The Story of Josh Vander Vies - Canadian Paralympian

Hi everyone,

I have another treasure to share with all of you today, a story from an inspirational individual who has carried his disability with his head held high and has inspired family, friends, students and others to believe and suprise themselves!

Josh Vander Vies represented Canada at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece in the sport of Boccia. Josh was born without limbs, but has not let this stop him from creating an amazing life, overcoming challenges and having an amazing attitude. Here is his story.

Josh Vander Vies

The stadium in Athens was at its capacity – 85 000. As I lined up with my fellow Canadian athletes, I could hear the roar of the crowd. It was muffled. We were outside the arena and the air was not still. It shook.

When I crossed the threshold, saw the mass of people celebrating, and heard the deafening cheer of voices pounding elite athletes from around the world, I smiled. I had made it. I represented Canada at the 2004 Paralympic Summer Games in Athens, Greece and finished amongst the top Boccia players on the planet.

Some years earlier, my mom Sandy, came out of the caesarean delivery of her first-born very groggy, as her husband Gary waited eagerly in another room. My mom had had an uneventful pregnancy and had to deliver me caesarean style, because I was breech. As she shook off the drugs, she asked the nurse: “Is it a boy?” The nurse replied that it was, with a small smile. Sandy then asked: “Does he have any hair?” The nurse didn’t know – she was preoccupied with other, seemingly disastrous features.

The doctors explained to my parents that I had been born missing all of my limbs and gave a prediction of my future so bleak that my parents blurted out: “Is he going to die?!” The doctors, a little surprised, laughed and said no that I was perfectly healthy, just without most of my arms and legs. My parents wanted to see me.

When I was brought out to them for the first time, they both took turns kissing me all over and telling me that they loved me. They spent the rest of my life, so far, showing me.

They encouraged me to set hard goals and do what it takes to achieve them. Instead of putting me into a segregated school for children with disabilities, like the experts advised, my parents – unilingual English speakers – enrolled me in a local French immersion school so that I would have a bit more of a challenge!

As I grew, I became interested in physical activity. I joined a swim team for athletes with disabilities and soon competed in Swimming, Shot Put, Discus and Javelin. Then I discovered Boccia – the international Paralympic indoor version of the Italian past time – and was hooked on the intense skill, precision, strategy and competition of pushing myself to get better and better.

Not having hands or full legs presents many tough obstacles. And, like any obstacles that seem insurmountable, they can be shattered. Some I overcame naturally: I learned to write, play and draw by watching my friends. Others I had help with before I could help myself: my dad built me parallel bars and my mom encouraged me to use them to practice walking upright. Other obstacles, I stared at head on and came up with solutions: learning to dress myself when I was 13, becoming an early riser in my mid twenties, and the more recent realisation that what others think about me, doesn’t matter.

I love not having arms and legs, and I love myself (maybe too much – ask anyone who knows me!). I love the things I can do. And, I love the things I can’t do, yet.

You should love yourself too. No matter what circumstances you find yourself in, you have the ability to surprise yourself.

Sometimes I wonder whether or not I have an effect when I visit schools, or speak to audiences. My partner, Dalia, and I were watching a show at the Vancouver Centre for the Performing Arts, and at intermission a couple I didn’t recognise, approached us. One of them was a teacher at a local school I had presented at; she told me that the students were organising a sports day – several months after I had presented – and they insisted that Boccia be included in the program. An outdoor version was included, and was a great success bringing students of all abilities and backgrounds together in friendly competition.

Sometimes I surprise myself.

At a recent corporate presentation, the nicest lady approached me afterwards in tears and told me that my message had affected her in a very personal way. Neither of us could find the words to express ourselves further, so we hugged and smiled and cried.

Sometimes I really surprise myself.

Check out this video from a woman who is an inspiration to us all!!!!

First Flight Crew - Disability and Dance

Hi everyone,

I couldn't resist but to share this with you as I think it is quite an amazing and fabulous thing to recognise. The First Flight Crew are a group of hip hoppers with disability. The crew is made up of seven unique individuals with so much talent in all things entertainment. The crew picture themselves as representing people with disability whilst also showing off their hip hop skills to a wide public audience.

The group was formed in late 2008 by the Accessible Arts Creative Programs Coordinator, Alison Richardson and Club Wild. The offer of four workshops grew to two fabulous tracks of dance with an accompanying music video clip. The tracks included 'The Wild Ones' and 'Music Makes Me Happy'.

After these great new performances the group were offered the opportunity to perform at the Beach Road Hotel as part of a hip hop night with interstate and international artists.

In 2009 most of the orginal group returned (with some newbies) to take part if a song creation workshop with Morganics, creating their first original song called Funky Guitar Style Noises. The Group, then called the Funkeze is now called the First Flight Crew.

They have some fabulous videos and great bios on the group members on their website.

What I love about this group is the fact that these individuals have not been limited by their disability and have really shown the world what they are made of through creative dance and entertainment. Their story is all about overcoming a challenge but at the same time representing people with disability in creative arts.

I always keep my eyes peeled for amazing stories of individuals and groups. If I've missed anything that should be mentioned or you have a story to tell, let me know! It helps to share your experiences because you will find that they are shared by many. Email prmedia@ideas.org.au to share your story on the blog.

Introducing Guest Blogger - Sandy

I came across the wonderful words of Sandy when I was looking for some inspiration and great experience for this blog. Sandy has her own blog 'A Glass Half Shattered' and the experiences she talks about are like nothing that I have read before. The way that she describes her experiences with Borderline Personality Disorder are really quite extraordinary. I was not aware that one could really portray such emotions and live their experience through words. I promptly invited her to come across to this blog for a special posting, and I think that the readers will not be disapointed. I'd like to introduce you to Sandy and suggest that you go and check out her blog yourself!

I started writing A Glass Half Shattered because I wanted to humanize mental illness and help shatter the stigma that surrounds it. That is why I chose to use my real name and face on my blog, even though my sister and mother don’t always like what I have to say.


Writing is a way to help me cope with having borderline personality disorder (BPD). Putting my thoughts down in my blog helps keep them from getting lost inside my head. When I am anxious or my mind is racing, writing always helps to calm me down. I believe everyone needs a positive outlet when it comes to managing this disorder. Writing definitely helps to keep me away from the negative ones.

I was diagnosed with BPD this year, following years of misdiagnosis and repeated hospitalizations for depression and suicide attempts. I spent years self-harming, self-medicating with alcohol and drugs, and trapped in the cycles of anorexia and bulimia. I often dissociated and was disconnected from my feelings. I would rather feel nothing than deal with the traumas from my past. Unfortunately, that meant I was shut off from the good feelings as well.


I had no stable sense of identity, which left me empty inside. Since I had no idea who I was, other people became my mirror on how to be. My relationships were often co-dependent, as I feared abandonment and being alone.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), a new treatment for BPD developed by Dr. Marsha Linehan, has changed all that. DBT helps me learn to tolerate distress, regulate my emotions, and have healthier interactions with other people. So far, it’s working. The urges to self-sabotage through drinking, self-harm, and eating disorders have lessened and been replaced with skills to help me manage my life.

I am now a wife and mother and have a stable marriage and career as a paralegal. While I still have days where I dissociate and want nothing to do with myself, things are getting better. I believe recovery is a process, not a place. I am slowly re-connecting to my feelings and myself, which is helping me better connect to my family. Attachment, which has always been hard for me, is a risk I am starting to take. I am also starting to form my own identity and am becoming more assertive in expressing my true self.

I believe that a BPD diagnosis does not have to ruin your life. Sure there are the Glen-Close-in-Fatal-Attraction stereotypes, the Girl, Interrupted craze, and doctors who throw up their hands at hearing the word “borderline.” But we can overcome these stigmas by telling the truth about what it is really like to have BPD. I believe all of us have a story about what it is like to develop, live with, and recover from mental illness, and those stories need to be told. It is the only way to shatter the stigma often associated with these illnesses, and it just may help inspire some people along the way.