2012 was an exciting year for Disability.Blog! We expanded existing partnerships and began dynamic new ones with leading disability organizations, such as the Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA). IDA President and Founder Wayne Connell and IDA ambassadors, including Kathe Skinner and Jeff Vankooten, wrote thoughtful posts throughout the year to let our readers know about the importance of recognizing and understanding invisible disabilities, and to offer people living with chronic illness and pain an opportunity to tell their personal stories.
Our new “My Story” series also gave people with disabilities a voice and a chance to share their experiences with Disability.Blog readers. Meanwhile, the “Ask the Expert” series addressed frequently-asked questions, such as, “Can full-time family caregivers get paid?” and “Can you still receive Social Security disability benefits if you are working from home?”
Throughout the year, Disability.Blog featured informative posts from Disability.gov’s federal partners and nonprofit organizations, such as NICHCY, the Brain Injury Association of America, the Autism Society and Paralyzed Veterans of America, covering topics ranging from housing and health care to employment and emergency preparedness.
The Disability.Blog team is incredibly appreciative of the more than 75 guest bloggers who took the time to share their expertise and personal stories, as well as all of our visitors for their thoughtful comments and questions.
Below are the 10 most popular guest blogs on Disability.Blog from the past year (based on page views):
1. Living the Life We Have by Dr. Dan Gottlieb, Ph.D, psychologist and author
2. Disability History from the Presidential Libraries by Susan Donius, National Archives, Office of Presidential Libraries
3. Colleen’s Story: Part III – Retirement & Beyond by Colleen M. Feldman
4. Working at Home Can Change Your Life by Lori Adler, Ticket to Work Participant and Public Relations Specialist for Employment Options, Inc.
5. A Step Forward – The Obama Administration Creates Administration for Community Living by Henry Claypool, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living
6. Funding Your Handicap Accessible Van with a Grant by Susan Hawkins, Content Manager, AMS Vans
7. Can Full-Time Family Caregivers Get Paid? by Erin Palmer, Writer and Editor, Bisk Education
8. But You LOOK Good! by Wayne Connell, Founder and President, Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) and “Antarctic” Mike Pierce, IDA Ambassador
9. My Story by Tim Harris, owner of Tim’s Place
10. Counting People with Disabilities by Matthew Brault, Statistician, Health and Disability Statistics Branch, U.S. Census Bureau
Blog posts by American Idol Finalist Scott MacIntyre and Dave Krikac, CEO and founder of Our Thrift Store, were also very popular.
In 2012, we also began tracking how our readers share blog posts on social media. Wayne Connell and Jeff Vankooten’s post, “It’s All in Your Head”, was the Disability.Blog post that was most shared on Facebook, while Vance Taylor’s personal story of his fight against employment discrimination was the most shared on Twitter.
We look forward to another great year of guest blogs, and to continuing to develop new ways to share vital information with our readers!
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My daugther Rachelann Gregorio is a 19 year old dextroscouliosis levoscouoliosis patient. She has had her mild retardation since birth, but we are neglected by her dad since she was 3 years old and we are now living here in the Philippines. She needs help so badly and yes she is an American citizen. My question is, is it possible that we can get help from the government? And how?
It has been truly a privilege to blog for Disability.gov on behalf of the Invisible Disabilities Association. Through your platform, we have been able to positively impact those living daily with illness, pain and disability and especially bring awareness to the often invisible nature of their symptoms.
Thank you for helping us to continue to fulfill our mission of encouraging, educating and connecting people and orgainizations touched by illness, pain and disability.
Join us and envision a world people living with illness, pain and disability would be Invisible No More!
Wayne Connell
Founder & President
Invisible Disabilities Association