The Disability Diaries With Steven Vine

Send us Fan Mail When Lauren Pires was born, she didn't cry. She couldn't suck to be fed. She couldn't move her limbs. She spent two months in intensive care, went into cardiac arrest, and was baptized shortly after. A nun chaplain told her mother: ' don't expect miracles'. Lauren Pires is now an award winning speaker who challenges how organizations think about disab...

Send us Fan Mail Davina is a young woman who was born with classic bladder exstrophy and lives with a Mitrofanoff catheterizable channel . She openly shares her experiences online, helping educate others and showing that living with a rare congenital condition does not have to stop you from pursuing your dreams. At just 20 years old, Davina is already making her mark as a singer, songwriter, piani...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when getting sober means losing the very people you thought would stand beside you?  In this very personal episode Steven talks with Penn Street of the Blind Chick Podcast (and episode 16), for an honest conversation about alcoholism, addiction, disability, and the difficult road toward recovery. Both Penn and Steven have firsthand experience navigating addiction whil...

Send us Fan Mail Erica lives in Ottawa, Ontario and describes herself as a nurse, a doula, a student, a mother, a public speaker, and a disability advocate. Erica has a disability known as Myasthenia Gravis. If you have not heard of this rare neurological disease, you are likely not alone. You will need to listen to Erica describe her diagnosis, as it is as unique in all individuals as snowflakes...

Send us Fan Mail We are honored to have a very special guest with us today. Dr. Joel Gagnon has taken time out of his busy schedule to talk about his work as a Vascular Surgeon. You expect to have a unique relationship with your surgeon, sometimes you may only have one or two visits or encounters with them, but Steve has had multiple procedures done by Dr. Gagnon. He is very challenged by his fiel...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, the patient is someone who was referred to by a Doctor as a 'Ticking Time Bomb'. In other words, you may have another medical emergency, without warning, but it has been suggested that you just get on with your life and good luck. When you have had a previous medical emergency, it's probably a good idea to have screening and appointments done on a p...

Send us Fan Mail Just because a person has a disability, doesn't mean that they don't think about sex. 'Sex is something that you do, sexuality is who you are'. Join us as we delve into a conversation with sexologist Kate McBride.  Kate is a Clinical Nurse Specialist with the Sexual Health Rehabilitation program with the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority; the only kind of reco...

Send us Fan Mail Michelle Kam is 39 years old, she has multiple sclerosis (MS) and she lives in a long term care facility. She has to have a shower and go to bed when the schedule permits. Most days, she has to stay in bed until 10 am. She maintains a positive attitude about living in a care home, even though she is one of the youngest residents' there. Michelle has to rely on nursing staff t...

Send us Fan Mail The team presents the story of Rich who is married to Iris, as she suddenly loses all her vision, which makes Rich see things in a different light. Married almost 30 years, Iris lost her vision gradually about 20 years ago, until it took her remaining vision very quickly. (in about a months' time). Rich talks about Iris very proudly, how she adapted to her blindness, remains...

Send us Fan Mail Disability doesn't have to stop you. No need to be a superhero to Rise Disabled, you just need to give yourself a chance, everyday! Etienne was born with Cerebral Palsy. He had 3 careers in his adulthood; firstly - a computer programmer for the Canadian Government, secondly - a United Church Minister, and currently as a disability Life Coach. Etienne had a lot of challenges i...

Send us Fan Mail When Josh was 2 years old, he was caught in and run over by a riding lawnmower. His right leg below the knee was severely damaged and had to be rebuilt. He adapted and dealt with those challenges pretty well through the years, but then when he was in his 30's he started to have heart problems - he had a few heart attacks, had stents put in and had a few strokes. He developed...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine this scenario: You are 27 years old, you've been in severe pain for years, you have eye surgery and then you wake up and you are permanently blind. This is what happened to Lynn Jensen. Her doctors told her that she may regain her sight in about 6 months time, but after 5 months she had a feeling that she would not regain her vision, which she did not. Her sight loss...

Send us Fan Mail Independence: Something very valuable that the disabled person does not want to lose. In this episode Steve and Chris discuss the topic of independence, and how Steve adapts being a disabled person. While Steve does live on his own, his independence is a little unique; because he is 100% blind and, in a wheelchair, he cannot necessarily leave his apartment on his own for his own s...

Send us Fan Mail Steve interviews Brian Bell, who is a quadriplegic and lives in British Columbia. Brian was 38 when his life changed forever. He was living and working in a regional park doing numerous jobs and maintaining the park. He really enjoyed living there with his family and working on improving the home that came with the position. On an ordinary day, Brian decided to ride an all-terrain...

Send us Fan Mail Steve, Chris and Michelle Hewitt talk about the 10th anniversary of when Steve had his triple A medical emergency, his life changed forever, and he became a multi disabled person. Michelle does a great job of interviewing Steve; including asking him how he learned how to become a disabled person, how he overcame the anger and adjustment and bounced back to get on with his life, an...

Send us Fan Mail Jaime was born 3 months premature and diagnosed at an early age with Cerebral Palsy. The doctors told his parents not to expect too much (a discouraging statement from the medical community). Jaime wanted to be like everyone else, so he was determined to prove this statement wrong. He didn't want to be the 'underdog', he wanted to fight for what he believed in - him...

Send us Fan Mail We all know that as a disabled person, we have many mountains to climb. In Robert Hill's case, this is not just a metaphor - he is the real deal as a mountain climber with an Ostomy. Robert was diagnosed with Crohn's and Colitis when he was 23 years old. He led a very adventurous life and this diagnosis devasted Rob. He found meditation very helpful, as suggested by his...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Steve talks with Albert Ruel from British Columbia. Albert started to lose his vision in his early 20's; and then lost it completely by the time he was 34. He devoted the rest of his career to the disability, non-profit sector; previously he was in Forestry. Albert was inherently afraid of the dark, and he feared the day when his sight would be completely gon...

Send us Fan Mail Steve and Chris talk with Amanda Lockitch. Amanda has a background in theatre, film, teaching and public speaking. She is currently the Research and Outreach Manager for the non-profit organization Disability without Poverty. They are a rather small but collaborative group, based all over Canada, comprised mainly of individuals with their own disabilities. Disability Without Pover...

Send us Fan Mail Marie LeBlanc is a Canadian artist (photographer, performance, video) and an advocate for environmental sensitivities. Marie lives with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) and Lyme disease. Her MCS makes her extremely sensitive to various exposures including: cleaning products, perfumes, electrical devices and the most devasting - mold. Her disability has forced her to live unconv...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Steve talks with John Cooper from Columbus, Georgia, who is a Physical Therapist Assistant working with the lower limb loss community. John has a particular passion for the work that he does and continues to practice his passion for the last 18 years. John talks about his grandfather, and how his recovery from brain surgery fueled John's passion to help other...

Send us Fan Mail Steve interviews Lisa Gausman, a fellow ostomate, and an amazing human being. Lisa noticed she may have had an illness in her teenaged years. Her mother decided to pursue intervention for Lisa, and she was immediately diagnosed with Crohn's disease. She had 15 abdominal surgeries after that diagnosis. She was put on some serious medication at the age of 16. Things started to...

Send us Fan Mail Steve and Chris talk with Dr. Marla Inducil, the Director of Medical Research at BC Diabetes in Vancouver. Marla's work focuses on diabetes research, but the three of us talk about various topics including: Type 1 vs. Type 2, eating, shopping and portion control. Exercise, fasting and making good choices at the grocery store. (We previous talked about this topic with Tristan...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Steve talks with Monica Gartner and Walt Lawrence about Faith, Spirituality and God. This discussion is far from preachy - but rather offering some personal perspectives on how people can find their own ways to cope with disabilities; whether it is within their own hearts, in a church, or in their own community. You may recognize Monica from a previous episode - a...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Steve talks with Mike Bolland, who has his own podcast entitled: 'We're not Stumped'. Mike's podcast serves as motivation to share survival stories, recovery journeys, and real-life success stories from the limb loss and disability community. Mike is a one handed cancer survivor and the first person with limb loss to compete on the PBA Tour (Pr...