World Cerebral Palsy Day: More Than a Diagnosis

Welcome to October 6 — World Cerebral Palsy Day. 💚

Today means a lot to me and to the cerebral palsy community because it gives us a day to show the world that we are more than just a disability. We are people like anyone else.

I don’t need October 6 to remind me that I have cerebral palsy. My body reminds me of that every single day.

But October 6 gives the rest of the world an opportunity to listen.

Cerebral palsy is part of my life, but there is an entire person living behind that diagnosis.

I have lived with cerebral palsy for 48 years. During those years, I have learned a different way of living that I might never have understood if I hadn’t been born with CP.

One of the biggest things cerebral palsy has taught me is how to adapt.

I Learned How to Adapt

Yes, life can be challenging every day when you have cerebral palsy.

Sometimes my body doesn’t move the way I want it to.

Things that other people can do without thinking may require planning for me.

Sometimes I need another person to help me.

Sometimes I need equipment.

Sometimes I need more time.

And sometimes I have to completely change the way I planned to do something.

But throughout my life, I was given the tools to figure out how to adapt—not only so I could do the things I needed to do, but also the things I wanted to do.

That difference is important.

Life shouldn’t only be about figuring out how to survive your daily responsibilities.

I wanted to live.

I wanted an education.

I wanted to work.

I wanted friendships.

I wanted love.

I wanted to travel.

I wanted to exercise.

I wanted my own home.

I wanted independence.

And cerebral palsy meant that sometimes I had to find a different route to get there.

Where Did I Learn That?

I learned it from my family.

I learned it through my education.

I learned it through years of experiences—some good and some very difficult.

And I’ll admit it:

I learned a lot of it from my own stubbornness.

There have been plenty of times when cerebral palsy has put a challenge in front of me and I’ve thought:

Okay, how am I going to get around this one?

Maybe I couldn’t do something exactly the way everyone else did it.

That didn’t always mean I couldn’t do it.

It meant I had to find my way of doing it.

That lesson has followed me throughout my entire life.

Look at What I’ve Built

I don’t want people to look at me on World Cerebral Palsy Day and simply think about everything that is difficult for me.

I want you to look at what I’ve built while adapting to those difficulties.

I went to college.

I worked.

I fell in love.

I moved into my own apartment.

I learned to manage my own PCAs.

I exercise.

I travel.

I write.

I advocate.

I keep learning about this body of mine.

And at 48 years old, I’m still adapting.

I’m still learning.

I’m still challenging myself.

And yes, I’m still stubborn.

More Than a Diagnosis

World Cerebral Palsy Day isn’t only about teaching people the medical definition of cerebral palsy.

It’s about the people behind that definition.

We have dreams.

We have relationships.

We have careers and educations.

We have good days and difficult days.

We have things we’re proud of and things we’re still trying to figure out.

We are not simply examples of what cerebral palsy looks like.

We are people living full lives with cerebral palsy as one part of our stories.

Cerebral palsy has taught me that there may be more than one way to get where I want to go.

Sometimes I need help.

Sometimes I need to change the plan.

Sometimes I need to listen to my body.

And sometimes I need that stubborn part of me that says:

I’m not giving up. I’ll find another way.

So on World Cerebral Palsy Day, don’t just learn what cerebral palsy is.

Listen to the people who live with it.

We are more than the definition.

We are the lives behind it.

💚 Happy World Cerebral Palsy Day.

Seeing the beauty between the challenges.

— Marie W.O.W.C.P.