, such as a bed or wheelchair. Pressure… Continue reading Pressure Sores Are Not to Be Taken Lightly

Sustaining a spinal cord injury as a young, professional athlete took my identity away from me. My grandfather would call me “grasshopper” because I was always moving around – on my feet, in the air, on a surfboard, skateboard or motorcycle. In 1999, I broke my neck at C-4,5,6 and the way I had navigated… Continue reading Getting Competitive: Sports & Spinal Cord Injury

Amidst our nation’s aging infrastructure and antiquated stigmas, there seems to be a groundswell of passionate entrepreneurs, engineers, universal designers and agents of social change focused on destigmatizing disability and disrupting the status quo while redefining and redesigning a radically inclusive world. As friend of mine, and radical change maker, Riley Poor, says: “Radically Included… Continue reading What Does it Mean to be Radically Included?