Handicapped but Successful

A WORLD CUP race in alpine giant slalom skiing is just about to begin. The announcer tells the expectant crowd that the first of the two forerunners has started down the slope. Several TV cameras follow him as he hurtles down the steep course, rounding the flag-topped gates and raising big clouds of snow. When he finally crosses the finish line, he is cheered enthusiastically.

What’s the reason? Isn’t he just a forerunner, not a competitor? Yes, but he has only one leg! On one ski he has successfully negotiated the extremely difficult course, where later several of the two-legged, well-trained competitors fall.

Yet, it is not unusual for severely handicapped persons to accomplish such feats. Many handicapped men and women, young and old, do weight lifting, engage in horseback riding, sailing, marathon races by wheelchair, and share in many other challenging sports.

Handicapped persons have achieved great things in other fields as well. Ludwig van Beethoven composed some of his greatest masterpieces while totally deaf. Franklin D. Roosevelt was president of the United States from 1933 to 1945, although severely handicapped by polio. Helen Keller, blind, deaf, and mute from childhood, became a prolific author and educator. The Greek statesman Demosthenes is called one of the greatest orators of all times. Yet, as a young man, he was an inarticulate stammerer and extremely weak physically.

While such great achievements may spur many disabled people to try to do something extra themselves, it must be remembered that every handicap is individual, and one handicapped person cannot be compared with another. Interests in life differ. Innate abilities differ. And mental inclination also plays a large part.

The Most Difficult Time

The time immediately after a disabling accident or illness is likely to be the worst for the stricken one and those near him. The initial shock is often followed by feelings of despair and hopelessness. “There are times when you’re not ready for any pep talk, when all you want to do is crawl into your misery like a wounded animal, when encouragement seems like an assault,” said a mother of a disabled child.

A mixture of mourning, anger, self-pity, and despair may seize a handicapped person completely during that time. Therefore, the shorter this period is, the better for all involved. “It passes, because it has to,” the mother added.

Jimmy, a handsome young Swede who was stricken by an illness that made him stiff from head to foot, told about the initial shock and the terrible period that followed. “But,” he said, “as soon as I accepted my handicap and stopped pitying myself, I began to forget about it. Then I began to live again. Now I train myself to think not of what I lack but of what abilities I still have, and I try to make the best of them.”

Maximizing One’s Possibilities

By mobilizing a strong willpower for practice and training, some disabled persons have achieved more than they could ever have imagined. One example is Maj, a woman from Lapland in northern Sweden. When only 22 years old and newly married, she lost the use of her legs.

“The first time they put me in a wheelchair at the hospital, I broke down,” she said. “I saw ahead of me a life of passivity, stagnation, and complete dependency on my husband and others. But little by little I began to realize that my handicap still gave me certain possibilities. So I decided to maximize them.

“First, I learned to crawl on the floor like a baby. It made me happy just to be able to move about on my own. Then I practiced standing upright, leaning against a wall. I felt it was great progress to be able to do so. Then I learned to walk with crutches. Soon I was able to do some housekeeping.

“I decided that each morning I would try to add something new to my repertoire. I managed to serve breakfast, do the beds, vacuum, clean windows, go shopping, and so forth. My husband would assist me when I asked for help, but he also cooperated by not insisting on helping. Instead, he let me try. Slowly, I became more independent, which gave me self-respect and made me happy.

“My husband and I are Jehovah’s Witnesses, and he decided to volunteer his services to help in building the new branch office and printing factory for Jehovah’s Witnesses in Sweden. Our volunteer applications were accepted, and we spent more than four years there. I was able to work almost full-time in the laundry, serving a staff of up to 200 workers. My able-bodied workmates considered me an equal worker. True, it was sometimes difficult, and repeatedly in prayer I asked for God’s help. But it was a happy time too.”

Ann-Mari, a severely handicapped Swedish woman who uses a wheelchair, says: “I am handicapped as to ability to move but not as to ability to think. That is why I want to use that ability to make the best of my situation on my own.”

A disabled person is sometimes the best inventor of his own aids. Bo, a young man in Sweden whose legs were paralyzed in a car accident, worked out how to make his wheelchair more comfortable and easier to maneuver. He constructed a wheelchair that even enabled him to climb stairs! Now he is working as a wheelchair designer at a local factory.

Dressing and undressing are often problems for the handicapped. Ready-made clothing is usually not designed for them. Siw, a middle-aged handicapped woman in Stockholm, Sweden, says that she finds it easier to wear a sleeveless cape instead of an ordinary coat. Also, she replaces buttons and zippers in skirts with elastic. In fact, the need for comfortable clothing that she can manage has turned Siw into a skilled stylist and dressmaker.