I have always been a dreamer. When I became a social worker, I did so because I wanted to make a difference. My goal was to impact the lives of differently-abled children; I wanted each child that I worked with to know that they are not defined by what they cannot do or some obscure medical term. I wanted each child to know that they are cherished and valued. You see, I was born with Cerebral Palsy and walk with crutches.I can’t lie. Life can be hard and there have certainly been times I have literally been in tears. I know what it’s like to be judged by others and to have to overcome obstacles and stereotypes. I have come to understand that the world is not always fair. Despite my best efforts to blend in and not be singled out for being different, people do indeed judge and at times try to set limits to what they think I can do. And now I’m going to admit something totally crazy, something that may not make sense to anyone at all… My disability, my crutches are a gift.
I have a new job. I love, LOVE my job, it’s my dream job. I now work at Whitestone School for Child Development, a CPSE preschool in Queens, NY. I have always dreamed of working in a preschool because I love children and I have always wanted to use my disability to positively impact others.
I attended a CPSE preschool and know that I am where I am today, in part due to the services and early intervention I received there. While my memory of those days are fuzzy, I remember I loved it! I loved my teacher, Miss Jody (Yes, I still remember her name) and my therapists were also great! I had a lot of friends who were just like me and no one judged me, made fun of me or left me out.
When I entered kindergarten, I attended Henry Viscardi School; a school for the disabled founded by Dr. Henry Viscardi, who also had a disability. I remember seeing him in the hallways and hoping to one day be like him and help others. As I got older and truly understood how much he had done to advance and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, the more convinced I became that I wanted to be like him and leave a mark.
There’s something that I was not prepared for…being denied opportunities because of my disability. I was raised in a family where I was no different than my siblings. My mother has always been my greatest ally and advocate but she also believed in being honest with me. “You have to work harder and do better because people will judge you” she’d tell me. Followed quickly by, “but you can do anything if you work hard enough.” While the first half of her statement always annoyed me, I always believed she was right, that I could do anything. I also went to amazing schools and had great teachers who also made sure I was never treated differently, so I grew up assuming that all of my dreams would come true as long as I did my best and worked to make my dreams reality. Reality isn’t that simple; people are not always nice. I’ve been on more than one interview where people made it quite obvious that my crutches made them uncomfortable. I quickly learned that my mother was right. It seemed to me that my dream of making a difference would never come true. Every time I thought I’d found the perfect job for me, I’d hit a brick wall. My crutches always seemed to get in the way, be the “elephant in the room.” I had always believed that I could do whatever I wanted and that if I worked hard enough, I could achieve my dreams. Out of my own naiveté I had never really seen my crutches as an issue. I am as independent as I can be and I have never let crutches stop me.
I was beginning to question if I was ever going to be able to make a difference. I was ready to give up on my dream when I got the phone call to come in for an interview. Can I admit I was nervous? I was excited but hesitant. I was convinced I was going to hit another brick wall. Boy, was I shocked when two days after the interview I was offered the job!You see, I have finally come full circle working at Whitestone School for Child Development. I am finally in a place where people don’t stare at me or refer to me as “the girl with the crutches,” I don’t have to explain myself. I walk into a classroom and all the children shout, “Hi, Laura! Come play!” The children know my name! I may never know how much of a difference I am making in their lives but I certainly hope that they all come to understand that they are amazing and so very capable of achieving their dreams. I hope that in my own way, I am giving back to all of those who gave to me, who helped me get to where I am today. I am truly more grateful than words can ever express! Now do you understand why I say my crutches are a gift? They don’t define me, they are not who I am. It is my hope that when people see me they see the person I am; someone who is truly happy and grateful for the opportunity to positively impact others and just maybe, leave a mark…yes, I still dream big!
Contributed by Laura Nunez
Although intuitively known for thousands of years, the benefits of interacting with pets has only been scientifically studied beginning in the latter half of the 20th century. Research began in the 1970’s when visionaries Leo Bustad, a veterinarian, Michael McCulloch, a psychiatrist, his brother William McCulloch, a veterinarian, and several other veterinarians formed The Delta Foundation, now known as Pet Partners. The organization was originally founded to pioneer the scientific study of the health benefits of the human-animal bond. 
A service dog is one that is specially trained to perform a task or tasks that alleviate an owner/handler’s disability. Individuals who utilize service dogs are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act to have their dog accompany them into most public places. The ADA no longer recognizes any species other than dogs (or in some cases miniature horses) as service animal. 
Providing comfort and security, emotional support animals (ESAs) can be very valuable to a family with a special needs child. Although they may also perform some type of “work” for their owner, it is mostly the pet’s mere presence alone that is beneficial. “Unconditional love,” despite the limitations or appearance of their owners, is what most people describe as the biggest benefit gained from the bonds with these animals. People who own ESAs are protected under the Fair Housing Act to keep these animals in a public housing situation, but the property manager has the right to ask for documentation from a health care provider that the animal(s) is necessary for the person’s health and well-being. As with the ADA, however, the Fair Housing Act requires that the animal does not alter the environment for others; s/he must be held on a leash in public areas, must be well-controlled, clean and quiet. For more information about the Fair Housing Act as it relates to assistance animals, please visit 
Visiting animal programs are increasingly popular in hospitals, medical centers, nursing homes, schools and other facilities. Pet Partners registers appropriate pets with their owners as therapy animal teams after the “human end of the leash” passes a comprehensive training program and the team passes an evaluation performed by a licensed Pet Partners Team Evaluator. 
In a comfortable, airy room strewn with exercise mats, a Feldenkrais teacher guides her students verbally, as they move their bodies slowly and gently. She invites them to explore a sequence of easy movements, and then to rest, noticing whether one of their legs feels longer than the other. Then, she asks them to notice whether it feels easier when they turn toward the left, or the right. Each student pays attention to his or her own experience, tilting, turning, or gently lengthening an arm or a leg. These movements are extremely simple, but unlike most other forms of exercise, each movement is also packed with valuable neurological information. The movements in a Feldenkrais exercise are functionally based and meaningful, and provide the brain with a therapeutic opportunity in which it can assist the body. When the exercise is finished, the students stand up and walk around the room to explore how they are now feeling. Many will report feeling refreshed and capable, in ways they had long forgotten.
As the Feldenkrais Method steadily gains recognition, people are increasingly turning to it for help with a wide range of issues. Some people use it to speed their recovery from injury, or because they wish 
One of the major benefits of alternative medical practices is their actualization of methods that incorporate the whole body and all of its systems into diagnostic criteria and treatment methods. When looking at the body as ONE integrated system, rather than it’s component parts, patterns of illness and imbalance emerge. These patterns are unique to each child, but are part of a larger ordered pattern of body processes. Just as a farmer would look to find the source of disease if his crops began to fail rather than simply pulling out the plants that are ill, alternative medicines is guided by the understanding that the parts of the body work together and rely on one another to maintain a healthy environment.
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As a traveling music therapist, I spend all day driving through the Texas sun, hauling guitars, drums, and tambourines from house to house, but still the hardest part about my job is answering, "What is music therapy?". 
First things first, what do music therapists do? My go-to answer for this question is to compare it to something everyone knows. Music therapists are similar to physical therapists, speech therapists and/or occupational therapists in that we are working with clients to improve their quality of life. The areas mainly focused on are physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs. Through music therapy, clients learn social and communication skills; they learn how to appropriately express themselves through improved emotional processing; they can increase fine and gross motor skills; even stress and pain management can be learned through music therapy treatment. We are not teaching people how to play instruments, but rather using music as our therapeutic medium to increase those areas that are deficient in the clients lives. This would be the "clinical use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals" of the definition. 
Once someone learns about music therapy and what we as therapists do, the last question is usually where do you work? This is different for every therapist. I myself work through the Medicaid waiver program - 
I had a very weird thing happen today and thought I would share. First a little back story. We got a disabled parking placard for our daughter, 
Back to today... I went to run some errands, leaving Casey at home with her nurse. One of the stops I made was the post office (or postal station). There were 2 spots up front, then another 8 or so across the way. The 2 up front were 1 accessible spot and 1 general parking. It was just me, so I parked in the general parking spot and went inside. While I was filling out my papers a man came in. He was very angry and yelling at the attendants about something. I just minded my own business while this was happening (I wish I had been paying attention). He then stormed out and the attendants were talking to each other. I heard one say something to the effect of "What was he expecting, you don't have to park in the accessible spot just because you can..." This is when I realized he was angry and yelling about me. WTH!! I asked the attendants exactly what he was complaining about to find out that he was angry that he had to walk across the way (like 30 feet) because there was a disabled vehicle parked in the non-disable spot. I was so caught off guard by this, and really mad. I explained the law to attendants and said "as you can see, I do not have my disabled passenger with me." I asked if the man was still around as I would LOVE to educate him on the laws as well as a few others things. I guess it is a good thing he had already left. I would have tore into him if he was still there.