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The adoption of children with extensive special needs has emerged as a viable option to institutionalization. Stature and wealth are not always beneficial in adoption of special needs children, experience and flexibility are.
As children are active climbers 35% of pediatric spinal cord injuries are caused by falls compared to 22% in the adult population. Treatment is highly individualized, dependant on the childs age, severity of spinal and cord damage, and other injuries the child may have incurred. When spinal surgery is required a child's future growth and development must first be considered.
Some of the best parents you will ever meet are wheelchair users. Biological or inherited their children are well balanced high achievers, compassionate problem solvers, open and accepting of cultures outside their own. Parents with spinal cord injury make strong leaders, educators, dedicated and loyal to their partners in life and love.
Interviewed live on Phoenix Radio Graham Streets talks about life in a wheelchair after spinal cord injury and his battle to secure disability housing carers and funding to enhance quality of life after disability. Listen along to our six minute audio stream as Graham, Simon and Suzanne discuss rehab, respite, housing, carers, funding, and the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
Media reinforce and perpetuate negative bias simply by omission. Seldomly is the beauty and vitality that comes with a disability shown in popular culture and even more rare the portrayal as attractive parental and sexual beings. Prejudice attitudes against disability and sociological notions relegating the disabled body as something to be hidden are slowly changing.
Feminist, author, disability activist, Andrea Rita Dworkin suffered from an agonizing bone disease for many years. She describes her disability with grim humor and shares her worst moments and triumphs in overcoming crippling pain...
Influential Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) painted images of a disabled female body. Striking self portrait’s of her own trauma following a tram car accident in 1925 in which she suffered spinal column and spinal cord injuries. Frida Kahlo paintings and artworks are an artists journey through pain trauma and recovery.
Depression is not caused by a weakness or lack of will power. After spinal cord injury the incidence rate of depression in both men and women more than doubles. The impact of a traumatic event does not end when people have begun to mend physically. It is also important to note that the passage of time does not always heal the feelings caused by trauma. Often the longer one goes without getting help the more intense the feelings of distress.
When attempting to rejoin society after tragically similar spinal cord injuries 16 years ago, one would be bitterly failed and the other well served by Australia's disability support system...
A National Disability Insurance Scheme will ease the huge financial cost of living with a disability like spinal cord injury. What if it happened to your son, wife or mother. Could you drop your job put your life on hold and meet their care needs for the rest of their life?"
Radiology x-rays offer vital information to medical specialists after a spinal injury. The location and severity of damage revealed by x-rays directly determines the appropriate course of action to achieve best possible short and long term outcomes. MRI and CT scans further identify soft tissue and spinal cord damage.
