Episode 61 - Michelle Steiner: Living Beyond Limitations

You can be doing everything “right” and still be treated like you don’t belong. That’s why my chat with Michelle hits so hard. She’s lived the reality of a learning disability from kindergarten, through bullying and repeated grades, into adulthood where the stigma doesn’t magically disappear just because you leave school.

Michelle takes us through the practical details people rarely talk about including visual perception issues that made driving unsafe, limited hand dexterity that was misread as “bad handwriting” and the exhausting pressure of being labelled lazy or careless. We also dig into what actually helps, not just inspirational slogans but disability accommodations like extra time, note-taking support and having the confidence to introduce yourself to lecturers and clearly ask for what you need. Along the way, she shares how reading and writing became a lifeline and why finding a community outside school can be the difference between isolation and belonging.

Now, Michelle works as a teacher’s aide paraprofessional with seventh graders, using her lived experience to teach self-advocacy, respectful behaviour and how to speak up without shame. She also writes publicly through her blog Michelle’s Mission, pairs disability storytelling with photography and steps into disability policy advocacy, including a legislative visit focused on improving access to school counsellors through a counselling compact.

If you care about inclusive education, disability rights, or raising kinder kids, press play. Subscribe, share this with a mate, and leave a review so more people can find these stories.

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Transcript

A Warm Welcome Across Time Zones

Michelle 0:00

It's amazing. I get that chance to really go in and work with them not only on their lessons, but I also show them those life lessons on how to advocate for themselves, how to speak up for themselves. And I think that having that disability isn't a liability, it's an asset because I know what so many of them are going through.

Trudie Marie 0:22

Welcome to the Everyday Warriors Podcast. I'm your host, Trudy Marie. Here, ordinary people share extraordinary stories of resilience, courage, and hope. Every conversation is a reminder that no matter what life throws at us, we all have the capacity to continue to rise. If you enjoy today's episode, I'd love you to leave a five-star review. You can support the show through the links in the show notes, which includes Buy Me a Coffee or by subscribing to Everyday Warrior Moments. Or you can check out my book, Everyday Warrior from Frontline to Freedom. This is my memoir of hiking the 1,000 kilometre Bibblan track. But for now, let's meet today's Everyday Warrior.

Early Diagnosis And School Struggles

Trudie Marie 1:12

Welcome to another episode of the Everyday Warriors Podcast. And I am always amused when I have interviews with people from the other side of the world because currently I'm recording at 8 o'clock in the morning. My guest is recording at 8 o'clock the previous evening. So there's a bit of a time warp there. But please welcome to the show, Michelle from Philadelphia.

Michelle 1:36

Oh, thank you. Actually, that's from Pennsylvania, from Pittsburgh, you could say Butler or Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Oh, okay.

Trudie Marie 1:43

So Pennsylvania. See, I even get confused with the initials of the state. Yeah, double check on that from Pennsylvania. That's okay. Yeah, Pennsylvania works. Yeah, see, we always make mistakes anyway. But thank you so much for being here. And you have a really interesting story because this is not a one-off event. This is almost like a life journey for you. And it started all the way back in kindergarten.

Michelle 2:08

Yes, it did. Whenever I was in kindergarten, I was diagnosed with having a learning disability. My teacher noticed that I was having a lot of difficulty with tying my shoes, writing my name, anything math related. And she recommended to my parents that I get tested for having a learning disability. And I was my parents' first child, so they didn't have a lot to base development on. When I went to preschool, I was also falling behind. But my parents thought, oh, she'll catch up. Well, when I went to kindergarten, I didn't. And they recommended that I go and repeat the grade with kindergarten and be and start to receive specialty instruction in a separate school. They didn't give it an exact name at that point. They didn't call it dyscalculea. They didn't know I had limited hand dexterity in my hands. That wasn't diagnosed while I was an adult. And they knew I had visual perception issues that was in my brain, not in my eye. But they didn't know one thing at that age. They knew I was not going to be a mathematician. So that was the first thing. And what that did for me was that started my journey off with going to school. And the journey was truly difficult for me academically with learning, but it also was hard for me socially as well. I was bullied, and my school years were very difficult and were a struggle from the start.

Trudie Marie 3:34

I can totally respect that because you see it, I think, through it doesn't matter how old you are, that you can relate to going back to school and somebody who was not the norm that may have struggled a little bit, whether it was mentally or physically or academically, however you look at it, that kids are just mean. Yep. And it sounds like you had multiple issues going on. Not only was there the learning difficulty in comprehending what was going on, but you also mentioned that there was some physical incapacity with your hands that wasn't diagnosed till later on in life. And then you also had a perceptual thing going on as well. So it wasn't just one thing you were dealing with, you were dealing with multiple.

Michelle 4:28

I definitely was. I mean, whatever gym class was a nightmare for me. I can't remember, I will blink anytime anything comes in my fuel division. And in the very beginning, we thought, okay, I'm just not athletic, I'm clumsy. And that became an issue later on in my life with driving because we knew that was definitely going to be an issue, but we didn't think we we didn't know if it was going to totally prevent me from doing that. And I can remember my parents waited a year before we attempted to get my license. And I can remember they had me do little tasks around the house related to that. We lived out in the country and there was a field, and my parents said, Could you mow the field for us? And instead of making long, beautiful lines, I ended up making circles. So I always say, I now know where crop circles come from. And yep. And then I almost wrecked our car into the garage when we were practicing driving. So my mom and dad thought this is definitely time to go get this looked at because something else is serious, or maybe even not, something needs to be just seeing if I could drive or not. And I can't remember, I passed every single test with that evaluation at a rehabilitation hospital, except for visual perception, and they recommended me not getting my license. And it was like 100 pounds were lifted off my shoulders. So that was one of the big things. And then the hand, whenever my hands, we just thought that, oh, I have bad handwriting. I can remember from the time I was little, I really struggled with that. And I can remember that one of my, I think it was my second or third grade teacher, put a W on my report card indicating weakness for handwriting. And people would tell me you're sloppy or you're not trying hard enough. Or I even had a peer that said he found out I wanted to be a writer or something. He said, If you're if you want to be a writer, you have to have really neat handwriting. And to this day, I have not had an editor that has wanted a handwritten piece. Thank goodness, they wouldn't be able to read it. And most likely, and I can just that that was something that when I got diagnosed as an adult, it was amazing because oh, I'm not clumsy. That when things fall out of my hands, the reason is I have limited hand x-sery. That's what's making opening up doors really difficult for me. And it really just changed a lot of my life and led to a lot of other things too.

Trudie Marie 7:02

It

Driving Limits And Hidden Disabilities

Trudie Marie 7:03

makes total sense. And having those answers for you, no matter what age you get them, but I can understand how it must have made sense. The whole world you lived in started to make sense that, okay, it's not because I'm X, Y, and Z, it's because of this going on over here. But taking you back into your childhood, what was it like as a student? I understand that there was some bullying and that learning was hard, but even going back to the you had to repeat a year, what was that like for you?

Michelle 7:39

That was really very hard for me. My elementary school years were the most difficult years of my life academically. I can just remember being really discouraged. I didn't think I was good at anything. I didn't think I could learn. And my teachers I worked with really were concerned that I was going to develop a sense of learned helplessness. And they really wanted me to be able to learn. And they started to find out things I was good at too, because in the very beginning it was all learning support classes. But they found out that I could read and I could speak really well, and that I read with such expression. So the teachers knew then they said, please encourage Michelle to read because we love hearing her voice when she talks. So that was one of the things they figured out that I could do. So I was able to go into regular break classes for science and social studies and some reading with my peers that didn't have the disabilities. And I had accommodations. I had tests read aloud, and I had extra time on tests. And I also sat at the front of the class because my ears were clonked and I was not hearing sounds correctly. And I had speech therapy for the first five years of school. And also my parents knew that I loved reading and writing. My dad would read me a story every night. And I started, he also found a story that I wrote in second or third grade about a dinosaur. And he said, Michelle wrote this and it's really good. And I thought, well, this is something I'm good at. I didn't think I was good at anything. I thought that I was just doomed to fail in my life, and that my life was never going to get any better. And it was because I had a disability. And if I could just get rid of it, that everything would be perfect. And reading and writing really became my world, especially as that young child. And that helped whenever I was being bullied in school. And it also led to a lot of other things as well. I can remember once I got to high school when the bullying really intensified, I knew I wasn't connecting with my peers. The work was getting easier. I was making honor roll. I was doing well in my class classes. I was in all regular ed classes, except for math and a resource, but the bullying got worse. And I found a writing group outside of our school district for teenagers. And they also had other, I think they did plays, they had some other art programs too. And I found acceptance. They told me you should really write about having a learning disability. And I got to a point, I'm like, oh no, that's too personal. I wrote some really bad poetry and some other stuff I wouldn't want to share today.

Strengths Found Through Reading And Writing

Trudie Marie 10:51

I want to address two things inside of what you just said because I think it's really incredible. The first thing is that instead of focusing on what wasn't working for you, is that they focused on what did work for you. Instead of discouraging you and saying, be better, be more, be something you're not, they accepted your limitations for what they were, and they really encouraged you to excel in areas of your life that you were good at. And I think as parents, as educators, even as workers, there isn't that vision of just accepting people for who they are, accepting their strengths, accepting their limitations and moving forward inside of that. And then the other thing I want to bring up, which I really loved, was the fact that you said that you were being bullied at school because, as we've discussed, kids can be really mean. But finding something outside of your usual group and finding that writing group where people only saw you for your strengths, that there was no focus on what you couldn't do where you weren't good enough or a failure or whatever you wanted to say, is that people just accepted you for who you were. And I love that. I think there needs to be more of that.

Michelle 12:15

There really, I think that is so true as well, because it really helped with finding your trap. And I think that's something I really encourage a lot of people to do in their life. Maybe it's a writing group, and maybe if you're not into writing, maybe there's a sports group that you like to participate in. And maybe if that's not it, maybe there's a music, which I'm definitely not talented with either one, but maybe there just is an activity that you would like to do. And we see so many kids, especially ones with disabilities, that get bullied. And we just have to encourage them to find your people. And those people that do put you down or don't like you, there are always going to be somebody that's out there. It's going to give you some difficulties, but it's finding those people that you share the interest with and going out and looking for that. And my friends, they couldn't change the fact I had a disability and I was struggling. But one of the things they could, we could laugh, we could smile. And I had people that were there for me when I was really struggling. And it also really was important with not driving, too. I my peers didn't understand why I couldn't drive. And I can remember they would be like, we'll hang out with you if you get your license. But my friends who were a few years older than I was, it took them maybe a little bit to understand that I couldn't drive. But once they did, they had no problems with picking me up and taking me places. And it also having good friends who were older also saved me from getting a lot into a lot of trouble in my life. So I think I just thank God for every day for who he's put into my life.

Trudie Marie 13:52

Yeah, it's such a good way to look at it because we do need support in our life, no matter what we're going through, even if it is a disability, it's having those people around you that support you no matter what, that has you just keep moving forward one step at a time. It's one of my mottos is we take each day one step at a time. And when you've got the right people around you, you can actually do that. Yeah, exactly. So then what was it like obviously going into high school and you're a year behind everybody else because you've had to was that the only year you had to repeat? Was kindergarten?

Michelle 14:32

Yes, kindergarten was the only year, but there was always that fear that if I don't do really good or if I fail this test, then I'm going to have to repeat another grade because I knew it was a reality. It was definitely something that happened. So I became overly cautious, and every point mattered. And that turned out to be a really good thing because I threw myself into my schoolwork and I really had to work hard. And my parents and I spent sometimes some very long, oftentimes tearful homework sessions together. I couldn't tell you what the number was that I needed to be able to do to pass. And to me, it was always that failure was always just looming in the background. So that really encouraged me to move forward. And I had peers though that, well, my the class that I was supposed to graduate with, they were a year ahead of me. And the class that I was in, I was the older kid, and everybody was a year or so behind me. So I think that that created some difficulties as well.

Trudie Marie 15:34

Yeah, and that's not often talked about. I know here in Australia we have a start and end date based on your age, but it's actually the middle of the year. I know in the east coast of Australia it's an April cutoff, but in Western Australia, where I am, it's a June cutoff. So we start our school year at the end of our summer, like you guys, but it's just different times of the year. So we start in January. And if you're not the age before the 30th of June, then you were pushed back a year. And that's normal. And it's been that way for many, many years now, that there is that mixed age group within your year group. So there are those who are born at the beginning of the year, and then there are those who are born at the end of the previous year. So I think that makes a lot easier for those kids who may or may not struggle a little bit that there are different year groups. But I'm guessing for you coming through school, it was you were the always the odd one out because you were always that year older, but in a year group with kids younger than you.

Michelle 16:45

Yes. And it was also hard too because I was an only child for 13 years. So a lot of my socialization was with adults as a kid. And I didn't really know how to play with other children. And some of the experiences that I had before, even I went into school, weren't always very positive with peers. So it was a really tough time for me. And then when my brother came along, uh we were at opposite ends of the ages. I he was I was 13, he was just a baby. And then my senior year, I was graduating and he was going into kindergarten. So we both grew up almost like only children with our parents, and that also served to be really a benefit for me as well, especially with getting diagnosed as a small child, because I wasn't coming in as a kid that was just really naive about that. I was frustrated and it showed on my face. So I think that was it was a benefit.

Trudie Marie 18:26

Do you think also having your brother being with that big age difference that were as he started to come through school and you're obviously starting into your adulthood? But was it good for you to actually be even a role model or mentor for him? Because you were able to then go back and assist him coming through?

Michelle 18:45

I think it's always it was a good thing because, especially for my family, because my mom and dad, that was the big question. Is my brother going to have a disability? And they were really on the radar with looking for that. Okay, he was born in August. The cutoff date is September. That was one of the first things. But my mom talked to the preschool teacher and she said, I think he's ready for kindergarten. And she knew what to look for to know if somebody was ready. So I think that was definitely something. And also, I did get that chance to just be more of an adult figure in my brother's life from the time I was young. So I think that that was definitely a good thing, too.

Trudie Marie 19:26

Great. And what was it like for you then going into adult world? Because on one hand, you can't drive, you've just been diagnosed with the physical aspect of your disability. What did you then do? How did adult life look for you?

Michelle 19:44

Well, I can remember we knew that it was going to be a challenge. I even had a learning support teacher who told me that she didn't think I could go to college because of my disability and suggested a trade school. I had a psychiatrist who didn't think I would go beyond community college. So I had a lot of people doubting me. And then I go to community college, and there's even more stigma that's facing me. I can remember I found a program that had the least amount of math and science possible, and it had disability accommodations. But

College Stigma And Claiming Accommodations

Michelle 20:15

when I got in into that, I found that people weren't all worth very understanding in the beginning. I can remember asking for a calculator in a math class, and the professor said, Oh, we use our brains in here, not calculators. I had an advisor who told me that I was going to have limited job choices when I graduate because I would not know how much a paper to give for an art project with kids. And just to note, those things do happen in life. I make mistakes, or sometimes it can be a challenge, but it's how I learn how to work through a lot of those things. And people were just, I even had peers that were saying, if you're getting an extended test time or a test read aloud to you, that's cheating. And I thought I just left high school and I'm all of a sudden dealing with this. And I didn't even know about the hand dexterity thing until much later. But I went through, I was scared. And I got my associate's degree in early childhood education and I moved out on my own. And that was really great because I wasn't able to drive. And I lived in a central location where I could walk places and take the bus. And that gave me that independence in my life and that I really needed. But a lot of people didn't understand, especially in relationships. I had a boyfriend that when we were breaking up, he said, I think you could drive if you really wanted to. And I'm tired of taking you places. And other, yeah, and other guys were like, I don't want to date someone that has that or can't drive or has this part of the disability. So that was really difficult for me. And then for financial reasons, I had to move back in with my parents. And that was hard because my mom and dad lived out in the country, and I had to give up not only my apartment, but my independence with a lot of that. And my job was downsizing. And it was that time I thought, I'm gonna go back to school. I always wanted more for myself. And I looked at a program at university that had the least amount of math and science possible. It had accommodations, and this time I used them. I went up and I had a note taker, I had extra time on tests, and I introduced myself to my professors, and I would just tell them who I was and that I had a learning. Disability. And most people were so accommodating and did whatever they could do to help me and were encouraging. Other ones didn't quite get the memo, but that was okay. I understood. And I also had that mindset that if I didn't do well in a class or on a test, it wasn't the end of the world. I could still find a way to make it through. And I did. And it was so much easier. I made dieselists for a semester and I graduated with a bachelor's degree despite being told I couldn't do it.

Trudie Marie 23:07

That's incredible. And I just want to acknowledge you for the courage and bravery it took to do that. To think that in high school, people were saying to you, you're limited. And I know that in America, the big thing is you have to go to college. And if you go to a trade school or community college, it's like you're not good enough. So that's already a social norm within the United States that I am familiar with. But going through that experience the first time around, you didn't know what to expect. And so even though you were accommodated in high school, going into adult learning space, you already had this bullying and stuff going on and people having expectations of you, even though they said that they were accommodating to people with disabilities, they didn't really do that. But then for you to then go on the second time and come back to all of that, because that takes courage given your first experience. But you going, no, I'm going to prove to myself and to everybody else that I can do this, that you then had the courage to just face it head on and go and approach your professors and fellow peers and take on what you needed to, but also to have the mindset that this is not the end of the world. I can actually do this regardless of what is expected of me. Yep. Exactly. So what do you do now after all like going through that and going through college the second time? What career did you go into after that?

Michelle 24:43

I started at working at a couple places that said they were disability friendly, but they were anything but that. And I've been working as a teacher's aider paraprofessional for a school for about 14 years now. And I love working in the classroom with my students. I work with seventh graders, and all the kids know that I can help them with anything except for math. And I'm not ashamed to say that anymore. And it's amazing. I get that chance to really go in and work with them not only on their lessons, but I also show them those life lessons on how to advocate for themselves, how to speak up for themselves. And I think that having that disability isn't a liability, it's an asset because I

Teaching Self-Advocacy As A Paraprofessional

Michelle 25:29

know what so many of them are going through. And I've because I sat there and I get that opportunity in life to be able to show them how to advocate and speak up for themselves. And I think that's so key because one day all my students will leave me. And I hope every dream comes true for them. But for so many of them, their disabilities aren't going to leave. But that what I'm showing them now is something that's going to help them in the future.

Trudie Marie 25:55

What a beautiful position to be in to be able to advocate for them because you've actually walked in similar shoes, that they're not learning from somebody who can just tell them this is what's possible. You're actually demonstrating firsthand that you have already been there, done that, and that you are in the position now because you took those chances. So what a great space to be in to do that for other children.

Michelle 26:29

Thank you. I feel blessed to be able to do that.

Trudie Marie 26:33

Yeah, I love that for you. And what's it like actually being an educator in the system knowing what you went through? I guess in some ways you wish you had a version of you back when you were going through school.

Michelle 26:50

I think it's very rewarding to be able to do that. I think that's the rewarding part is being able to give back and to be able to serve and to be able to help. I just really think that is the one of the greatest things in life. I can remember my dad telling me not to give up when I was really discouraged because there's so many people who need that light. And I think that this is my opportunity to be able to give back.

Trudie Marie 27:15

That's awesome. And being in the school and being in that space, like when the your first time round was so awkward and a discouraging experience in many ways. What is it like now with your students, with your peers, with your the parents of the students? What are your relationships like with those? And do you think that has actually broken the stigma attached to disability in your school?

Michelle 27:46

I think that breaking the stigma is one of is definitely a journey. And I think we have a lot of ableism that is systemic that we have in our schools. So, but I think going in and addressing that is one of those things that really helps that because I think there's something very powerful. Whenever I can go up to a boss or a supervisor or a teacher that I work with, and I can I have to put in that position because nobody can see my disability. And I have to say, I have this, and these are the supports that I'm going to need. And I think that that really is a skill that I've had to learn. And I also think though, there's a teaching moment that I get to work with my students. I also know with my feet, they they turn in when I walk because of another thing for whenever I was born, how I was positioned in the womb. And also the visual perception does slow me down sometimes. So I'll be walking students in the hall. And I had a student that said, you know, you walk really slow. And I said, rather than getting really upset, I just went over to him and I said, and I told him, I said, well, you know, everybody walks differently. Some people walk really fast, some people walk really slow, but we really don't want to go up and make comments about other people and say things about how they walk or how they might look. And that was that moment that I came because that was something I was really, really struggling with. I'm okay. I can laugh about not being able to do math. I it doesn't bother me. I think it's funny in some ways too, because it's, I don't know. I that's something I've been practicing a lot in my life. But I never got great with how I walked. And then the words just came out and it was perfect. And that just teaches somebody. And sometimes our students, they don't know how to react to things or they don't understand when somebody might come in and they might walk different, they might talk differently, they might react in a different way. And those are those teaching moments that I get to go and show my students. And I think in life, this gives them that exposure. And sometimes that can be validation. I can remember I've had students who couldn't read. And I would tell them, okay, if we're in class, you're struggling, maybe we're not going to address this now. But during when we have advisory, you're going to come in and we're going to sit down and we're going to read this. And as long as it doesn't involve math, we're going to figure it out together. And they would come in and I would work with them. And I didn't put, I didn't shame them for what they didn't know. And then they would ask questions like, okay, do you use dictation software? Have you tried doing this? And we because they could pick up on a lot of those things that I struggled with. And they were asking questions on how I handled that. So I think it's just that learning experience. And it's being able to really relate to my students. And I honestly feel if I didn't have a disability, I don't think I would have the empathy to do that.

Trudie Marie 30:47

I totally see that. And just looking at the bigger picture of education, acceptance, kindness, it all goes hand in hand. And if we can be building those tools within our youth and within young people of today, I think we live in such a judgmental world, especially with the lacks of social media, and we're exposed to that at such a young age. But I know even I have a niece with disabilities, and for the first 12 years of her life, she went to a normal school. And I think the children that she was exposed to, or the children that were exposed to her during that time, they learned so much more acceptance about the way other people can be. And she had students that loved her. And it wasn't until she went to high school that she's now in a special education support system that she obviously gets the learning and education that she needs. But and she will never have her disability is so severe that she will never have those social aspects and social norms. But I think for everybody else around her that's been blessed in knowing her, I think it's the same for you. The children who come across you as part of their educational journey are blessed to know that there is a different way of doing things, and that's okay. Exactly. Yes. So, which leads me to what you're doing now, because I know you mentioned that you've been part of a writing group for 30 odd years and you're still doing that. Is writing a big part of your life? Because it seems to be one of your strengths.

Michelle 32:32

It has definitely been a huge part of my life. I finally got the courage, after I was diagnosed with limited hand dexterity several years ago, to write about having my just about having a disability. I can remember I was so frustrated when my husband and I purchased our home that I could not unlock the door. And I there was a call on the mighty for what's a seemingly easy task for others, but it's hard with your disability. And I wrote about it and it got published. And I had more people that were, I had such a great response from that. People were telling me that's my story,

Writing Publicly And Policy Advocacy Work

Michelle 33:07

or I thought I was the only one to struggle with that. And I started to write more articles for them and to write for other places and to start my own blog called Michelle's Mission, where I write about my life with a learning disability. And I feature my photography because I feel when I'm on my walks, I get to notice things that other people miss while they're driving. And people tell me that I bring out the details in a flower that I would miss. And I think to myself, well, if rather than being sad, if I wasn't on that walk, I would miss so many things. There's so much beauty. And that is also something I know with the writing that has come about with that. And I'm also another project of mine that I'm involved with is I'm the involved with a disability policy program, where we get the chance to learn more how to be an advocate. And over the weekend, I have my first legislative visit where I got to speak in a group with some of our representatives about an issue we did with a counseling compact so we could have more counselors that can come into schools to work with students. And it was amazing to be able to go there and to hear other people advocating and speaking for themselves, and also getting that opportunity to be able to do that as well.

Trudie Marie 34:27

That's awesome that you're giving back in a way that other people really can't. You can work as an educational assistant and you can work with children with special needs. But until you are in a position like yourself, which is really unique, where you are an example of yes, I also have a disability. So I get firsthand what these students are going through, that your perspective is so unique because you can draw on all different aspects of life. And in their research of doing policy and legislation, they can deal with different research groups. But I think in this particular instance of what you're advocating for, when you can actually tell that story firsthand, it's just a whole different level of wisdom and knowledge that is gained from you. Yes, definitely. So, what does that look like for you moving forward?

Michelle 35:29

What I can see moving forward is definitely I'm going to expand my blog. I'd like to write a book someday. I think that's something I gotta get working on. And I would love to do more advocacy work and just to be an advocate for people that have disabilities, whether that's going to be look like going into a classroom and working with a student and giving that encouragement, writing on my blog, or perhaps doing more in the field with lobbying. I definitely want to be able to help people that have disabilities and my sharing my story as well.

Trudie Marie 36:03

I think your community is very blessed to have somebody who has lived this life experience, but wants to make the world a better place because of it, and that you are definitely somebody who represents of something not happening to you, but happening for you. Because I think you've taken it on fully and just giving to the world something completely different that had you not been in the position you're in, you would never probably have done that.

Michelle 36:39

Yes, definitely. It's influenced me.

Trudie Marie 36:42

Well, I just want to thank you so much for being part of the show today and sharing your experience. And hopefully, those out there, whether they are experiencing a disability themselves, have a child with a disability, or a family member, loved one, friend, co-worker with a disability, that they just take on your point of view and look at life through a completely different lens because of it. Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure. And I always finish the podcast episode by asking: what is the one thing you are most grateful for today?

Michelle 37:21

I am most grateful for my husband today. He's been a great source of support for me.

Trudie Marie 37:30

Thank you for tuning

Gratitude Question And Closing Message

Trudie Marie 37:31

in to the Everyday Warriors podcast. If you have an idea for a future episode or a story you'd like to share yourself, then please reach out and message me. As I am always up for real, raw and authentic conversations with other Everyday Warriors. Also, be sure to subscribe so that you can download all the latest episodes as they are published. And spread the word to your family and friends and colleagues so they can listen in too. If you're sharing on social media, please be sure to tag me so that I can personally acknowledge you. I'm always open to comment about how these episodes have resonated with you, the listener. And remember, lead with love as you live this one wild and precious life.