Disabled

"You will never be able to hold down a steady job. You'll be dependent on the hospitals and the government to take care of you."

These words came from a Judge Advocate General or JAG officer (lawyer) as he prepared my papers for discharge. I was being discharged because a previous head injury often caused me to get confused when trying to do things that required multiple steps in the process. Nobody said, "We can retrain another area of your brain to take over the functions of the injured area."

All they had to say was "You're broken and we can't use you."

I wanted to shout "I am not broken."

What happened instead was even worse. Like a truly broken object instead of a human being, I believed the lie that something was so adversely the matter that it could not be fixed. After all, he was a lawyer and had the word of doctors to back him up.

Believing the lie that I was broken, my life for decades was that of disgrace and brokenness. After all, multiple doctors and lawyers had told me that I was broken and could not be repaired. Brokenness became a way of life. Along with the brokenness came addiction, which only led to deeper despair and more brokenness.

Then somebody believed in me. They challenged me to get an education. I got my GED and finished at the zero percentile in my class. Zero percentile means there was no other person in my class who scored as high on their GED as I did. I followed that up with an academic associate degree magna cum laude, which is Latin for "with very high honors". Then I earned my RBA from Marshall University and I am currently working on an M. Div. degree/ chaplain's track. Right now my grade point average is 3.83. It was high enough that I was given a scholarship covering 50% of my tuition. Am I disabled? I have a traumatic brain injury, bipolar I disorder, and I am limited by a bad back. So yes, I am disabled. I am not broken! I was never broken. If you are disabled, never let them count you out. Do not believe the lie that you are "too disabled" to do whatever you want to do. Yes, you may have limitations. Limitations do not mean you cannot do something. Limitations only mean you cannot do it the same way most people do it. You have to do it in the way that works best for you. Do not let anybody dismiss you. You are not broken!