CSIT 388 Class Blog

Different... Or the same? After reading this blog thread, I hope I've helped you learn more about Limb Difference. What it means, what it's like to live with it, what people with dis abilities go through on a daily basis, and hopefully I've showed you how "normal" someone with a Limb Difference really is. Sure, on the outside, someone with a Limb Difference is going to look different than someone with all of their limbs but is that different than comparing someone with red hair to someone with brown hair? We're all different and unique. Some things just make people a little extra unique. At the end of the day though, we're all the same. We went through the day working, or learning, or creating, maybe even struggling, but we all made it through the day accomplishing something. Everyday we see hundreds of faces, just moving through life, succeeding, pushing through, loving, laughing, just living. When we see those faces, we maybe share a smile as w

Not the same playing field? We all know there are opportunities for people with dis abilities to compete in sports. With these opportunities comes questions on whether " dis abled" athletes should compete with "normal" athletes. There have been lots of cases where a team, school, club, organization, etc. has not accepted an athlete because the athlete was " dis abled" not even considering their talents because they don't want a " dis abled" athlete on their team. Lets look into one of the most popular cases: the 2012 Olympic case with Oscar Pistorious. And yes, lets put aside his personal and legal life for the sake of the case here. I'm sure we've all heard of Oscar Pistorious, The Blade Runner, who broke through the Olympic barrier in 2012 when he, a double leg amputee, competed in the Olympics. The regular, "normal athlete" Olympics. Most people were thrilled to see that a Paralympic athlete was successful enough t

Impossible --> I'm Possible. My whole life my parents never made things easy on me. Sure, it probably took a lot of patience for them, and of course a lot of frustration for me but I believe that was the best thing for me. You see, I've never been someone who asks for help, even the smallest things that don't even have to do with me not having an arm. I never understood why I was like that. Maybe (probably) it was just because I'm that stubborn or maybe I just didn't want to bother someone to help me? I didn't realize until recently that that part of my personality is more than likely associated with the "tough love" I was given throughout my life. I use "tough love" in the most respectful way possible and as more of a motivational quality than anything. I hear stories from my parents all the time about when I was learning to crawl, tie my shoes, zip my coat, or learn how to do any type of sports activity and they always tell me that t

Why? How? What happened? Hearing the phrase Limb Difference can sound pretty self-explanatory, because it is. Limb Difference simple means that someone is born without all or part of a limb(s), or someone has suffered an accident and has lost all or part of a limb(s). The tricky part of understanding the facts about Limb Difference is that there are a lot of different reasons this can happen. I'm going to try to explain the different situations as best as I can. Amniotic Band Syndrome: a group of congenital birth defects believed to be caused by entrapment of fetal parts (usually a limb or digits) in fibrous amniotic bands while in utero. That's the scientific term, but in other words, it means that while a baby is in the womb, bands get wrapped around limbs or fingers in the result of cutting off circulation and losing the limb or finger. This is probably the most common form of limb loss as a birth defect. Symbrachydactyly: I know, I know, It's a long word but b

DIS ABILITY Hey everyone! Welcome to my blog. My name is Kenzie May. I'm a small town Nebraska girl that was born with a unique circumstance. I was born without my right arm, just below the elbow. In this blog, I want to be able to educate the public on what Limb Difference is and provide more information on the amazing dis ability. In my future blogs, I will touch on subjects that are inspiring and motivational, but also a few subjects that are disheartening and sad. I also will be sharing personal stories about myself and how I've gone through life beating every obstacle and overcoming every set back. Stories about other people with limb differences will also be told. Another goal I have for this blog is to answer all of the "But how do you do _____ with only one arm?" questions. I love when people ask those kinds of questions. Usually older kids and adults are reluctant to ask, but those little kids don't hesitate and I'm so glad that they do. They'