Pushing Forward with Alycia | A Disability Podcast

Is disability really represented in American democracy? And why does it matter who gets elected?

Following the 2026 midterm elections, Alycia Anderson and Marty Anderson sit down for a timely conversation about disability, voting rights, political leadership, and the future of representation in government.

From the election of Paralympic gold medalist and wheelchair user Josh Turek to the U.S. Senate to the leadership of Tammy Duckworth, Lateefah Simon, and other elected officials with disabilities, Alycia and Marty explore how lived experience can influence political leadership and the decisions that shape our communities.

Marty shares insights from his Contributor's Corner articles examining the disability voting bloc and what disabled Americans need from democracy. Together, they unpack the landmark Olmstead Supreme Court decision, the response from 18 governors in 2026, accessible voting, and the often-overlooked voting rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

They also connect their work advancing disability inclusion in workplaces and organizations to the larger conversation about leadership, opportunity, and political representation.

One of the episode's biggest questions: Is disability always on the ballot, even when there isn't a disability-specific measure to vote on?

This is a thoughtful, nonpartisan conversation about the history of disability representation, the importance of civic participation, and what a more inclusive future of American democracy could look like.

In this episode:

Episode Chapters
00:00 – Welcome to Pushing Forward with Alycia
00:39 – Disability and democracy after the 2026 elections
02:43 – Josh Turek's Senate election
05:36 – Why disabled political leaders matter
07:22 – Disability representation in government
09:18 – Lateefah Simon, Jessica Benham and David Ortiz
10:39 – Sarah Crawford and disability advocacy
11:25 – Beyond essential services: Equal opportunity
14:18 – What is Olmstead?
16:56 – Marty's writing on disability and democracy
18:51 – How Olmstead affects independent living and aging
21:20 – The history of accessible voting
23:40 – Voting accessibility beyond the polling place
25:46 – Voting rights for people with IDD
27:30 – Is disability always on the ballot?
28:45 – Researching candidates and disability policy
30:13 – Our hopes for disability representation
32:23 – The Pushing Forward Moment
35:08 – Final reflections

Your voice matters. Your representation matters. And your participation matters.

Listen, subscribe, and share Pushing Forward with Alycia, where disability gets a voice.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when surviving life's hardest moments becomes the beginning of your greatest purpose?

This week on Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia Anderson welcomes Kelly Still, an HR leader, disability advocate, mother, and domestic violence survivor whose extraordinary journey is a testament to resilience, self-advocacy, and the power of finding your voice.

Living with lupus, PTSD, and bipolar I disorder, Kelly knows firsthand what it means to navigate invisible disabilities while building a career, raising a daughter, and rebuilding after trauma.

But her story doesn't end with survival.

Inspired by a conversation with Alycia years earlier at Victoria's Secret, Kelly began turning her lived experiences into action, helping employees understand workplace accommodations, encouraging open conversations about disability, and educating university students about their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Together, Alycia and Kelly explore:

Episode Chapters

This is a conversation about reclaiming your voice, discovering your strength, and creating change that reaches far beyond your own story.

🎧 Listen, follow, and share Pushing Forward with Alycia. Your share could help someone who needs to hear this conversation today.

Content note: This episode includes personal discussions of domestic violence, trauma, pregnancy loss, and mental health.

Need support? The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available at 800-799-SAFE (7233), by texting START to 88788, or at thehotline.org.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when a filmmaker with Down syndrome sets his sights on Hollywood, Pixar, and changing the world?

Meet Dashiell Meier, actor, filmmaker, disability advocate, and a creative force with a vision that goes far beyond the big screen.

In this inspiring episode of Pushing Forward with Alycia, host Alycia Anderson welcomes Dashiell for a joyful, candid conversation celebrating Down Syndrome Awareness Month, disability pride, and the power of telling our own stories.

Dashiell takes us behind the scenes of the upcoming feature film 21 Down, where he portrays college football player Caden Cox alongside Ashley Judd. He shares what it was like landing the role, spending two months on set, and even getting the opportunity to direct a scene.

But his creativity doesn't stop there.

From making his own films through the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge to speaking at the United Nations about health equity, Dashiell is using storytelling and advocacy to challenge stereotypes and create meaningful change.

Together, Alycia and Dashiell explore:

"One person can't change the world, but when communities come together, we can move both heaven and earth." — Dashiell Meier

This conversation is a reminder that our stories matter, our dreams deserve space, and representation is about more than being seen. It's about having the opportunity to create.

🎧 Listen, share, and subscribe to Pushing Forward with Alycia. Let's keep challenging perceptions and creating a world where everyone has the opportunity to shine.

Pushing Forward with Alycia | Episode 162

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if a dog treat could change someone's life? 🐾

At Wigglewow, that question has become a mission that's creating jobs, building confidence, and showing the world what adults with disabilities CAN do.

This week on Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia and Marty Anderson welcome Mark Peifer, Founder, and Amie Schindler, Vice President of Wigglewow, a gourmet dog treat company with one extraordinary ingredient: opportunity.

Inside their Kentucky-based kitchen, affectionately called The Doghouse, 31 employees known as Epic Chefs are doing far more than baking treats. They're developing skills, discovering talents, earning paychecks, finding community, and building futures.

And the vision doesn't stop there.

Mark and Amie share how Wigglewow grew from a family-inspired idea into a mission reaching dozens of families, why traditional hiring practices overlook incredible talent, and how they're dreaming bigger with employment opportunities, entrepreneurship, and innovative housing and community plans.

In this episode, discover:

Plus, hear how their first major fundraiser raised more than $115,000 and how their mission is helping families imagine new possibilities for the future.

Because sometimes changing the world starts with giving someone a chance.

🎧 Listen now, share this conversation with a dog lover or business leader, and come along with us as we keep learning, growing, and pushing forward together!

00:00 Welcome to Pushing Forward with Alycia

00:50 Can a dog treat change how we view disability?

01:52 How Wigglewow began

04:51 Amie's personal connection to the mission

07:11 Turning can'ts into cans

09:32 Adapting jobs to employees' strengths

10:30 Inside The Doghouse and the Epic Chef experience

13:43 31 Epic Chefs and the need for expansion

15:19 Wigglewow's vision beyond dog treats

17:10 Planning a nonprofit for long-term opportunity

20:00 Fundraising, partnerships, and community engagement

22:20 Creating a different kind of fundraiser

25:02 Raising over $115,000

25:28 How listeners can support Wigglewow

27:18 Advice for disability-inclusive employers

29:24 Disability benefits and employment considerations

31:49 Employee benefits and future plans

33:15 Helping families create small businesses

35:04 Pushing Forward Moment: Be EPIC!

🐾 Explore Wigglewow: ⁠https://wigglewow.com/

🎙️ More episodes: https://alyciaanderson.com/podcast/⁠

Follow, subscribe, and leave a review to help us bring more disability stories and voices into the conversation.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if accessibility was already there before anyone had to ask for it?

Pushing Forward with Alycia is back, and for Episode 160, Alycia Anderson is joined by her husband and business partner, Marty Anderson, for a timely National Disability Employment Awareness Month conversation about what disability inclusion actually looks like in today's workplace.

The 2026 NDEAM theme is Celebrating Value and Talent, but Alycia and Marty want organizations to go one step further: move from awareness to action.

At the center of the conversation is an idea they're bringing into workplaces around the country: Access Before Ask.

Instead of waiting for an employee to disclose a disability, navigate a process and request access, what if organizations intentionally removed barriers from the beginning?

Alycia and Marty unpack:

• Why NDEAM matters, and why disability inclusion cannot end October 31
• What Access Before Ask looks like in everyday workplace practice
• Captions, accessible documents, flexible participation and other ways to reduce unnecessary barriers
• How AI could become a powerful accessibility accelerator
• The danger of building yesterday's disability bias into tomorrow's technology
• Why AI-powered hiring and employee tools need disability representation and human oversight
• The role leaders play in hiring, retaining and advancing disabled talent
• Why accessibility belongs in planning, procurement, technology and leadership
• Practical actions organizations can carry into November and beyond

And yes, Alycia puts Marty through another rapid-fire round, including remote vs. office work, the accessibility feature he wants everywhere, meeting habits that need to disappear and the one thing he believes every CEO should experience.

The takeaway?

“Access before ask means belonging.”

NDEAM may open the conversation. It shouldn't be the only time we have it.

🎧 Listen, subscribe, follow, review and share Pushing Forward with Alycia wherever you get your podcasts.

♿ Looking for practical ways to make your workplace, meetings, marketing and digital experiences more accessible? Explore The Accessibility Check™ resources from The Alycia Anderson Company.

🎤 Planning an NDEAM event, leadership program or workplace accessibility experience? Connect with Alycia and bring the conversation to your organization.

Pushing Forward with Alycia gives disability a voice through candid conversations about accessibility, employment, leadership, representation and what's possible when we create a world where more people can fully participate.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What can happen when one little boy’s love of music becomes a movement?

Mike Gomoll never expected epilepsy advocacy to become his life’s work.

Mike and his wife adopted their son Joey from Guatemala as an infant. About a month after Joey came home, he experienced his first seizure. Eventually, Joey was diagnosed with Dravet syndrome, a rare form of epilepsy. Joey was non-speaking, but music became one of his greatest connections to the world. When music started playing, Joey wanted everyone around him dancing.

After Joey died just before his fifth birthday, Mike took an idea he had already begun imagining and created Joey’s Song, an organization built around one goal: helping the next family.

What began with CDs and small acoustic release parties grew into an annual rock-and-roll event bringing together artists connected to the Goo Goo Dolls, Garbage, The Bangles, The Go-Go’s, Tears for Fears and many more. The musicians donate their time, audiences come for the music, and along the way thousands of people learn about epilepsy. Joey’s Song has now raised more than $2 million for epilepsy research.

Mike and Alycia also dig into an important reality: epilepsy is often invisible until a seizure occurs. Seizures can also take many different forms, from convulsive seizures to brief lapses in awareness. Around 50 million people worldwide live with epilepsy, and stigma and discrimination remain significant challenges.

This conversation is about epilepsy education, research and advocacy, but it is also about community.

As Mike says, sometimes we simply need to give people the chance to be good.

From a child who loved to dance to rock stars volunteering their time in the middle of a Wisconsin winter, Joey’s story continues to bring people together and help the next family.

Main Episode Themes

🎵 Music as Connection

💜 Understanding Epilepsy

👨‍👩‍👦 Helping the Next Family

🔬 Research Matters

🤝 Community Can Be Powerful

🎸 Advocacy Can Look Different

Three Big Takeaways

1. Epilepsy does not look one way.
Seizures vary widely, and epilepsy can be largely invisible outside those moments. WHO describes epilepsy as a chronic brain disease characterized by recurrent seizures, which can range from brief lapses of attention to prolonged convulsions.

2. Awareness can reduce isolation.
Mike describes how people living with epilepsy can feel alone or embarrassed. Joey’s Song deliberately puts epilepsy in front of thousands of people and creates a visible community around it.

3. You do not need to be personally affected by something to show up.
One of Mike’s most memorable ideas is simply giving people an opportunity to be good and bringing them together around something bigger than themselves.

A Couple of Mike’s Quotes from the Episode

“You need to give everybody the chance to be good.” ~ Mike Gomoll 

“We all do better when we all do better.” ~ Mike Gomoll 

Episode Timeline

00:00 Podcast Welcome

01:25 Meet Mike Gomoll

02:03 Life Before Joeys Song

05:04 Joeys Diagnosis Journey

08:10 Music Was His Voice

09:59 From CDs to Concerts

11:16 All Star Jam Origins

12:36 How Artists Say Yes

15:54 The Next Family Mission

16:14 Epilepsy Risks And Stigma

19:48 Research First Nonprofit Model

23:02 How To Support And Attend

25:38 Rapid Fire Backstage Stories

28:42 Final Takeaways And Goodbye

Connect with Mike Gomoll

Learn more, follow Joey’s Song, support epilepsy research, watch the livestream or explore tickets and sponsorship opportunities at JoeysSong.org.

Support Joey’s Song by following the organization, subscribing to its YouTube channel, watching the free livestream, attending the event or by donating and corporate sponsorships.

Website: JoeysSong.org

LinkedIn: Joey’s Song

Instagram: @joeyssong

YouTube: @joeys-song

TikTok: @joeyssong

Facebook: Joey’s Song

Connect with Alycia

Listen. Subscribe. Review. Share.

Find Pushing Forward with Alycia wherever you get your podcasts, and watch the full conversation on YouTube.

If this episode made you think differently about disability, identity or belonging, share it with someone in your community.

Open hearts. Clear paths. Let's go.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when a musician stops trying to fit into an industry and starts changing the culture instead?

This week on Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia Anderson welcomes award-winning recording artist, author, media personality and disability culture leader Lachi for a joyful, candid and wildly entertaining conversation about music, disability pride, representation, identity and liberation.

Lachi is the founder of RAMPD, a UN-recognized organization advancing disability inclusion across the music industry, author of I Identify as Blind, host of PBS Renegades and creator of Glam Canes. Her work uses music, fashion, humor, storytelling and pop culture to challenge the way disability has traditionally been represented.

But Lachi’s path into disability advocacy began with something deeply personal.

Growing up with low vision, she often avoided using the cane and glasses she needed because she feared being treated differently or losing opportunities in the music industry. When her vision changed dramatically, something unexpected happened: instead of making her life smaller, it pushed her to start living bigger.

Lachi began checking experiences off her bucket list, pursuing music more intentionally and eventually embracing the disability identity she had once tried to hide.

And something else changed.

Once she started asking for the access she needed, she discovered that accommodations did not make her less competitive. They helped her perform better.

That realization became part of a much larger mission.

Today, Lachi is helping bring disability culture into music, fashion, entertainment and mainstream pop culture while opening doors for other disabled creators along the way.

Alycia and Lachi talk about everything from sparkling mobility devices and disability fashion to performing with legendary musicians, meeting Stevie Wonder and unexpectedly jamming with Wynton Marsalis and the White House band.

They also dive into Lachi’s new children’s music album, Magnificent, a collaborative project featuring dozens of artists and disability community members. The album celebrates different ways of moving, thinking and communicating without watering down disability language or infantilizing young listeners.

At the center of the conversation is a message that applies far beyond disability:

The parts of ourselves we are taught to hide can become some of our greatest sources of creativity, connection and power.

Lachi reminds listeners that disability culture is not simply about overcoming barriers. It is art. Music. Perspective. Adaptation. Innovation. Community. Pride.

And it deserves a much bigger stage.

🎭 Disability culture and what it means to celebrate it

🌟 Moving from hiding disability to living visibly and proudly

♿ Why accommodations can improve performance and opportunity

✨ Disability pride, identity and unmasking

🎤 Using pop culture to challenge disability stigma and erasure

💎 Fashion, Glam Canes and mobility devices as expressions of identity

🎬 Why disability representation belongs in mainstream entertainment

🎶 Lachi’s work through RAMPD and disability inclusion in the music industry

🤝 Collaborating with disabled artists and creators

🎺 Meeting Stevie Wonder and performing with Wynton Marsalis

👑 The creation of Lachi’s album Magnificent

🧒 Teaching children disability pride without infantilizing disability

🚀 Creating larger stages and bringing the disability community along

❤️ Why belonging does not have to be earned

🔥 And the power of celebrating the parts of yourself society tells you to reject

Listen. Subscribe. Review. Share.

Find Pushing Forward with Alycia wherever you get your podcasts, and watch the full conversation on YouTube.

If this episode made you think differently about disability, identity or belonging, share it with someone in your community.

Open hearts. Clear paths. Let's go.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deafness, Captions & Accessibility: Progress Over Perfection with Meryl Evans

What does accessibility look like when you have depended on it your entire life?

This week on Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia Anderson welcomes respected accessibility advocate, speaker, content creator, consultant and CPACC-certified professional Meryl K. Evans for a candid conversation about deafness, captions, communication, advocacy and why lived experience matters when we design more accessible experiences.

Born profoundly deaf, Meryl grew up lip-reading, using hearing aids and learning how to navigate a hearing world long before today's accessibility technology existed. She remembers hunting through the TV Guide for the tiny closed-captioning symbol and the moment captions finally gave her access to the conversations everyone else was already having.

Today, Meryl helps organizations better understand accessibility through training, workshops, accessible content, user experience testing and speaking. And she brings an important reminder to the work: accessibility does not require instant perfection. It requires a willingness to listen, learn and keep moving forward.

Alycia and Meryl explore everything from growing up disabled and finding confidence through sports to the evolution of captioning, accessible social media, reading friction, disability language and the importance of hiring people with lived experience.

Meryl also challenges a growing social media trend: captions designed primarily to entertain rather than communicate.

As she explains, captions are information first. When words bounce, flash, change colors or appear one at a time, the very accessibility feature intended to provide access can instead become another barrier.

The conversation closes with a message that applies far beyond accessibility: progress over perfection.

We do not need to know everything before we begin. We need to remain curious, keep learning and continue making progress.

And sometimes progress includes knowing when to rest.

As Meryl reminds us:

“There’s a difference between taking a break and quitting.”

In This Episode

🐝 Growing Up Deaf

Meryl shares what it was like being born profoundly deaf, learning to lip-read and recognizing at an early age that she communicated differently.

🏆 Sports, Confidence & Disability

From softball to basketball, soccer, volleyball and half-marathons, Meryl reflects on how sports helped build confidence, competitiveness and resilience.

💬 The Evolution of Captions

From searching TV Guide for captioned programming to today's built-in captioning tools, Meryl shares how dramatically access has changed during her lifetime.

📱 Captions Are Information, Not Entertainment

Why animated, colorful or one-word-at-a-time captions may look engaging but create cognitive overload for people who rely on them.

♿ Lived Experience Matters

If you want to know whether an accessibility feature truly works, include people who depend on that feature in the testing and design process.

👀 Reducing Reading Friction

Small choices including alignment, capitalization, font size and formatting can dramatically change how easy content is to consume.

🗣️ Language & Disability Advocacy

Alycia and Meryl discuss terminology, education and why people sometimes need the opportunity to learn rather than being expected to already know everything.

🌱 Progress Over Perfection

Organizations are complex. Accessibility is ongoing. Sustainable inclusion happens when people continue learning and improving rather than waiting until everything is perfect.

❤️ Rest Is Not Quitting

Meryl's Pushing Forward Moment reminds us to understand our energy, take care of ourselves and recognize the difference between taking a needed break and giving up.

Key Takeaways

Episode Chapters

00:00 Podcast Intro

00:25 Meet Meryl Evans

01:52 Growing Up Deaf

03:39 Sports And Confidence

06:38 How Meryl Communicates

10:10 Captions Change Everything

13:28 Captions For Everyone

15:14 What Makes Captions Bad

18:12 Becoming An Advocate

21:38 Work With Companies Today

24:25 UX Testing And Reading Friction

26:38 Language Matters In Disability

27:45 Hope For The Future

29:33 Progress Over Perfection

31:31 Pushing Forward Moment

32:27 Final Thanks And Sign Off

The Pushing Forward Moment

“There’s a difference between taking a break and quitting.”

Meryl reminds us that taking care of ourselves is part of doing meaningful work. Pay attention to your energy. Rest when you need to. Then keep going.

Connect with Meryl Evans

Continue learning from and connecting with Meryl K. Evans, CPACC, accessibility consultant, speaker, inclusion advocate and UX tester. Meryl works with organizations through accessibility consulting, speaking engagements, training, workshops and user experience testing.

Connect with Alycia

🌐 Website:⁠ ⁠⁠https://alyciaanderson.com/⁠⁠⁠

🎙️ Podcast:⁠ ⁠⁠https://alyciaanderson.com/podcast⁠⁠⁠

💼 LinkedIn:⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyciaanderson/⁠⁠⁠

📸 Instagram:⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/alyciaanderson/⁠⁠⁠

About Pushing Forward with Alycia

Pushing Forward with Alycia gives disability a voice through conversations about accessibility, inclusion, ambition, resilience, leadership, advocacy, and creating a more inclusive world for all people.

Subscribe, like, share, and send this episode to someone who needs the reminder that there is no finish line when it comes to possibility, purpose, and pushing forward.

Open hearts. Clear paths. Let’s go.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when two wheelchair users fall in love, get married, build careers, travel the world and navigate life together?

Apparently, people have questions.

After sharing more of their life as a disabled couple online and seeing an overwhelming response, Alycia Anderson brings her husband, Marty Anderson, back to Pushing Forward with Alycia for a lighter, candid and often hilarious Q&A about their nearly 15 years of marriage.

Who is more stubborn?

Who notices an accessibility problem first?

Who takes longer to get ready?

Who carries more disability-related gear?

And when the world is not designed for two wheelchair users, how do they figure it out?

As Alycia and Marty quickly discover, the answers lead to much bigger conversations about disabled relationships, wheelchair accessibility, accessible travel, independence, interdependence, ableism and belonging.

Two Disabled People. One Very Normal Marriage.

One of the biggest misconceptions Alycia and Marty encounter is the assumption that when disability exists in a relationship, one person must automatically become the caregiver.

Their reality is much different.

They help each other.

Sometimes that means Marty holding Alycia's wheelchair during a transfer or Alycia grabbing onto Marty's chair for a tow.

Sometimes it means reviewing an email, figuring out a business decision or helping each other navigate a difficult moment.

And sometimes it simply means knowing somebody is standing beside you.

As Alycia puts it, having Marty on her team makes her feel braver in the actions she takes in her life.

Their partnership illustrates something much bigger: support in a relationship does not always move in one direction.

When Accessibility Assumes Disabled People Are Alone

Some of the funniest stories in the episode expose something decidedly less funny: much of the world is still designed around the assumption that a wheelchair user will be accompanied by a nondisabled caregiver.

Movie theaters may provide one wheelchair space and one companion chair.

Venues may offer accessible seating without considering that two wheelchair users might actually want to sit beside each other.

Transportation systems may have accessibility policies but still create frustrating or alienating customer experiences.

Hotels may technically meet accessibility standards while still making everyday tasks difficult.

Alycia and Marty have spent years navigating those gaps together.

Their solution is often the same:

Figure it out.

For Alycia, that mindset is deeply connected to disability itself.

When the world is not designed for you, creativity and adaptation become part of everyday life.

The Airport Shuttle Stress Is Real

Accessible travel gets its own unofficial therapy session in this episode.

Alycia and Marty talk about one of their biggest travel stressors: getting from the airport to the rental car facility.

Wheelchair-accessible shuttle experiences can be unpredictable. Ramps may not work. Drivers may approach wheelchair passengers differently. Other travelers may board while wheelchair users are still waiting. Policies can sometimes override a simple conversation about what actually works best for the individual passenger.

The frustration is not always about the equipment.

It is about the experience.

Marty describes accessibility as something that should create a feeling of being invited rather than treated like an exception.

That distinction between technical access and true belonging sits at the center of much of Alycia's work.

Accessible Parking Is More Complicated Than It Looks

Alycia and Marty also tackle one of disability culture's perennial hot topics: accessible parking.

They are quick to point out that disability does not have one appearance. Someone using an accessible parking space may have a completely legitimate non-apparent disability.

But they also raise an important distinction around van-accessible spaces and access aisles.

Those striped areas next to certain spaces are not extra parking. They provide the room someone may need to deploy a wheelchair ramp, transfer from a vehicle, use a walker or maneuver mobility equipment.

It is another example of how accessibility education can make systems work better for everyone.

What Do Nondisabled Couples Take for Granted?

Their answer?

Sometimes, spontaneity.

Traveling without researching accessibility.

Accepting an invitation to someone's house without wondering whether you can enter.

Booking a rideshare without thinking about whether a wheelchair will fit or whether the driver will refuse the trip.

Checking into a hotel without wondering whether the mirror can actually be seen from a wheelchair.

These may seem like tiny details individually.

Collectively, they shape whether people can participate fully and independently in everyday life.

Disabled Relationship Myth Busting

Perhaps the biggest misconception Alycia and Marty challenge is the belief that two disabled people somehow live a fundamentally different kind of relationship.

Their marriage has accessibility logistics and mobility adaptations, yes.

It also has careers.

Finances.

Intimacy.

Arguments.

Love.

Partnership.

Medical challenges.

Travel.

Laughter.

And almost fifteen years of figuring life out together.

Disability is part of their relationship.

It is not the entirety of it.

Marriage Is Still Marriage

Near the end of the episode, Marty asks Alycia what nearly fifteen years together has taught her that has nothing to do with disability.

Her answer becomes one of the episode's most beautiful moments.

Marriage, she says, is one of the hardest things she has ever committed to, but also one of the very best.

Creating a life with another person remains one of the accomplishments she treasures most.

And after several heavy weeks for the Anderson household, their final Pushing Forward Moments are wonderfully simple.

Marty's:

Take life a little lighter. Have some fun. Everything does not have to be serious.

Alycia's:

All you need is love.

Sometimes pushing forward means solving the accessibility problem.

Sometimes it means advocating for change.

And sometimes it means laughing with the person sitting beside you while you figure everything else out.

IN THIS EPISODE

Alycia and Marty discuss:

KEY THEMES

💞 Disabled Love

Disabled people date, marry, build families and experience the same complex layers of partnership as anyone else.

♿ Accessibility vs. Belonging

Compliance can create access. Human-centered design creates belonging.

🤝 Interdependence

Independence does not mean doing everything alone. Healthy relationships involve giving and receiving support.

✈️ Accessible Travel

Transportation, hotels, shuttles and rideshares remain major areas where accessibility can break down.

👀 Disability Representation

Systems often reveal an underlying assumption that disabled people will be accompanied by nondisabled caregivers.

💡 Problem Solving

Adaptation is not an occasional disability skill. It can become an everyday way of navigating environments not designed with you in mind.

❤️ Marriage

Underneath all of the disability-specific logistics, Alycia and Marty are simply two people who have spent almost fifteen years building a life together.

UNFORGETTABLE QUOTES

“Being disabled and a couple is not nearly as complicated or ‘tragic’ as some people imagine.” ~ Alycia Anderson

“How do two people help each other? It’s just a natural thing to do when you love each other.” ~ Marty Anderson

“The world’s not built for us, so we figure it out.” ~ Alycia Anderson

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:25 Why This Q&A

02:59 Stubbornness And Help

04:35 Travel Shuttle Stress

07:45 Getting Ready Routines

09:19 Parking Spot Etiquette

12:27 Speaking Up Access

14:13 How We Help

17:24 Myths And Assumptions

20:35 Non Disabled Privilege

23:08 Hot Takes Debate

27:05 Marriage Lessons Wrap

27:50 Pushing Forward Moments

Connect with Alycia Anderson

Visit⁠⁠ ⁠⁠AlyciaAnderson.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ to learn more about Alycia’s keynotes, disability inclusion programs, accessibility resources, and consulting services.

Explore more episodes of⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Pushing Forward with Alycia⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Pushing Forward is how we roll.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes pushing forward looks like going faster.

And sometimes it looks like recording a podcast from bed.

In Episode 155 of Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia Anderson welcomes her husband, Marty Anderson, back to the microphone for one of their most personal conversations yet.

Over the past several months, Alycia and Marty have found themselves navigating an unexpected medical journey that has included multiple hospitalizations, a bowel obstruction, a uterine embolization and the placement of a nephrostomy tube to protect Alycia’s functioning kidney while her body heals.

But this episode is not simply a medical update.

It is a conversation about aging with disability, something Alycia and Marty are discovering requires continuously getting reacquainted with bodies that change over time.

Both are wheelchair users. Both live with different disabilities. And after nearly fifteen years of marriage, the couple is experiencing one of those seasons when the vows “in sickness and in health” become very real.

When the Body Changes the Plan

Alycia has spent a lifetime adapting.

Born with a congenital disability, she describes herself in the episode as a “science project that’s gone right.” From the outside, people may simply see a wheelchair user. Internally, however, her anatomy and health are far more complex.

Now, aging, disability and perimenopause are colliding in ways she could not have predicted.

The physical challenges have also introduced something emotionally difficult for a lifelong achiever: being forced to slow down.

Alycia admits that one of her greatest fears has not simply been the medical uncertainty.

It has been losing momentum.

After an incredibly successful Disability Pride Month, nine events, the company’s first live webinar and Alycia's Pitch Perfect competition win at Disability:IN, suddenly the body demanded something completely different.

Rest.

Running a Business When Life Says Stop

Being self employed might seem like it would make dealing with illness easier.

Alycia and Marty explain why the opposite can be true.

There is no traditional medical leave. No department waiting to absorb the workload. No manager to tell that you will be unavailable for the month.

When one partner becomes sick, the other is balancing caregiving, household responsibilities, client needs and the business itself.

It has forced Marty into an even larger role while simultaneously asking Alycia to release control over work she deeply cares about.

And for a self described Type A personality, that surrender has not come easily.

When Both Partners Have Disabilities

One of the most compelling parts of the conversation explores a question people have asked Alycia and Marty throughout their relationship:

How will two disabled people take care of each other?

Their answer is beautifully simple.

They adapt.

When Alycia became unable to transfer as easily after her hospitalization, Marty drew from years of disability experience and ordered a transfer board.

They modified routines.

They used equipment differently.

They accepted home healthcare.

They figured it out together.

And while their disabilities can create additional logistical complications, Alycia says they also create something extraordinarily valuable within their relationship: understanding.

Marty does not need an explanation of what it feels like when the body suddenly stops cooperating.

Alycia does not need to translate disability for him.

That shared understanding creates an intimacy rooted in lived experience.

“I Don’t Have to Be the Strongest Person in the Room Every Day”

Perhaps the most vulnerable moment comes when Marty asks Alycia what this season is teaching her.

She does not manufacture an inspirational answer.

Instead, she admits that she does not know yet.

She is still inside it.

But she is beginning to understand something important.

It is okay to rest.

It is okay to say she is too tired.

It is okay to receive help.

And it is okay not to be the strongest person in the room every single day.

For someone whose career has been built around resilience, achievement and pushing forward, that may be one of the biggest adaptations of all.

Love as an Accessibility Tool

There is also a love story woven quietly through this episode.

Alycia talks about lying in bed while recovering, looking over at Marty and feeling safe.

She describes this medical season as a reminder of the depth their marriage has developed over time.

Not because everything has been easy.

Because it has not.

But because when things become difficult, they know how to turn toward one another.

Their marriage becomes another form of adaptation.

Another form of access.

Another reminder that independence does not have to mean doing everything alone.

Episode Themes

♿ The Things Disability Keeps Teaching Us

♿ Aging with disability and adapting as bodies and needs change

❤️ Disabled love and marriage through unexpected medical challenges

🫶 Caregiving when both partners have disabilities

🩺 Navigating complex medical care and repeated hospitalizations

🛏️ Learning to rest without feeling like you are giving up

💼 Running a business during a health crisis

🧠 The emotional weight of losing independence and momentum

🔄 Adaptation as a lifelong disability skill

🤝 Letting other people show up for you

💛 Receiving care instead of always being the strong one

🦽 Accessible caregiving, transfers and changing mobility needs

🌱 Aging, disability and reengaging with your body

🙏 Surrendering control and trusting your support system

💡 Finding light while you are still inside the difficult season

Unforgettable Quotes

“There’s no other way for me to get better or to find what I am to learn and where I’m to grow from here than going straight through it.” ~ Alycia Anderson

“Things can get complicated. Things can get severe. Things can get critical. But it’s how we carry ourselves.” ~ Marty Anderson

Episode Chapters

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:25 Medical Journey Update

03:32 Aging With Disability

05:47 Self Employed Stress

08:41 Procedures And Setbacks

11:49 New Normal Adapting

14:05 Lessons And Rest

15:50 Dual Disability Care

22:53 Pushing Forward Moments

26:58 Closing And Gratitude

Connect with Alycia Anderson

Visit⁠ ⁠⁠AlyciaAnderson.com⁠⁠⁠ to learn more about Alycia’s keynotes, disability inclusion programs, accessibility resources, and consulting services.

Explore more episodes of⁠ ⁠⁠Pushing Forward with Alycia⁠⁠⁠.

Pushing Forward is how we roll.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices