How using social media helps me cope with my disability

I have always been a frequent user of social media since the age of 10 years old. Over the past decade I realize that social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat have been a huge coping mechanism for me throughout my journey with Cerebral palsy and learning how to accept the fact I was born with a condition that made me stand out to be different from the rest of society.

Before I started to share my journey with the world via social media platforms I felt like I was constantly out of place in a world that I struggle to find my place in. Once I joined social media and started to document my journey as young 18-year-old at the time I started to finally feel comfortable within my skin. I built the confidence within myself to finally say, “I’m Tylia – this is my story. Take it or leave it.”

Connecting with others like me via social media gave me the strength and the inspiration to continue to move forward despite my struggles. It helped me to get through life with a condition that no one fully understands unless you have it.

I am extremely grateful for social media platforms and what they could do for the society we all live in today and how we see and interact with the world.

Social media has made me realize that someone out there needs to hear your story. You can tell and share your story in a way that could help others overcome bad chapters in their lives. You can actually help them understand that it’s just one bad chapter in their book and it truly isn’t the end of the world.

If you think about it: Every day that you go on social media and you update a status or upload a picture or post an event on your timeline you are leaving a fingerprint on the world – your impact.

That’s why I choose to use social media as a positive tool to educate, advocate, and inspire others every day with my stories. I tell my stories through the statuses that I post, empowering others through my journey with Cerebral Palsy, showing people how I live my life with a condition that isn’t understood by many people.

Social media is the way I show the world that Cerebral Palsy isn’t a bad thing and there is a positive side to my diagnosis. My life struggles, being a woman with a disability, and the ability to connect with others like me has allowed me to feel empowered and inspired to keep ongoing.