Friends,
Wow! Do I have a treat for you. Meet my young adult friend, Nikki Abramson. Nikki was told by doctors (at the age of five) that she would die in her
teens. Nikki is passionate about encouraging people to find hope
and achieve success in their life journey. She is a Korean American adoptee who
battles several rare and severe medical conditions and is overcoming many
obstacles. She walks by faith with hope each day.
Whether you have a special needs child or not, her story, wisdom, and words are certain to bless your heart.
With faith hope and love,
Lori
Walking with the Unknown by Nikki Abramson
Sometimes our deepest challenges are our greatest
blessings.
I never thought I would consider my disability a blessing. However...the
life experience I gained from walking with a disability as a child has shaped
my view on the world and helped me to see people for who they are.
We are
people first, not the disability first.
As a young child I grew up with a rare and
relatively unknown metabolic muscle condition called Mitochondria Myopathy.
Mitochondria Myopathy is a muscle condition that cause lactic acid build up and
tires my muscles quickly.
As a result of this condition, I have a
handicap parking sticker and a wheelchair. While in school I had other adaptations such as extra time taking tests.
After college, I was in a car accident and developed Dystonia. Dystonia, similar to Parkinson’s, another rare neurological condition
causing involuntary muscle spasms debilitated my life. I was bedridden for
seven months and now am forced to work part time, only drive a few miles from
my house, and rely on the help from my parents.
All I wanted was to live a normal life and be like
everyone else.
However, every day I felt different as there were many
precautions I needed to take a hold of to monitor my energy level. Having a
disability my whole life, I needed to learn to advocate for myself. My parents
have given me tools to advocate for myself by modeling this for me as a young
child in school. When they advocated for my needs I felt empowered to be like
everyone else. I had an incredible care team with my parents and doctors/medical
professionals who pushed me on to greatness and believed in me. It was
frustrating at times when people didn’t understand what you have and you feel
like you’re walking around advocating for yourself on a daily basis.
I wish I
could wear a big sign that said this is what I have especially when the
disabilities I have are relatively unseen.
After 29 years of dealing with disability, I feel
empowered to share with parents how to help support their child(ren) with
disabilities. After all, I walk it daily.
Here
are ten ways for parents with special needs kids to support their child:
1. Pray
for your child and surround yourself with a team of people that will encourage
and support you. There will be tough days ahead.
2. Be
supportive. Your child needs your support. You are the best support and
advocate for him (or her). Do what you can for him.
3. Treat him just as any other child. Yes, he may have some unique needs and therefore may need some accommodations.
4. Encourage her. Say, ‘You can do it.’
5. Give
your child tools to be able to advocate for herself.
6. Don’t
blame yourself or your child for the disability. You didn’t do anything wrong
to deserve this.
7. Accept
the disability. Learn all you can about it.
8. Take thorough notes from all doctors’ and medical care professional’s visits.
9. Teach
others about your child’s disability.
10. Know
that God will use you and your struggles to bless others.
Having a disability is a struggle.
Parents, I urge you to be an advocate and
love your child knowing that they desire to be loved.
Nikki
Parents, I urge you to be an advocate and
love your child knowing that they desire to be loved.
Nikki
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth.
His
disciples asked him,
“Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus,
“but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."
John 9:1-3
“Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus,
“but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."
John 9:1-3
Nikki Abramson is the Founder of Renew Hope LLC , a teacher, leader, performer, speaker, mentor, and author of, I Choose Hope.
You can find Nikki's book I Choose Hope on Amazon or over at Rivershore Books.
Connect with her on Linkedin , follow her on Twitter or
follow me on Facebook.
http://www.1Corinthians13Parenting.com |
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