How do you face a disability with a sense of humor?

"Blind & Bored" content creator Hannah Weymouth speaks with "Enable: The Disability Podcast" co-hosts Geoff "DeafGeoff" Herbert and Kurt Hower about how she lost vision as an adult due to a retina disorder known as cone dystrophy. She also spoke about resources she use (including helpful apps and audio description on movies and TV shows), how she embraces her disability, and her superpower (but don't compare her to Daredevil).

"One of the main things that frustrates me is that a lot of sighted people don't think about the fact that we use all of our other senses and we're not that different. You know, we're all the same. It's just that we don't have this one aspect," she explained. "A lot of sighted people... think that blind people don't know anything that's going on around them. And that's just so the opposite."

As "Blind & Bored," Hannah shares videos on social media featuring funny skits, jokes and satire based on her own life experiences. Follow her on the following platforms:

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@blindbored 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/17oA1rPDUx/ 

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@blindandbored 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blindnbored 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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Dr. Desirie Skeete speaks with "Enable: The Disability Podcast" co-hosts Geoff "DeafGeoff" Herbert and Kurt Hower about IEPs, behavior consulting, ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) therapy, and how her own child's speech struggles inspired her work.

"During the IEP meeting, you're going through the behavioral needs for the child... at the top of that IEP, you're going to see the services that the school district is giving you. You must make sure that those services is all that you need. Sometimes you're getting a one-to-one in school. Do you need a one-to-one at home? And if so, ask that question. Are you getting ABA, parent training, speech, occupational therapy?" Dr. Skeete says. "And if you don't see the services that you need, you should be asking why. And not only why, you should be asking about the data that supports the reason as to why or why not, why you're not getting what you need."

Dr. Skeete is a behavior consultant and mental health advocate who founded NESS Cares and NESS Behavioral Consulting. For more information, visit https://www.nessbehaviorconsulting.com/ 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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"Diagnosing PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) requires a clinical diagnosis. You can suffer from it, you can have it. We will know you've got it. But until you truly seek help and drill down to what you really are struggling with, PTSD can come from normal things," Migala explained. "And that can be any one singular traumatic incident that you went through... Now you compound that to a military-related service, whether it be incoming fire, whether it be mortar rounds, whether it be just something impactful, a car bomb, a vehicle-borne IED, all of these things create a response within ourselves that becomes a fight or flight. And it reverts us back to the very basic nature of, my gosh, I'm back in this instance. It's creating that same anxiety inside of me. My response is the same. My heart rate is the same, cold panic, sweats, anger, anxiety, reluctance to engage."

"PTSD (in the most non-clinical person nutshell) is the response to traumatic events that we carry with us that unfortunately, in many instances, we have not been dealing with properly," he continued. "And there are resources that we have that we can use and tap into as veterans when we leave the military that are truly impactful for us and our family members."

Migala also shared information on how to TAP in for help -- as in the U.S. Army Transition Assistance Program (TAP) -- plus additional resources to help vets: 

https://va.gov (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs) 

https://maketheconnection.net (Make the Connection) 

https://mentalhealth.va.gov (Mental Health Services at the VA) 

https://veteransoutreachofpa.org (Veterans Outreach of PA) 

https://hiringourheroes.org (Hiring Our Heroes) 

https://skillbridge.mil (Skillbridge at Dept of War) 

https://orhusa.org (Operation Restore Hope)

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms. Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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"Growing up, I never told people that I had cerebral palsy. I would make up all kinds of crazy stories about it. And my thinking was that it's nobody's business," Ryan explains. "So I would make up crazy stories like I got in a helicopter crash or I got in a fight... and I started to realize that you're doing a disservice to yourself."

Ryan Minic is a content creator and e-commerce entrepreneur based in California. For more information, visit https://www.ryanminic.com/ or watch his videos on YouTube:  @ryanminic.

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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What is ankylosing spondylitis and how can it lead to hip replacement surgery? "Enable: The Disability Podcast" co-hosts Geoff "DeafGeoff" Herbert and Kurt Hower talk about Kurt's recent procedure related to AS that aims to improve his quality of life, including simple tasks like walking, driving and getting dressed. We also discuss whether his new hip will set off metal detectors, how soon he can dance like Elvis or Shakira, and what the surgery was actually like.

Kurt Hower, who has worked at Advance Local for over 35 years, is a leader both in the media industry and in the community. He has been actively involved in leading change as the print industry has continued to rapidly evolve, while also serving on a variety of boards including the Central PA Chapter Arthritis Foundation Board of Directors where he was Chairman of Board Development and a member of the Public Policy and Advocacy Committee. Hower has ankylosing spondylitis, a rare disease that causes arthritis of the spine, and encourages others to focus on what they can contribute to society rather than their challenges.

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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"Human augmentation is the ability to extend human capacity beyond biological limits. So some of the helpful examples that I like to think about is the way that a prosthetic or a spacesuit is a type of technology that transforms what we can do," said Viktoria, who underwent a below-the-knee amputation of her left leg at age 20 after a severe birth injury and multiple surgeries.

"For the first time in history, we're able to manipulate our biological destiny," she added. "In my earlier life, back in Latvia, there was still an echo of eugenics, which is really the primary way of how we think about when we think about augmenting biology. But the big shift that's happening now is that the power is going back to the people and individuals all around the world are thinking about what are the ways that they're going to address their physical and mental capacity. And it's much more than just a physical shift as well, you know, because this is a way where sci-fi reality is kind of becoming real."

For more about Viktoria Modesta, visit https://viktoriamodesta.com/ or follow @viktoriamodesta on social media.

Learn more about Evermay at https://evermay.org/ 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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In this episode of "Enable: The Disability Podcast," Spann shares how his service dog Finn helped him with everything from opening doors to doing laundry, as well as a very good reason why others shouldn't pet service dogs.

For more about Spann and his public speaking, visit https://www.spannsworld.com/ 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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Stephens and the AFB are producers for "Possibilities," a new documentary celebrating the legacy of Keller. It's the first feature length film created by blind and low-vision filmmakers and the first to fully integrate open audio description.

For more information about the movie and streaming options, visit https://afb.org/possibilities 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms. Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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What do employers and others get wrong about neurodivergent people? Laura McAnulty, executive director of the Neurodiversity Employment Network of Philadelphia, spoke with "Enable: The Disability Podcast" about being diagnosed as neurodivergent later in life, tips for job interviews, disclosure options, and social anxiety."I think that that's a big misnomer with autistic people or neurodivergent people: They don't like being social. There's a lot of social anxiety that comes up from struggling to understand the expectations in a social situation. And so it becomes overwhelming," McAnulty explains. "And people read this as 'Oh, they don't like social stuff. They don't want to be around people. They're antisocial.' And that's just not true."For more information, visit https://neurodiversityemploymentnetwork.org/

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How does caregiving begin for people with disabilities? What kind of jobs are available? Jessica Hulter, whose daughter had Rett Syndrome, and Lamarque Polvado, whose CareStarter project was inspired by his daughter's autism journey, spoke with "Enable: The Disability Podcast" about health care services for families with disabilities, the U.S. military's Exceptional Family Member Program and TRICARE, benefits of employing people with disabilities, "the art of possible," and the hardest part of a diagnosis and finding resources.

"We gathered data from (250) families... we had a broad range of diagnoses, and what we learned was 85% of that group described Day 1 of diagnosis as the least helpful event on their care journey," Lamarque said. "I'm like, OK, this isn't something that just happened to me. This is a systematic problem."

Hulter also encouraged others to look past disabilities and treat everyone equally. "I wish it was information and not an identity necessarily," she said. "I wish they could get past staring at things that are weird or being uncomfortable around things that are different... We don't arrive here good advocates. We're a hot mess and we learn through grit and coming every single day and failing and getting better."

CareStarter and Feedback are part of Professional Contract Services, Inc. (PCSI), which seeks to enhance the lives of people with disabilities through employment, advocacy, partnerships and innovation. For more information, visit https://www.pcsi.org/ 

“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.

Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.

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