Florida service animal laws are under Title XXX, SOCIAL WELFARE, section 413.08. Basically it states that individuals with disabilities who have a service animal are permitted everywhere that others without disabilities, or without service animals, are permitted. They must also be provided the same services. The law further elaborates that “Allergies and fear of animals are not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to an individual with a service animal.” Violations could result in fines as well as 60 days in jail for those who violate the law.

Service animals serve a very useful purpose. I am in a wheelchair and Fred helps me with multiple tasks. He knows about 80 commands. A service dog costs about $20,000 to train. The training takes about 2 years, and that’s not including the time it takes to train the disabled individual to work with the dog. Not only is Fred my assistant, he is my companion. I’ll be writing more about Fred in the future. He is truly remarkable and astounds me with many of the things he does.

For those who are not aware of the laws pertaining to service animals, here’s some information about the Federal ADA laws. The Department of Justice, the federal agency responsible for ADA compliance, provided us with answers to “COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SERVICE ANIMALS IN PLACES OF BUSINESS”.

U.S.Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Disability Rights Section

Those who have the disability are most affected in the following areas:

Speaking

Depending on the type of learning disability, including dyslexia, different kinds of assistance are available. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), those with learning disabilites are protected against discrimination and have a right to assistance in the classroom, if a student, and the workplace.

The cause of the disability is still specifically unknown, even though there are factors that are associated with it. Hereditary factors have been observed. It’s not uncommon to find that people with learning disabilities have parents or relatives with similar difficulties. It is also believed that the disorder is caused by illness or injury during or before birth. It may even be caused by the parent’s use of drugs and alcohol during pregnancy, low birth weight, a temporary lack of oxygen during birth and even a premature or prolonged labor. It’s also believed that head injuries, deprivation of nutrients or exposure to toxic substances contribute to the disability. Science will eventually determine the specifics but as of now there is not one single factor that is obviously the cause.

Neuromuscular therapy, trigger point therapy and active release technique are just a few options. Active Release Technique (ART) is a soft-tissue management system created by Dr. P. Michael Leahy. These two therapies along with ART can be used for children who have gone through surgery, as it helps decrease scar tissue. When choosing a therapist, it’s important to find one who is well versed in a number of techniques and has a good knowledge of pain disorders and dysfunctions.

Basically, massage is the practice of soft tissue manipulation with physical and psychological purposes and goals. Massage involves acting on and manipulating the body with pressure. This can include structured, unstructured, stationary, or moving tension, motion or vibration.  There are over eighty different recognized massage modalities and most states require that therapists be licensed. Always use a licensed massage therapist as if the therapist is not properly trained, he/she can aggravate the condition of the muscles.

Behavioral Therapy & Brain - Click for Larger Image

Behavior therapy is a form of psychotherapy used to treat depression, phobias, anxiety disorders and other forms of psychopathology. The therapy is important for individuals with disabilities, specially developmentally disabled children, as it will help break unwanted behaviors that exist as a result of their physical and mental condition. 

Behavior therapy is based upon the behavior modification principles of classical conditioning. Behavior modification is used as treatment in most cases. It is the use of empirically demonstrated behavior change techniques to improve or change behavior, such as altering an individuals’ behaviors and reactions through positive and negative reinforcement of adaptive behavior and/or the reduction of maladaptive behavior.

Social skills training is also an important part of the therapy. It teaches patients skills to access reinforcers and lessen the unacceptable behaviors. Operant conditioning procedures in meta-analysis had the largest effect size for training social skills, followed by modeling, coaching, and social cognitive techniques, in that order.

Autism and the Brain

Autism is thought to be the result of genetics. The genetics of autism are complex and it is unclear whether autism is the result of  multi-gene interactions or by genetic mutation. Autism is also at times associated with agents that cause birth defects. Other probable causes include childhood vaccines, the use of drugs and chemicals by the mother and/or father prior to childbirth, or environmental agents, though there has not been any convincing scientific evidence of these relationships.

About one out of 150 people are autistic, with about four times as many males than females. The amount of people with autism has increased dramatically due to changes in the diagnostics, and the push for early diagnosis in order to assist those with disabilities.

Autism affects many parts of the brain and signs of the disorder are usually visible in the child’s first two years. There is no known cure but early behavioral and cognitive intervention can help children gain self-care, social and communication skills. While the disability community strives for as much independent living as possible for those that are Autistic, many with Autism will always require assistance from others and may never reach full independence. Even though it is a disability, many manage to live independently and some have become successful in the world of business.

Autism Symptoms

The chart on the left shows the signs of autism. Click on the image for a large version. These autistic behaviors will give the parent notice that the child needs to be properly tested and diagnosed. Autism is not distinguished by a single symptom, but by multiple symptoms. Autism’s individual symptoms occur in the general population, so detecting the symptoms requires medical intervention. A full positive diagnosis  must include exhibiting at least six symptoms total, including at least two symptoms of qualitative impairment in social interaction, one symptom of qualitative impairment in communication and one symptom of restricted and repetitive behavior. Remember that an early diagnos is is important.

In order to determine which child and adult may need special assistance because of their visual disabilities, various definitions of blindness have been developed. Legally blind is defined as having 20/200 or less in the better eye with the best correction possible. This means that a legally blind individual would have to stand 20 feet from an object to see it, with vision correction and with the same degree of clarity as a normally sighted person could from 200 feet. About 10% of the legally blind have no vision. The rest have some vision, from light perception alone to relatively good acuity.

While I am legally blind, in a future posting  I will go into the surgical procedure that has substantially improved my vision. Now I can actually see many things that I thought I would never have the ability to see, including reading and typing in my laptop.

Disabilities and Hip Pain

For the past year I’ve had bad hip pain. I guess that it’s a side effect of being in a wheelchair, and the lack of movement or walking. We recently found out it was my S.I. joint. The S.I. joint is the joint or articulation between the sacrum and ilium. The doctor gave me a Lidocine and Cortisone injection in the joint. Since I tend to have involuntary muscle movements, they gave me Twilight anesthetic to put me out and it was performed in the hospital.

One of the biggest culprits for referring pain to the hip is the SI joint in the lower back. The SI joint is where your pelvis meets your sacrum. This joint  can also be a problem with athletes, especially if they have core weakness or are over training.

Pain that comes on gradually, or moves around from the front, back, and side may be S.I. referred pain. If you have disabilities and feel hip pain, have your doctor check your S.I. Joint.

A few months ago we had our 2nd annual ART exhibition “Colours Erupted”. Twenty disabled artists displayed their work at the MAC center in Coral Gables, Florida. It was held to support the ART program and I sold all my pieces! We even had a mosaic composed of  individual pieces by the artists. I also sold all of the pieces on it! All my family and friends came to support me.

The picture on the left was taken at the ART show. It’s of me (in the wheelchair), my working dog Fred, my mom and dad (on the left), Miami Commissioner Marc Sarnoff (in the center), Congress Woman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (second from right) and Ella Cisneros of the Cisneros Fontenals Foundation (on the right). Over 500 people showed up to support the children with disabilities.

For those of you don’t know what A.R.T. is, it’s a program for children with disabilities who can’t paint with their hands. They instead use a tracker (a person who is like their body) to help them. We choose everything from the size of the canvas to the brush or tool, and guide them with our words and a laser. We even choose the color of the paint.

Imagine not being able to physically act upon what your mind tells you to do. Not being able to physically pick a color from a palette, pick up a brush to paint a straight line. The artist inside you knowing exactly what it wants to express and convey. In a world of endless options, imagine not being able to do even the “simple stuff” with your own hands.

And then… Imagine being able to create! A new language to communicate with the world, colors, textures and feelings soaring on canvas and reaching places within, that others have never been able to know. The results are stunning pieces for the world to admire, appreciate, and finally, to understand what the inner artist always visualized. This is what CCT-ART enables.

You can see more on this program, and me at work by viewing Miami’s CBS Channel 4 News report. Click on the link below and check out the video.

A Stroke Of Artistic Genius For Special Children

More About the ART Program:

Creative Children Therapy’s ART program began in 2005 when studio facilitators trained with A.R.T. (Artistic Realization Technologies) founder, artist Tim Lefens. The key to this program lies in the power of Art. Carefully trained studio facilitators (“trackers”) act as neutral arms, executing the visions of the physically challenged through laser-guided tracking, a regimented line of questions, and other exacting technologies. The artists indicate their choices about what tools, material and textures to use, and the placement of these on the canvas. The most subtle movements such as a blink or a nod that the tracker can read is all that is required. The possibilities are endless. The trackers’ job is to follow the artist’s directions with absolute fidelity. This enabling system gives creative self-expression to youth with the most severe physical challenges.

Artists typically work once weekly, free of charge, with a tracker at the CCT studio. Once per month, artists congregate to work with professional artists critiquing pieces, interacting and questioning, gaining knowledge and refining their craftsmanship. The artwork produced is mainstreamed and exhibited alongside the work of other community artists. Pieces are not admired for the artist’s disability, but rather for the quality and depth of their work. Many are spectacular museum quality pieces. CCT-ART increases self-esteem and empowers the spirit. It provides a method of financial gain for the artists who exhibit and sell their work. The power of ART is unleashed and these lives are enriched.

Creative Children Therapy (CCT) is a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life of children and young adults with special needs by providing top-notch therapeutic intervention. In addition to medically necessary services, CCT’s prime directive is to provide innovative programs that will help these kids explore new interests, expand their creative minds, and develop socially and artistically into well-rounded individuals. The outcome is increased confidence to pursue interests, and explore the talents available to most children and adults in the community.

If you or your business is interested in this exciting and rewarding opportunity to propel this breakthrough program in South Florida, CCT-ART can utilize a wide variety of help. This includes financial contributions to assist with tracker employment, space rental, framing the artwork, funding for art supplies, and exhibition venues. For more information about CCT-ART, please contact me.

Cerebral Palsy is a non-progressive disorder, meaning the brain damage does not worsen. Secondary difficulties, such as motor disorders, are very common. The motor disorders may be accompanied by disturbances of sensation, cognition, communication, perception and behavior. Seizures are also common. There are no known cures for CP but Stem Cells are showing some promise. The only available way to deal with the disorder is through medical treatment and prevention of complications.