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People have always been more interested in the secret to eternal life, not the secret to true happiness. That’s because people already think they know what would make them happy – a perfect body, perfect health, money, sex, adventure, fame, success; all the usual subjects. And people with disabilities often choose these usual subjects too.

But for people who’ve won the lottery and ended up with a crazy life a few years later know, getting what you want isn’t always the secret to happiness. Sometimes the secret isn’t something you can buy or achieve with good looks, but something from within that can change, helping you truly align yourself with the road to happiness.

1) No more regrets.

A lot of us have become disabled through an accident, accidents that in many cases could’ve been avoided. Living day in and day out with regret however over such big life moments is never a good thing because simply put – you can never go back and get a do-over, and there’s no use wasting time thinking about what can’t be undone.

Instead, coming to peace with how your injury occurred and not retaining any anger towards anyone who may have caused is the wise choice, even if it seems incredibly hard. Letting go of regrets can restore true happiness to your life and heal the soul in profound ways.

2) Be as independent as you can.

Relying on others may be unavoidable, but becoming too dependent, even letting yourself become a wee bit lazy and let others do things for you that you can, can siphon away your happiness very quick. Try everything, from making an entire recipe from start to end without asking for any help to getting your license. Always remember that doing things on your own can make you immensely happy.

3) Embrace your individuality.

When you’re disabled, it can be stressful, even downright embarrassing to always be the odd one out. “Fitting in,” after all, is a base human need. But looking at your uniqueness differently, and loving every bit of it (and really believing it) can make you blissfully happy.

I love that I’m not everyone else because it makes me more memorable. Life is too short to be vanilla; to be like everyone else and doing the same old thing. Disability can definitely make life harder, but it can also make you a unique survivor worth noticing.

4) Connect with your sexual self.

Denying your sexual self can be one of the worst things you can do if you have a disability. As human beings, having sexual experiences are key to keep our happiness levels afloat, but I know this can be hard for many. Finding a partner that can look past your disability is not always easy. And for many, this can leave us involuntarily celibate for years.

Try online dating if you haven’t yet, and if you’re still having no luck, masturbation can be great in the interim, especially if paired with quality pornography. No matter what though – do not forget your sexual self. Primp, shave, powder, or do whatever you do to get your “I am sexy” feeling on.

5) Make friends you can relate to.

We all need people in our lives we can relate to, someone who really knows our daily struggles because they live them too. High school girls like to hang with other high school girls for example, and I like to have at least one female friend who uses a wheelchair. Being able to vent with someone who really knows your struggles is better than any therapist session by far.

6) Only surround yourself with positive people.

While this isn’t possible every moment of the day, only surrounding yourself with people who support and genuinely like you is a big thing you can do in the way of finding true happiness. We are all guilty of staying friends with people who bring us down or are negative. It’s not easy cutting people out of your life, especially if you’re afraid of being lonely, but negative people can suck out your happiness worse than a hungry vampire.

Instead, find people who are happy for you when you succeed, who wish the best for you at all times, who are happy in their own lives too. You can never go wrong with your own personal cheer team.

7) Find a skill you’re really good at

Everyone needs to be good at something, to be known or notorious for a certain skill. Whether it’s poker, applying makeup, designing, writing, cooking or financial planning, the key is finding one thing you can do that makes you proud. And better than that (if possible), a skill that helps you make extra money. Being able to support yourself, or just being able to bring in some income by doing something you love is a true life pleasure. It’s also a great way to beef up your self-esteem, if needed.

8) Help others.

It can be too easy to get caught up in your life of limitations when you have a disability. Using your life to help others however, no longer focusing on what you need, can redirect your mental stream in a positive way. Volunteering, mentoring, helping at a kid’s with disabilities camp, visiting old people in a nursing home; doing anything outside of yourself can cause an explosion of happiness in your world. Being happy at all times may not be the true purpose of life, but wallowing in unhappiness certainly isn’t life’s purpose either. Before you give up on finding happiness entirely, try a few of the tips above. You’ll be surprised at what layers of happiness are yet to be uncovered.

9) Church/Live Music

For people of faith, this is huge. With faith, and a dogma if you’re lucky, you can have a handbook to happiness all ready to go. Faith gives your life purpose and the answer to eternal life; both are true-blue happy inducers. If you’re willing, try reconnecting with your childhood faith or a faith you’ve always been interested in, and then see how it feels. It may give you more comfort than you’d think.

And for non-religious people, a great alternative is live music. The energy that emanates from a live performance can make you feel like you’ve had the most amazing sex of your life. The louder and more feverish the better. Whatever your music genre poison is, a monthly episode at the minimum of soaking in the presence of live music may be just the Prozac you were looking for. And remember – the smaller venues, the better (they typically let you get closer to the stage if you can’t walk).

10) Start exercising.

They say getting your body moving and blood circulating can get your endorphins flowing, those lovely happy-happy hormones, and they’re right. But when you have a disability getting in that exercise takes a bit more creativity and let’s face it – many of us get tired quicker. Using the Wii, arm weights, handcycling or even chair-aerobics can be great ways to get in a cardio workout, which if you want to really see if exercising works, you should be doing at least four times a week.

And whatever you do, don’t start doing an adapted sport just because your therapist recommends it. If you didn’t like basketball before your injury and now you use a wheelchair, chances are you still won’t like it. Find a physical activity you love doing, and you’re on your way to finding that happiness and clear of mind feeling you can only get from exercising.

The office of LAPWD, Station Rd, Mohill, Co.Leitrim will be closing on Thursday 24th March 2016 and reopening Tuesday 29th March 2016 for the easter break. For any emergency's please contact the manager on 0863805616.

 

On another note a fact about Easter I bet u didn't know

Easter eggs once acted as birth certificates! During the 19th century, when families were unable to get to the closest town hall to file a birth certificate, an egg would be accepted as a method of identification. The egg would be dyed and inscribed with the person’s name and birth date. It was completely legal and accepted by courts and other authorities.

Lapwd would like to thank everyone who attended our Disable inequality information morning at our Action Ability Center, Mohill. We had a great attendance from all local candidates of the 2016 general election including Gerry Reynolds, Leslie O'Hora, Bernie O'Hara, Martin Kenny, Paddy O Rourke and apologies form Des Guckin.

We would like to thank our Director Joe McGivern for facilitating the meeting Laura English from Disability Federation Of Ireland and Threase Foy for attending our event.

Leitrim Association of People With Disabilities are glad to announce that we have a  Board of Director Vacancy

Role: This is a very rewarding role as you are involved in making a significant difference to the lives of people with disabilities in County Leitrim. This role is voluntary [expenses will be covered?] and of a 3 year duration?

Director responsibilities

• Attend and participate in meetings on a regular basis (typically board meetings are every 8 weeks
• Attend and participate in any special events as require
• Participate in sub committees as agreed
• Help communicate and promote LAPWD to the wider community
• Provide advice and support to the LAPWD Manager, either by telephone, email or in person, if required
• Become familiar with the finances, budget and financial / resource need of LAPWD
• Understand the policies and procedures of LAPWD
• Take leadership on particular area(s) as required
• Assist with the running of the Board in accordance with the rules of Good Governance

Person Specification

• Knowledge of the Community and Voluntary Sector
• Understanding of the running of  a Voluntary organisation with special emphasis on  Governance, Financial  planning and organisational development
• A particular interest in Disability matters   and the promotion of same
• Ability to work in a small team and a willingness to state personal convictions
• The ability to accept a majority decision and be tolerant of the views of other people
• A willingness to deal openly with staff and colleague Board Members whatever the issue
• Be prepared to offer personal and business skills and experience to support the work of staff when required
• A willingness to act as a champion for the organisation
• The ability to treat sensitive information confidentially
• Observe good practice for open and consistent communication
• Commitment to attend meetings every 8 weeks, be part of subcommittees as agreed and attend other events as required

 

 

For further information

If this role is of interest to you please email rosaleen@lapwd.ie or call Rosaleen at 071 9651000

A full induction will be given and the successful person would have to become an LAPWD member and approved by the Board of Directors.

Leitrim Association of people with Disabilities as supporters of the Disability Federation of Ireland led Campaign ‘Disable Inequality’ in Election 2016 are hosting an information and Awareness session in our;

Where: Action Ability Centre, Station Rd, Mohill

Day: Friday Feb 5^th

Time:10.30am to 11.30am

Tea and coffee will be served

We are inviting all the candidates from Co. Leitrim to attend and hear firsthand the voice of our members and their immediate needs and concerns.

The session will be chaired by an independent person and we will have 3 people put forward the key issues confronting people with Disabilities. We will adhere to the time allocated as we realise your time is very precious during the campaign.

Disable Inequality, a major Election campaign for the disability movement is calling on the next Government to establish a Cabinet Minister for Disability Inclusion.

It is also calling for an end to the anomaly that means that people with disabilities cannot access many Government job activation schemes and the reinstatement of the €150m which has been taken out of disability health services since 2008. This is a grassroots movement election campaign that will engage the public and candidates across all 43 constituencies.

There are 600,000 people living with a disability in Ireland –that’s 13% of the population – a number that is growing as Ireland’s population ages.  Two in three people know or care for an immediate family member, a friend or a neighbour living with a disability. There are 4289 people with a disability living in County Leitrim. (Census 2011)

“This campaign is the first election campaign that gives people with disabilities and their families’ one focus and one voice.”

“Disable Inequality is simple, “With just two words it tells us that it is not the disability that we live with that is disabling.  It is the inequality that we live with that is disabling.”

Ireland is a deeply unequal country for people with disabilities, it is a country where discrimination, segregation and bias is a daily experience for people with disabilities. We’ve had lots of policies, we’ve had strategies, and we’ve had promises.  But we have never had a serious political commitment to ending the unfairness that is a systemic part of life for thousands of people and their families.  In this year of election and reflection we must disable inequality forever. The power of this campaign is in people’s stories, so we have mobilised our grassroots to tell their stories, to highlight the inequalities faced, one story at a time.”

People with disabilities are among the poorest and most marginalized groups in the country.  People with disabilities can’t access many Government job activation schemes because they are not considered to be on the live register.  People with disabilities have to give 24 hours notice if they want to travel by train (maybe a better local transport example). Children with disabilities often can’t attend their local schools because of the lack of basic supports. Does that seem fair to you?”

First, to go to www.disableinequality.ie and share their story of inequality, and encourage their friends and family to do the same. We want them to contact their local candidates from our website. And we want them to ask the candidates that knock on their door three powerful questions – What they will do to ensure: the appointment of a full minister for disability; that people with disabilities will have a fair income; and that people with disabilities have the same access to supports and services as everyone else. Disability needs to be a priority in the next Programme for Government. One vote at a time, we will disable inequality.”

We hope you can attend on the day and listen to the voices of people with Disabilities in Leitrim.