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Overcoming the Fear #SCIAWARENESS #PUSHLOVE

We have done many stories on @PushLiving .com about romance in dating, and while I am fortunate and have been married and in a relationship for most of my #SCILife, the reality is all of us beautiful sexy souls with visible disabilities who are very often lucky in #love must overcome a great deal of fear, hesitancy, selfishness, and lack of understanding about what it means to be with #WheelchairWoman or #WheelieHotDude šŸ˜€

Oh, Man! If I could tell you some of the things we hear, like the obvious ā€œcan you have sexā€ or the thoughts they donā€™t say out loudā€¦ā€ I donā€™t want to date you because I might hurt you either physically or mentally if I ever decide to get frisky or break up with you.ā€ After all, you know weā€™re fragile like that, haha. WRONG ASSUMPTION. This COULD be true or the farthest from the truthā€¦you will have to find out, but the same goes for the woman who does not show up in a wheelchair, right?

Of course, the old ā€œIā€™ll have to take care of you, and you wonā€™t be independent, or Iā€™ll be limited in what I can do because of youā€ or ā€œwhat will my friends think when I walk into a room with you,ā€ etc.

Iā€™m old enough to be used to all of this misperception and have overcome it quite nicely, but I wonder if the limits of the options due to this kind of thinking affect our self-esteem in a way that weā€™re not even aware is permeating our subconscious? Sure we can laugh it off, repeatedly, and we can find our way and do; obviously, many of us are getting married, having babies, and having amazing sex. (you can learn all about #SexualityandDisability on my gig as co-host of ā€œEverlasting Loveā€ series on Youtube channel Sustain our Abilities)

But here is the question: Do we choose to downgrade our light and our vibes because we know this is part of our everyday existence in relation to others? People OFTEN just feel awkward around us, even friends; when you walk into a restaurant, itā€™s just a little bit of a ā€œthingā€ or energy that is not necessarily at ease.

ā€œI remember so well my last ā€œfirst dateā€ meeting.

I was so nervous rolling into the restaurant he chose to meet me. He was sitting at the bar, and I had to roll up and look up at him, which was fine. Iā€™m used to this and comfortable with that actual bar (but truly resent the high-top table trend!), but I felt subconscious that I would be accepted in the chair even though he already knew I was in a chair. I feel very fortunate, though, that even though that relationship didnā€™t last, that I felt completely comfortable and accepted, and I didnā€™t feel ā€œdifferent.ā€

But I do think, though, that there is always a little bit of hesitancy when they start to overthink things like: what does it mean to actually ā€œbe in a relationshipā€ with her? Should I go forward? I like her, but will my friends and family accept her? Will my colleagues, business partners receive her? What does it mean to be really fully committed to someone with a physical disability?

Try to imagine that for a moment and see if it wouldnā€™t affect your self-esteem? Of course, there are many available comparisons to disability. Anyone who doesnā€™t fit social norms and has to deal with uncomfortableness, prejudice, lack of opportunities, and judgment, of course, will understand what Iā€™m talking about and relate. Iā€™ve actually been asked before if I chose someone to date because I had to ā€œdowngrade, due to disability which I found to be so insulting not only to him but to me. But maybe I have, in fact, ā€œde facto,ā€ done this now that I look at it? But I never saw it that way. My heart never felt that and I always insisted on good sex, a partner that treats me the way I feel I should be treated and deserved, and someone I was physically attracted to and admired. Would I have had other multiple options? Absolutely if I got on any dating app and didnā€™t show the wheelchair? I donā€™t think I could keep up! I can barely keep up the way it is, haha. Iā€™ve had some lovely men in my life, and Iā€™m very fortunate for each of them. Theyā€™ve all taught me so much, and Iā€™m incredibly grateful for the journey that brought me here today. Iā€™m different and more evolved in more discerning because of each of them. So now we move forwardā€¦

Seeking a calm, gentle, protected, strong, deep, healthy, thriving relationship. Just be strong enough to lift me (smile)ā€

#ProtectYourGift #DeepSoulConnection #Commitment #Thriving #ChooseYourself #DivineTiming #NoResistance #Pushlove #WheelchairLifestyle #WheelchairGirl #WheelchairLove #BetterYourself #BetterMan #Humble #Wise #DisabilityInclusive #SCIAWARENESS #sciawarenessmonth #trusttheprocess #speakyourtruth

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Deborah J. Davis: Deborah is a Speaker, Disability Inclusion Consultant, Entrepreneur, Writer, and Business Owner of Wheelchair Lifestyle Enterprise Push Living Inc. She was a Former Dancer, Accident Survivor (C 6-7 Spinal Cord Injury resulting in incomplete Quadriplegia 1985), College grad (BBA Finance 1991 U of Miami), with a background in Sales and Marketing and Non-Profit Development and Management. She is now embarked on a new path creating a market for Disability Inclusive Stock Images with the creation of PUSHlivingPhotos.com and publishing an online enterprise: PushLiving.com. The mission is to create Inclusion for people with disabilities through stock images for advertising, marketing, and editorial uses, providing accessible properties for travel, swap or purchase, publishing an online magazine for improved health and well-being, providing information and opportunities for Accessible Travel, and operating an online store with products that improve lives. She is most passionate about building a network of people with disabilities who are empowering, supporting, and creating a more inclusive world. Personally, she is a mother of two beautiful, wise and exceptionally bright young women, and residing in South Florida.