Cerebral Palsy – A Physical Disability in Human Development
Cerebral palsy is a term that covers a set of neurological conditions that cause physical disability in human development. It affects brain and nervous system and mainly it is related to the brain or cerebrum. Children mostly develop this due to injuries to the brain after birth or during pregnancy. Actually, the brain injury leads to poor vision, speech problems, hearing and learning disabilities.
Symptoms
The person generally shows symptoms in the first three years of his/her life. And, a child with palsy has signs like:
* Achieving development milestones, like walking, crawling or talking later than his siblings and peers.
* Tries to crawl in an unusual way.
* Possess abnormal muscle tone, which refers to the person’s automatic ability to tighten and relax muscle when needed.
* Has difficulty in sucking and feeding.
* Gets startled easily.
* Mostly gives special treatment to one side of the body over the other.
* Has under developed or over developed muscles or stiff movements.
* Possess ataxia.
* Have slow writing movements.
* Possess spastic paralysis.
* Bladder and bowel movement problems.
* Achieving development milestones, like walking, crawling or talking later than his siblings and peers.
The experts have discovered that 1/10th of cerebral palsy cases are of oxygen deprivation, which occurred during birth. And, more specifically it happens in the first 6 months of pregnancy. Sometimes children develop Down syndrome that is also a condition, which, is caused due to delay in child development both physically and mentally. There is certain Treatment For Down Syndrome child with many medical attentions towards them.
There is no particular treatment for Down syndrome as it is based on individual’s physical and intellectual needs, personal strength and limitations. Those who have Down syndrome are at greater health risk and require immediate care after birth and throughout childhood or perhaps long-term treatments throughout life.
If early intervention or involvement for cerebral palsy and Down syndrome is done then certain physical therapies are performed which can strengthen the muscles for basic motor skills.
Scapegoat: Why We Are Failing Disabled People
Scapegoat: Why We Are Failing Disabled People
Every few months there’s a shocking news story about the sustained, and often fatal, abuse of a disabled person. It’s easy to write off such cases as bullying that got out of hand, terrible criminal anomalies or regrettable failures of the care system, but in fact they point to a more uncomfortable and fundamental truth about how our society treats its most unequal citizens.
In Scapegoat, Katharine Quarmby looks behind the headlines to trace the history of disability and our discomfort with disabled people, from Greek and Roman culture through the Industrial Revolution and the origins of Britain’s asylum system to the eugenics movement and the Holocaust, the recent introduction of Ugly Laws ‘in the US and the grim effects of Britain’s hapless community care’ initiative.
Quarmby also charts the modern disability rights movement from the veterans of WW2 and Vietnam to those still fighting for independent living, the end of segregation, and equal rights. Combining fascinating examples from history with tenacious investigation and powerful first person interviews, Scapegoat will change the way we think about disability – and how we treat disabled people.
Review
`Shocking account of how society’s most vulnerable are let down by the UK authorities – it must be read’ –Sunday Times
‘I cannot imagine reading a more important book this year’ –Tom Shakespeare
‘This fireball of a book is shocking, challenging call to action’ –The Herald
`Genuinely authoritative’ –Scotland on Sunday
About the Author
Katharine Quarmby is a campaigning journalist and an award-winning film-maker, as well as an associate editor at Prospect magazine. She has worked as a producer on Panorama and Newsnight, news edited Disability Now, and written for the Economist, Sunday Times, Telegraph and Guardian. She was the first British journalist to investigate disability hate crime and her report for Scope, ‘Getting Away with Murder’, has revolutionised thinking about the issue. This is her first book for adults.
Reviews ..
14/15 people rated this book 5/5
normalising the unthinkable
A brilliant book by one of the UK’s foremost investigative journalists exploring the pernicious impact of disability hate crime: on disabled people, their families and society at large. The author travels to the scenes of some of the most serious and notorious hate crimes committed against disabled people, and talks to bereaved families and friends who are struggling to come to terms with the brutal, and often sadistic murder of a loved one. Police Officers involved in some of the cases describe them as the worst they’ve encountered. The fact that many of these crimes were committed in areas of high density housing where neighbours were apparently able to tune out the horrific violence going on next door is particularly troubling, and brought to mind Hannah Arendt’s ‘banality of evil’ theory which contests that the great evils in history were not executed by fanatics or sociopaths, but rather by ordinary people.
Has the hostility towards and baiting of disabled people has become so ‘normalised’ (as Edward S Herman has argued) that ‘ugly, degrading, murderous, and unspeakable acts become routine and are accepted as ‘the way things are done’?.
Disturbingly, whilst nothing new, the scapegoating of disabled people for society’s ills has intensified and become more brazen in recent years, especially on internet. Cries of ‘burdens to society’, ‘drain on taxpayers’ and ‘scroungers’ eerily echo Nazi slogans used to condone the systematic murder of disabled adults and children during the Holocaust.
Many of those persecuted, tortured and executed during the witch-hunt era we learn, were disabled or vulnerable, and to this day in some cultures disabled children continue to be labelled as witches. Thanks to this landmark book, disability hate crime is a problem that can no longer be ignored.
A real eye-opener
Although a lot of the stories were upsetting, I loved this book as it really tackled some of the issues surrounding disability hate crime that the criminal justice system seem to be ignoring or missing. It really showed how people are getting away with this crime and that the people who suffer from it suffer on a regular basis which the police fail to recognise. Sadly, I feel most disabled people within the UK will be able to relate to this book at some point in their life.
The writer Katherine Quarmby looks at cases from across the UK and speaks to friends and families of the victims getting an in-depth account of the abuse suffered by many. It shows that some people’s attitudes towards the disabled makes their life hell and that disabilism needs to be recognised in the same way that racism and homophobia is.
I do feel the book seemed to be largely focused on disability hate crime surrounding people with learning difficulties and failed to recognise disability hate crime surrounding other impairments such as people with physical impairments or sensory impairments.
I think this book is a must read for anybody interested in disability studies but also for anybody in general.
Pathology of indifference
Tom Shakespeare is right. This may be truly the most important book you will read, but not only this year. It is one of the most relevant documents investigative journalism has ever produced. It is also a test of our social skills and your personal psyche too.
For if this book won’t leave you helpless and depressed, that means you are strong enough to join the ranks of those genuinely concerned about social justice and able to change something in the dysfunctional reality we live in. Equality-wise, we all live in a third world and democracy is only a baby that may grow up or not… It is all up to us, whether we decide to rare and nourish it or dump it in a well of indifference and complacency.
This precious book can help the fragile child by providing us with hopefully therapeutic news of horrors that occur right next to the nursery.
Sex and Disability
Sex and Disability
Every year, millions of people around the world confront a life-threatening illness or acquire a disability and survive.
What follows for them is a physical and emotional roller coaster of treatment and coping. Often, the most difficult adjustment involves sexual activities.
People with a disability or living with an illness may wonder whether they can have children, if their partners will stay with them, if anyone will find them sexually desirable, or if they will ever enjoy sex again.
Sexual-esteem or positive regard for and confidence in one’s ability to experience sexuality in a satisfying and enjoyable way, may be shattered for a person with a disability.
People tend to make assumptions about people with disabilities that have no bearing on reality – or their humanity. Even though there are those who believe that disabled people should not want to be sexually active, this is not factual because people with disabilities still long to be touched and loved just like a person who is totally healthy.
Contrary to the opinion of mainstream society, people who suffer from disabilities are still able to enjoy pleasurable sexual experiences. Many disabled people experience a lack of information as well as significant distress and anguish around their sexual and personal relationships.
An important first step back to a rewarding sexual relationship involves communicating openly and directly with partners, doctors and other health care professionals.
This is not always easy, however. People often have trouble discussing sexual issues or simply feel lucky to be alive and, therefore, as if they don’t have the right to ‘complain’ about changes in sexual functioning.
Many assume, incorrectly, that sexual intimacy is no longer possible due to sensation loss in the genitals. As a result, some may decide to ignore sexuality issues because they believe they no longer apply to them; others will seek out any opportunity to restore sexual-esteem.
Questions, concerns, and feelings of anger about our sexuality are natural after disability or illness. Almost everyone can enjoy sex in some way or other, regardless of their disability.
To find out what suits you and your partner can take experimentation, imagination and above all, learning to feel comfortable with your own image of your body and your desires.
If you want to suggest new ways of having sex to your partner, it is important that you bring it up in a way that doesn’t make them feel awkward. Wait until you are both feeling relaxed and sexy. You may find your partner is more willing to try new things than you had realised. There are no positions specifically for disabled people, only a huge number of positions for you to try and see what you like.
If you are trying something for the first time, take it slowly, see how you feel and check if your partner is having a good time. If you feel uncomfortable or find there is too much pressure on your body, switch position. Be sure you both take responsibility for yourselves and set out to enjoy.
Penetration is not essential to have a good time, and it doesn’t have to be deep for both partners to find it enjoyable. To begin with find sexual positions which do not cause a great deal of strain to maintain a low level of physical exertion.
Perhaps the most comfortable and relaxing position of all is the T position. The woman lays flat on her back while the man lays perpendicular to her, facing her on his side. He straddles her leg furthest from him and enters her softly. This position not only reduces stress, it allows the couple to see one another.
If you are worried about your sex life, or can’t find a way to overcome the sexual problems (such as erection problems ) which are interfering with your happiness, the first step should be your GP. Your GP should know whether you need practical information, medical help or relationship therapy.
Sex therapy is always informal and helpful. It helps couples out of their sexual wilderness into a garden of adventure.
This information has been brought to you by Firstmed.co.uk, the UK’s leading online impotence clinic. If you wish to discuss any of the above issues in more detail, do not hesitate to contact info@firstmed.co.ukor call +44 (0)870 199 5287
About the author:
Firstmed is the leading online male impotence clinic in the UK and specialises in genuine, prescription Cialis, and other leading erectile dysfunction medications.
Top 10 Apps for People with a Disability
Top 10 Apps for People with a Disability
1. My DisableGo London – Free
This is an app that allows you to look up the disabled access to over 20,000 venues in London, with trustworthy information as each venue is assessed in person. You can search out the places nearest to you, or search for a specific location.
2. Parking Mobility – Free
If you are a Blue Badge holder but struggle to find disabled parking spaces then this app can help you locate them. It also allows you to share locations of disabled parking spaces to help others, and report those who are parking there illegally by taking photos of the car.
3. Able Mag – Free
Able Magazine is a disability lifestyle magazine that focuses on disabled peoples abilities (not their disabilities). This app gives you access to all of the content in Able Magazines print edition on your iPhone or iPad.
4. Pill Reminders – Free
This is a great app for those with lots of medication to take, or those who need a little help remembering to take it. Once you have entered the medication you need to take and when, you will be reminded at that time everyday with a notification on your phone.
5. Emergency Info Lite – Free
This app allows you to record your details, emergency contacts and medical information on your phone, including allergies and medication. This information is stored on your phone should an emergency occur, and provides information for the hospital letting them know who you are and who they should call.
6. Radar National Key Scheme – Free
This app guides you to the nearest disabled toilets fitted with a National Key Scheme lock. There are over 9,000 locations across the UK.
7. Dragon Dictation – Free
Very useful for those with very limited mobility, this app uses voice recognition to allow users to write texts, emails, notes and reminders on their phone by using their voice.
8. Physiotherapy Exercises – Free
A list of over 600 physiotherapy exercises with illustrative pictures for people who have suffered spinal cord injuries, and there is also the ability to search for an exercise by body part or condition.
9. SoundAMP R – £2.99
This is an app great for those with a hearing disability as it amplifies sounds in the surrounding world, and allows you to listen to them through headphones in real time, with the option to also record.
10. Gesture Find and Dial – Free
Useful for those with muscle weakness or poor dexterity, this app lets you draw the first few letters of the required contact’s name on the screen as if you were writing with a pen, or select the microphone option and speak the name of your contact to call them.
Footnote
We would love to hear any feedback on these apps from anyone who has used them. Likewise if there are any other apps that can make life easier for the disabled, let us know.
Disability Doesn’t Mean Inability: Be Your Own Boss!
Being handicapped isn’t a sin. It doesn’t make you any less or incapable than others. You can be equally happy and enjoy the good things in life. Do not ever think of a disability as a limitation or hurdle in doing all those things you love. See the bright side of life. Be positive. Do not let negative and death thoughts rule your mind. Do not see your disability as a curse. Here’s a checklist of how you can live life with disability and be your own boss:
For more tips click here.
* You might come across many fellow disabled people around you who are happy. Talk with them and see what you have in common. Share your thoughts and ideas.
* Do not forget to laugh. A good sense of humour goes a long way in curing various physical and mental ailments. Hence, make humour a part of your life.
* Follow your heart and follow your creative pursuits. If you love sketching, do so without your disability posing as an impediment. Pursue hobbies and aptitudes, which excite you like collecting coins, scrap booking, crafts, photography or anything else. Engaging in a hobby will breathe a fresh lease of life in your day-to-day activities.
* Did you know that reading makes one skip the monotony in life? You can very well take a library membership if you love to read. And who doesn’t know that books make us more emotionally and intellectually powerful? So practice reading for a better life.
* Make friends. Nothing perhaps gives us pleasure than talking and mingling with likeminded friends. Join a book club, social networks like Facebook or Myspace or go to public meeting places like parks where you can meet lot of new people and make friends easily.
* These days, you have everything from accessories to handicap specific products, which have put all worries to rest. For example, if you are willing to venture out somewhere and don’t know how, you can easily do that by making use of handicap cars. These special cars for the disabled run on electric and are very easy to control.
Avoid everything negative that comes your way, including negative people. Ignore all the side talks. Participate in fun discussions or online forums and contests where you can share your ideas and win accolades for the same. Online games are also a great way to perk up your spirits. So play what you love. Join support groups where you can learn many new things. Cultivate an active social life. Love the life you are in!
Life Without Limits PB: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life
Life Without Limits PB: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life
What Would Your Life be Like if Anything Were Possible?
Born without arms or legs, Nick Vujicic overcame his disabilities to live an independent, rich, fulfilling, and ‘ridiculously good’ life while serving as a role model for anyone seeking true happiness. Now an internationally successful motivational speaker, Nick eagerly spreads his central message: the most important goal is to find your life’s purpose and to never give up, despite whatever difficulties or seemingly impossible odds stand in your way.
Nick tells the story of his physical disabilities and the emotional battle he endured while learning to deal with them as a child, teen, and young adult. ‘For the longest, loneliest time, I wondered if there was anyone on earth like me, and whether there was any purpose to my life other than pain and humiliation.’
Nick shares how his faith in God has been his major source of strength, and he explains that once he found a sense of purpose – inspiring others to better their lives and the world around them – he found the confidence to build a rewarding and productive life without limits. Let Nick inspire you to start living your own life without limits.
Includes a Life Without Limits Personal Action Plan to help anyone determine their unique path to a successful life.
Reviews
Nick Voyicic has touched my heart and his book is a real attempt to help people who are feeling defeated. It is not an autobiography as such; it is motivational and spiritually uplifting. It gets one’s own difficulties into perspective and it is encouraging and helpful. It does rely on faith in the ultimate nature of things and is based in Christianity. However, anyone who has faith in a power higher than themselves will be able to reap tremendous rewards from Nick’s words.
I reckon people who have not heard of this man should read this book. This has touched me and I love this man and his power to do what he can do with this disability!!!!
On the face of it, Nick Vuyicic seems to have every reason to feel sour about life. Yet from this book shines such positivity and faith. It is a truly inspirational read, and tends to put the little problems I may face in perspective. Highly recommended.
If you are feeling sorry for yourself, and thinking that life is a bit hard on you, this is a must read. A baby born with no limbs, other than a tiny appendage where a leg should be. A shock for his parents, this was post Thalydomide, and a life of challenges. He was a gorgeous baby, how easy it would have been for his parents to wrap him up in cotton wool and let him vegetate. Fortunately they would not allow that, and he had a very determined spirit. His parents allowed him to face each challenge in his own way, finding a solution.
Yes, he was labelled a freak by unkind children and adults alike, it must have hurt, but he found ways of getting over that. A Christian family, there is a strong Christian theme running through – Life without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life. It is exciting and full of humour. He laughed at himself, and enjoyed playing practical jokes with the help of siblings, cousins and friends. A truly excellent book that I was sorry to finish.
Keeping Mum: Caring for Someone with Dementia
Keeping Mum: Caring for Someone with Dementia
‘At 3am I was startled awake by the opening of the stairgate. Leaping out of bed I found Mum, clothes on over her pyjamas, grumbling she was fed up of being moved from pillar to post and was going home.’
When her mum was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, Marianne Talbot decided she couldn’t put her into a care home. Instead, for five years, she looked after her mum in her own home. For nearly three of those years she chronicled for the readers of Saga Magazine Online the fears and frustrations, the love and the laughter, and the tears and the traumas of caring. Now, in this heart-warming book, you too can meet Marianne, Mum, and the appalling Fatcat.
You will also find plenty of practical tips for caring for someone with dementia and on staying sane whilst doing so, a resources and useful contacts section and Marianne’s reflections on caring from a distance, and on when caring comes to an end. Written for anyone, anywhere, who has anything to do with dementia or with caring; in reading it you will know you are not alone.
Review
This book has all the warmth, humanity and insight that made her Saga blogs such a moving and unmissable read. (Saga Magazine Health Editor)
In this extraordinarily moving diary, one woman tells how the experience of having to care for someone with dementia almost drove her mad, yet made her life richer. (Daily Mail 20110326)
This heart-warming, incredibly honest account of dealing with dementia is one to read. (The Sun)
From the moment I read Marianne’s first blog, I knew we had something special. Each week I laughed and cried along with her thousands of fans and marvelled at her resilience and wisdom. (Melody Rousseau, Online Editor Saga Magazine )
A deeply moving story of their laughter and their pain. (Daily Mail 20110326)
The Blog ‘Keeping Mum’ on the SAGA website is truly wonderful. As I read, I found myself moved to tears by the beautiful articulation and reflection evident in the author’s thoughts and feelings. One can really begin to ‘feel’ the emotional journey and empathise with Marianne and her mother as they face numerous daily challenges.
There is currently a paucity of ‘real – life stories’ in health literature surrounding issues of unpaid caring in the community. A book based on the Blog would make a highly valuable contribution to this topic and help raise awareness. A book would be especially beneficial to healthcare professionals and enabling them to better understand and appreciate the challenging situations encountered by many unpaid carers.
(Andy Richardson Lecturer – Faculty Of Health Sciences University Of Southampton)
Valuable suggestions on how to cope with frustrating circumstances and is peppered with useful tips on dealing with a wide variety of situations from incontinence to living wills. (Nursing Standard)
About the Author
Marianne Talbot left school at 15. She is now Director of Studies in philosophy at Oxford University’s Department for Continuing Education, where she specialises in ethics and the philosophy of mind. Marianne cared for both her parents from a distance for 9 years before bringing her mum to live with her. She enjoys swimming, cycling, reading detective novels and going out with friends. A donation of 5 per cent of the author’s profits from sales of the book will go to Alzheimer’s Research UK.
No Hand To Hold & No Legs to Dance on
No Hand To Hold & No Legs to Dance on
No Hand To Hold & No Legs to Dance on: Laughing and Loving – A Thalidomide Survivor’s Story
While the battle for the compensation of Thalidomide victims was raging in the 1970s, former Labour MP Jack Ashley asked in a parliamentary debate how Louise, then 11 years old, could look forward to ‘laughing and loving with no hand to hold and no legs to dance on’.
Louise was born Louise Mason, a victim of the devastating drug Thalidomide. Born without arms and legs, she is the daughter of David Mason, who single-handedly held out against the drug company, the legal establishment and all the other parents of Thalidomide victims in the high-profile fight for proper compensation for the victims.
As she was photographed with her family and appeared on television meeting celebrities during the battle, few people realised that she did not live with her wealthy parents and three siblings at their spacious North London home but was being brought up in an institution, Chailey Heritage in Sussex. In fact, Louise had never gone home from hospital and, for the first five weeks of her life, her mother didn’t even see her.
This is a survivor’s story, a triumph of the human spirit over adversity. Louise married John, a partially sighted man, and had two beautiful children. She was devastated when she discovered that he was having an affair with their carer.
She also had to undergo a kidney transplant, the first Thalidomide victim to do so.
She has worked, been an active disability rights campaigner and has now found new love, with Darren, a fellow Thalidomide victim who was born without arms.
This book is an amazing story of survival. It will make you smile, laugh and cry. I couldn’t put the book down. I highly recommend it.
This is the amazing story of the courage and determination of Louise Medus who has brought up her children & is living an independent life to the full despite great restrictions caused by Thalidomide.
I bought this book to read knowing nothing about Thalidomide children.
I could not put this book down and found it well written and a real insight into all the problems and barriers that Louise encountered. She is to be admired for her courage and sheer stubbornness and determination to beat all obstacles put in her way.
The Accessible Home
The Accessible Home
Millions of baby boomers are approaching the golden years. While it is a marker worth celebrating, it can also be a reminder of uncertain times ahead. How will I manage? Can I stay in my home? The Accessible Home goes beyond ramps and grab-bars to help aging boomers, or those faced with disabilities, accomplish home accessibility on a deeper level.
With a focus on closing the gap between home and homeowner, architect Deborah Pierce leads readers through the steps of universal design, from hiring the right architect to creating a pleasing space with the final details.
Plus, an insiders look at 25 case studies shows that the best design is built in, not tacked on, and that accessible can be both beautiful and functional. The Accessible Home empowers people of all ages and challenges them to create homes that restore independence and the grace of daily living.
Deborah Pierce tackles the small problems along with the large in her quest to make wonderful places where people with disabilities can live comfortably and safely. Her thoughtful case studies are full of helpful ideas, many of them little things that make a world of difference to a disabled person.
More than that, however, she sets her sights on creating houses that are beautiful, comfortable, and convivial for the entire family and their guests. That is one of the most gratifying accomplishments for any architect. I commend her on this insightful book, which will prove useful and accessible to the public and professionals alike. -Michael Graves, FAIA
The home of the future will be a place for people of all ages and abilities – designed with transparent functionality and an inviting, universal aesthetic. Until then, ‘The Accessible Home ‘stands as the roadmap to the universal home. Deborah Pierce presents an elegant overview of the accessibility basics to show homeowners a menu of options — urban, suburban and even rural. The book celebrates independence, comfort and graceful living; it empowers people to become involved in the evolution of home design. Sam Maddox, Knowledge Manager, The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation
Deborah Pierce has created an inspired, beautiful, and practical book. ‘The Accessible Home ‘will be appreciated by the person/family newly struggling with the realities of changes in her, his, or their abilities as well as the experienced designer needing guidance. I’ve been reviewing and critiquing books on accessible design for 30 years; this is the most complete home design book I’ve ever seen. It illustrates the alchemy that occurs in a respectful partnership between designers and their clients. –Elaine Ostroff, Hon. AIA, Founding Director, Institute for Human Centered Design (Adaptive Environments)
Inspiring, visionary, and yet totally down to earth. This is a must-read for anyone designing the home of a lifetime. – Hugh
About the Author
Deborah Pierce, AIA, is founding partner, project architect and firm manager of Pierce Lamb Architects in Massachusetts. Architectural accessibility has been a special focus of Deborahs work since the firms inception. As national chair of the AIA Advisory Group for Small Project Practitioners, she has helped raise awareness for Universal Design in private residences through the AIAs Small Project Design Awards programme and a 2010 National Convention seminar. She is also a frequent lecturer on the hot topic of accessibility.