Love on Wheelz

Q. What have you not been able to do because of your disability that you regret not being able to do? A. There’ve been a lot of things I missed out on. Prom, parties, school football games… Come to think of it, I didn’t have much of a social life or even very many friends [...]

(Quick reminder: Feel free to submit questions via the contact page on the right hand side of your screen.) Q. I’ve read that MD is a hereditary disease. Does it run in your family? A. As far as I can tell, me and my younger brother are the only people in my immediate family who [...]

Q. Do you normally roll (no pun intended) with other handicapped/wheelchair kids, or with normal kids? A. 99.99% of the time I hang out with normal kids. There was this one kid in my old elementary school in Tijuana, we were in the same grade, same class even. He also had Duchenne MD. What are [...]

Q. You mentioned some side effects of MD are problems with sitting and eating. Is there anything else? Bedside VentilatorVent HeaterA. I use a ventilator 24/7 because I can’t breathe by myself. My bedside ventilator pumps the air through the tubes into my lungs via a trache tube. I don’t really know what all those [...]

Sorry for the hiatus there. I was having some issues getting these pics, due to the fact I had no camera. Q. How do you eat? Syringe, tube, and feeding pump. A. It depends. I can eat food by mouth when I get cravings, but not enough to be nutritious. 99% of the time, I [...]

What’s the best thing about having MD and being confined to a wheelchair? A. I tried really hard to think of something for this. I thought about the fact that people do everything for me, but that’s not as cool as it sounds. If I have an itch and everybody is busy, I have to [...]

Q. Does it hurt? What’s it feel like? A. This is tough. The disease itself doesn’t hurt, but the things it causes do. For example, Scoliosis is a common side effect of MD, so I’m in constant back pain while in my chair. I also get numb legs all the time, so I have to [...]

Q. What is your handicap? A. I have Muscular Dystrophy (MD). It affects the muscles by making them progressively weaker. This means that I have minimal use of my arms and legs and I use a power wheelchair to get around. In addition, I have a tracheostomy and use a ventilator to breathe, as the [...]

Q. How are you really treated by the general public? A. Most people just keep to themselves. But, occasionally, a person will come up to the person with me and start talking about me when I’m right there. It infuriates me to no end. I mean, I know I’m not the most handsome guy in [...]