What Comes to Mind When You Think About Vacationing?
For me, it has always been relaxation, adventure, white beaches, breathtaking views, and sunset horizons.
Some of my fondest memories involve snorkeling deep in the sea, hiking trails, climbing volcanoes, and experiencing places that felt wild and remote. The adventurous little girl in me loved those kinds of trips.
Today, in this 51 year old body, after living with Multiple Sclerosis for 19 years, disabled and using a wheelchair or scooter, that little girl still exists. She is still adventurous and curious but she now lives in a body that is no longer riding waves or hiking volcanoes.
After many falls, a few scary swimming experiences, and a great deal of inner work, I have learned to accept my physical limitations with a kind of humor and grace that I believe only God can truly provide.
So my vacations look a little different now. And although my adventurous spirit still dreams of breathtaking destinations, there is one very big caveat attached:
ACCESSIBILITY. ACCESSIBILITY. ACCESSIBILITY!
Traveling With a Disability
I understand why some people stop traveling after becoming disabled. It can be painful seeing things you can no longer experience in the same way. The logistics and all the “what ifs” can feel exhausting. There is also the fear of being stranded, the discomfort of being stared at, the reactions of others, and the vulnerability of simply being out in the world.
There can also be guilt about needing help from friends and family. You may worry that you are inconveniencing them, slowing them down, or taking away from their experience. All of this can make staying home seem like the easier choice.
But I’ve learned something important. The easiest choice is not necessarily the most fulfilling one.
The Obstacle Is the Way
Sometimes you have to be brave enough to face uncomfortable situations. On the other side, you may discover something incredible. There is wisdom. There is experience. There is freedom. And there is joy.
For me, that is part of living fully. It doesn’t mean the fear and discomfort disappear. It means moving forward even when they are there.
When I travel with my scooter, I know there may be complications and I research, ask questions, plan where I can, and give myself options as much as possible. But eventually, I have to let go of trying to anticipate every problem and trust that I will find my way through whatever comes.
I’ve learned to be a little braver and that has made me more confident in uncomfortable situations. I remind myself, like water, to flow around obstacles instead of hardening against them.
Insights From the Journey
There are times when I feel saddened or discouraged by what I can no longer do on vacation, but then, I remember a little girl I once knew, in a backyard, playing with a water hose.
That little girl was me.
I remember being mesmerized by the water, the sunlight, the warmth of the day, and the feeling of love and security from my mom being nearby. There was nothing exotic about it. I wasn’t on some remote island or swimming in turquoise waters.
I was in my own backyard.
And yet I remember feeling an incredible sense of joy, peace, wonder, relaxation, and beauty.
I was fully in the present moment.
Somewhere along the way, we begin believing we need to go somewhere to find that feeling. Maybe it’s Greece. Maybe it’s Hawaii. A secluded beach. A mountain. An ocean. A city someplace.
We attach the feeling to the place.
But what if the place isn’t creating the peace? What if it simply allows us to become quiet enough to notice the peace that was already there?
Remembering that little girl taught me something I had forgotten:
Peace was never somewhere else or in what I was doing. It was in me.
And I realize now, there is a time to hike a mountain, and there is a time to be still. There is a time to swim deep into the ocean, and there is a time to watch water fall from a garden hose.
Neither is greater than the other.
We may experience peace differently, but the peace we’re searching for ultimately comes from within.
The ego may yearn for a thousand things.
The soul needs nothing.
Comparison Is the Thief of Joy
One of the quickest ways to leave the present moment is comparison.
Don’t compare yourself to other people. And don’t continually compare yourself to who you used to be.
I could sit beside the ocean thinking about the woman who once swam farther out. I could look at a mountain and remember the woman who once could have climbed it. But those experiences are memories now. If I use them to measure what is happening today, I steal the joy from the life that is actually in front of me.
Those memories can be treasured without wishing myself back into them. I can release the comparison and return to where I am now.
There is still beauty here. There is still wonder. There is still adventure, relaxation, joy, and peace available to me right now.
The person I was deserves love.
The person I am deserves love too.
Life changes. Bodies change. Circumstances change.
But life is always constantly here.
And I am still here to experience it. We are all still here.
Peace isn’t found by returning to who I was. It’s found by being fully present with who I am and where I am right now.
The Benefits of Traveling
If peace and happiness comes only from within, then why travel at all?
Because although a destination cannot give us peace, changing our surroundings can sometimes help us remember it.
At home, we move through the same rooms, follow the same routines, and often think the same thoughts without realizing it. Life can become automatic.
Then suddenly you’re somewhere new. You notice the air. The architecture. The sounds. The food. The people. You have new experience and gain new perspective.
You look up. You pay attention.
You are present.
Travel interrupts our patterns. It can reset the mind and remind us that the world is much bigger than the little world our thoughts sometimes create.
Disability has also taught me that adventure doesn’t have to look the way it used to. For one person, adventure may be climbing a volcano. For another, it may be getting onto an airplane with a wheelchair despite not knowing exactly how everything will work. For someone else, it may simply be leaving the house.
There is no hierarchy of adventure.
Maybe the greatest journey isn’t about how far we travel but how fully we experience wherever we happen to be.
I still want to travel, see breathtaking views, feel the sun on my face, and experience as much of this world as I can. But I no longer believe I have to chase those places to find peace.
Sometimes peace is beside an ocean. Sometimes it’s on the other side of an obstacle you were afraid to face. And sometimes it’s exactly where it was when you were little, in your own backyard, watching the sunlight dance through the water from a garden hose.
Learning to Adapt
Adapting to a new way of traveling wasn’t easy. It took time, research, trial and error, and patience. I had to adapt my minivan, find the right equipment, and learn a new way of navigating my car as well as the world. But once you learn how to maneuver your new life, the benefits far outweigh the challenges. The world begins to open up again.
One of the tools that has made the biggest difference in my life is my Buzzaround travel scooter. It has opened up the world to me, allowing me to travel almost effortlessly through airports, on planes, in automobiles, and through the places I want to explore. The right mobility equipment can become much more than equipment. It can become freedom, independence, possibility, and adventure.
Adapting doesn’t mean giving up on the life you wanted. Sometimes it simply means finding a different way to live it. Taking that first step can feel overwhelming, but once you do, you may be amazed by how much of the world opens up to you.
Advocating for Yourself and Accessibility
Acceptance does not mean staying silent. I can accept the realities I encounter, live with them, while still experiencing positive experiences and advocating for a more accessible world.
Being disabled isn’t easy, but we can advocate staying positive and for what needs to change without allowing what is wrong to overshadow the things that are right.
What are you focusing on? What you can’t do, or what you can do? The limitations or the possibilities? The person who didn’t help you, or the ten who did? The person who stared, or the stranger who went out of their way to help? The ignorance of the world or the understanding in it? Our misfortunes or our blessings? Love… or hate? Both experiences are real, but where we place our attention matters and shapes the quality of our life experience.
I try to channel my frustrations into small, positive actions. For example, I do little things like the following to spread awareness: when I see a car or motorcycle improperly parked in, or blocking an accessible spot, I leave Post-its explaining that someone may need that space for a wheelchair ramp or because they cannot walk the extra distance. I tell business owners when accessibility buttons aren’t working and remind restaurants that accessible bathrooms shouldn’t be used for storage that prevents someone with a disability from actually using them. I remind airline staff to not speak about me and/or over my head as if I’m cargo!!
Advocacy happens in different ways including everyday moments. Every time we respectfully bring awareness to a barrier, perhaps we make the road a little more accessible for the person coming after us. Every time we choose peace over anger, we actually evolve in ways that our beyond our limitatuins.
Keep Moving Forward
I have one life, and I choose to focus on the God given life I’ve been blessed with. I’m learning to see my challenges not simply as obstacles, but as opportunities to adapt, grow, and find new ways forward, using whatever tools are available to me along the way. I hope I can inspire others to keep living fully too, to embrace what has been placed before them as part of the adventure of life, and to keep moving forward and living with courage, curiosity, faith, and an open heart.
Written by Anna Giannakouros