The Independent Life

Whitney Doyle is the Executive Director for the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology, Inc. (FAAST). Whitney is passionate about creating a reality in which all people are equal and have equal access. Her disability advocacy work started in 2008 when she joined the Florida Youth Council and became a volunteer at the Florida Youth Leadership Forum. Being inspired by others who have...

Today on the dojo, Tony continues the thread on freedom and independence, sharing his thoughts on how freedom is not free from responsibility and obligations. He talks about how the ability to make our own choices for ourselves is an important philosophical principle for the liberties for people with disabilities, which also includes the freedom to make wrong choices. Tony also dives into the free...

On this episode, Tony shares an inspiring conversation with Noah Russell and Zach Staubitz. Both are currently in college, working full time jobs, and are involved in service based volunteer projects to further the advancement of the independent living movement, representing the future of leadership for our youth. Both Noah and Zach serve on The Florida Independent Living Council’s Youth Committee...

Happy 4th of July! On today’s dojo, Tony talks about freedom, liberty, and the consensus around fear of our freedoms being taken away. He talks about how freedom is the foundation on which our country was founded on and currently, a lot of people are feeling that it is being threatened. However, he hopes that we may be able to celebrate this day as a unity the people. Tony also uses this opportuni...

On this episode, we welcome back a force of nature! Mira Gaitanis joins us this week to give us a life update, as she’s getting ready to graduate from Florida State University and planning for law school. She talks with Tony about universal design and why its critical not just for education but also to extrapolate outside of education into areas like transportation, the workforce, etc. They dive i...

In the last dojo, Tony talked to us about fear and the importance in identifying and recognizing the different types of fears, especially as it pertains to disability. On today’s dojo, he dives into how to we can face our fears and work through them with courage and bravery. This comes from Tony’s personal experience from what he’s seen in his life and what’s worked for him, as well as, coming fro...

Vijay Vasudevan is the Associate Data Scientist at Autism Speaks. He joins us today as a result of reconnecting with Tony through work related to promoting the COVID-19 vaccine in populations with people with disabilities. His work in the disability community is extensive and together, they dive into conversation about such topics as how to work towards efforts that can be made to destigmatize dis...

What is fear and why is it important for us to understand what it is? On today’s dojo, Tony talks to us about fear. In his experience, he is witnessing the undercurrent of fear being the root cause of much of the suffering challenges, and increased anxieties that we’re seeing- and that we may be experiencing ourselves.

Dr. Venditto joins us back on the podcast to share his wealth of knowledge and expertise in the efficacy and effectiveness of vaccines, and how they impact the spread of viruses, specifically of COVID-19. As a communicator of science, Dr. Venditto also talks about the limitations when it comes to the vaccine, sharing facts about science in a clear and concise way. He shares his take on the life cy...

This episode is a continuation of recent dojos, regarding how we can best cope with the challenging things that are going in our lives. Tony shares how philosophy can help us to ground us and how we can use utilize philosophy to help mitigate the challenges and suffering that may be present in our lives. Philosophy is important in terms of anchoring ourselves during difficult times. It has become...

Kaley Mayer is the Community Resource Specialist at Epilepsy Alliance Florida. On this episode, Tony talks to Kaley about her journey from clinical setting to community work. She joins us today to provide us with information about Epilepsy and a window into what it’s like for people who live with epilepsy and those who care for them. Epilepsy touches millions of people, just in Florida alone. It’s...

On today’s dojo, Tony continues the thread from the last few dojos, connected to the topic of how we may be going through more difficult times and how our emotions affects us through this journey. He walks us through how to lean into our emotions and not away from it, in a way that teaches us in how we perceive life. Tony references the research and book by Dr. Susan David, Emotional Agility , the...

On this episode, Tony continues his experiment on wisdom that transcends time. The intention he hopes to provide, is a philosophical foundation on wisdoms that have stood the test of time and how that can serve as an anchor to help guide us. In his conversation with Alex, they reflect upon a poem that can serve as a counsel for the ages. Together, they discuss deep and powerful principles and valu...

On today’s dojo, Tony gives us a peek into the world of psychology, through the lens of his lived experiences. He shares how psychology has helped him to process things throughout his life, such as his emotions and going through adversities. So what does psychology have to teach us about how to have a strong inner citadel? Having knowledge about psychology can help us to process things like our em...

Over the next couple long form interviews, Tony and Alex discusses knowledge and wisdom that has been shared through the ages. These next couple episodes are also connected to the recent dojo episodes where Tony has talked about how we are all going through am amplified level of anxiety and stress. In these conversations, Tony shares the importance of being anchored in age tested wisdoms and how t...

On this dojo, Tony talks about about how philosophical principals that were founded centuries ago, like Stoicism, still apply and resonate with the adversities we face today. Many of the philosophies were founded on misfortune but it shows us how we can find meaning and purpose through suffering. On this episode, Tony continues on the thread of suffering and shares the philosophies he finds helpfu...

This episode is part 2 of the collaboration between Centers For Independent Living and The American Red Cross, coming together to help educate volunteers, staff, and supervisors about meeting the needs of people with disabilities during disasters. The phenomenal folks who work within these organizations dive deep into a conversation about how to communicate with people with disabilities during dis...

On this dojo, Tony talks about what can we learn from those who have an impenetrable inner citadel and how we can work towards building one for ourselves. The inner citadel is a powerful concept for Tony to adapt into his life. Continuing the conversation from the previous dojo about suffering, this episode talks about the inner citadel being a tool that can help us make sense of suffering, so tha...

Deborah (Debbie) Koch) [pronounced kotch] leads the American Red Cross Greater Miami and the Keys Chapter as the executive director. Debbie served as the president of the Junior League of Miami in 2018-2019, an organization of women committed to promoting volunteerism, developing the potential of women and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. In...

In today’s dojo, Tony talks about suffering. For the purpose of this dojo, suffering is being used as a catchall word that could mean a variety of feelings many of us may be feeling: it could mean anxiety, stress, depression, loneliness.. it could mean a lot of different things. In this episode, Tony’s intent is to have a discussion of thoughts that he has had around suffering, especially when we...

Sarah Goldman is the Director of Youth Leadership at The Florida Independent Living Council (FILC). On this episode with Sarah takes us through her journey into advocacy, what she’s learned along the way, how she leans into her fears, and the important of empathy and resilience. She shares about how her father taught her the importance of never taking no for an answer and if someone says no, you w...

On today’s dojo, Tony continues the series on energy, as he dives into the importance of sleep. For Tony, physical activity, nutrition, and sleep are 3 pillars that we can conduct to maximize our energy level. It’s important to keep our energy levels up to ensure we’re functioning on an optimal level, and to have each of these pillars integrated optimally. In his own experience, Tony has found tha...

On part 2 of our conversation with Lindsey, we go deep on trauma informed care, the powerful utility of describing the story of who we are and approaching it in a way that is therapeutic and healing. Lindsey talks about her struggles with anxiety & depression, how she has coped with it and ultimately how its been a good teacher and lesson for her in order to overcome the stigma associated with...

Continuing the thread of having energy and vitality in our every day lives, Tony expands onto the importance of cultivating healthy and sustainable energy, especially for those with disabilities. On today’s dojo, Tony walks us through how to achieve healthy nutrition with what we eat and put into our bodies. The world health organization says that nutrition is attributable to nearly 95% of the chr...

For Lindsey, this is more than a profession. She has personally walked the same path many of her clients face. Lindsey is an adoptive Mommy; the parent of a child who has overcome severe feeding aversion. She has struggled with her own chronic health conditions. Lindsey really “gets it”. She has been an Occupational Therapist for 7 years working with children and adults across a variety of setting...