Have you ever experienced a three-day psychotic break?
Did you ever wake up to a whole new world?
Our Motivational Blogger Alissa Nash has went through some incredible experiences that have completely changed the way she sees the world. Read on and find out how.
What is your definition of success?
My definition of success involves the spiritual process of looking inward and really figuring out what makes me happy. Then applying my intellect to figure out what actions to take to achieve those goals. And lastly, developing the emotional maturity to recognize when I’ve achieved success in time to enjoy it.
What do you fear the most?
My biggest fear is losing my independence. When I lost the majority of sight to a brain tumor, it changed a lot of things in my life overnight. I can no longer see to read, drive a car, or work in my profession. But as long as I can still think, problem-solve, and make my own decisions, I know I can find solutions to all those problems. Retaining my independence has gone a long way to helping me understand that my situation is really not all that bad.
What qualities do you admire in others?
I admire strength and resiliency above all things, qualities that I believe I possess. But since my sight was compromised, I’ve also come to admire empathy and compassion more than I did previously. While these are not qualities that were natural for me, I have been on the receiving end of other people’s generosity often enough that I am actively seeking to emulate those traits as much as I can.
What area of life makes you feel the best?
Right now, my whole life makes me feel pretty good. I’ve always believed in celebrating small victories on the way to achieving big things.
Since my overall goals involve getting as much of my life pre-disability back as I can, I give myself permission to feel good about relatively simple things. Every time I do something that is scarier or more difficult to do because of my new view of the world, that is one less thing I have to worry about as I move forward in my life.
Is there anything you can’t let go, but you know you should?
There are things that happened in my childhood that caused me to distance myself from my mother. Valid things, but as we both age and my own grown children share some of their grievances about their childhoods, I can see that my mother probably did her best.
What life experience changed the way you see and define life?
The benign tumor that was removed in 2014 is the single incident that most changed my life. Not just physically, although adjusting to life as a visually impaired person has been challenging. But the biggest changes have been to my outlook and attitudes about life. I’ve had to do a lot of introspection, and have learned to be less defensive and guarded with other people.
When life pushes you over, how do you react?
With fierce determination to push back. Single-minded concentration on my goals. For all my new found compassion and feelings, I am happy that I have retained the ability to take problems and set-backs straight on, calmly find solutions to them, and then pursue those solutions no matter what.
Who/what motivates you the most?
My children are big motivators for me. It’s important to me that they think of me as a strong woman who will always be there for them, and that I model behaviors that inspire them to face whatever struggles they will be tasked with in life.
What qualities do you have that others should possess?
Strength, resilience, honesty and integrity. Since I was never a person who thought life was fair, I never had to waste time on the ‘why me’ phase of recovery. While I definitely appreciate the safety net that caught me when I really needed it, every belief I have ever stated about personal responsibility absolutely apply to me.
I don’t feel entitled to sit back and rely on a disability check if I can find a way to support myself. That is not a knock against those who do – finding work when you are disabled is beyond hard. But I believe that my discomfort with receiving assistance will ultimately allow me to establish myself as a fully contributing member of society.
What words of wisdom would you share with our community?
Don’t dis my ability. I usually don’t go for cutesy expressions, but I found this one on Pinterest and I’m adopting it as my motto. No matter what physical or mental challenges a person may have, we ALL have something to contribute to society. And society as a whole is lessened when we make it impossible for them to do so.
Blogger: Alissa Nash
Blogger Bio: She is the creator of Blind Girl’s Problems blog. Her blog chronicles the journey out through a somewhat grey new world, sharing insights on whatever services, products, resources and opportunities she can uncover as she adjusts to the life of the visually impaired. Sometimes sarcastic, always blunt and surprisingly conservative on certain issues, this blind girl invites you to come along on this unexpected journey.
Blog link: Blind Girl’s Problems
Did you like this interview? If you did, hit the like button and leave a comment below. If you would like to get a chance to be featured as a motivational blogger of the week, you can submit your answers too. Hit the button below and follow the instructions. Join the Empowering and Uplifting Community!
This Post Has 17 Comments
Thank you for running this kind of publication. It feels goo to be heard!
It’s our pleasure Alissa. We appreciate your dedication in writing this story for our community.
Great interview. I’m curious how you overcame the “why me?” part. My son has experienced a debilitating back injury just over a year ago. He is still struggling with it and I’m not sure how to help.
Also, I loved that you said your Mother did the best she could. When we come to terms with that, life gets a little better.
Great blog. Having and getting over a health condition can definitely have an impact on how you look on life. I have a visually disability, from birth, and still am learning to this day that sometimes I just have to rely on others for help.
Hi Mallory, it is nice to hear that people appreciate sharing experiences. Thank you for giving your thoughts on this post.
Love this post, great post idea. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, challenges and your victories. Absolutely inspired, I think we, as a society, need to learn to be more inclusive to allow all of us, no matter the walks of lives to participate in our growth. Only when we are all actively taking part, we can really call our society progressive. I love Alissa’s mention of compassion. We often admire people who are strong or independent or make money, but we forget to mention compassion. Funny since a lot of us struggle with this one, showing compassion to ourselves seems to challenge us in today’s world and we all need more of that.
Hi Dagmara,
Our society can be complicated sometimes, but applying compassion can definitely help improve it. Thank you for the great input.
Wow! What an incredible perspective on life… just like her, we think building up emotional resilience is key to living a happy life!
Indeed it is. Happy life is something to strive for. Thanks for sharing.
What an inspiring piece. A reminder that whatever happens, you can still take control of your life and strive to succeed. I wish her all the best.
I guess everybody handles things differently. I’m just a person who lets most things roll off her back. Of course, had I taken my illness more seriously, I might not have lost my sight in the first place. My daughter is prone to depression too, so I know how stressful it can be. I wish I did know how to help with that – if I had one wish, I’d wish to cure her depression before I’d bother with my vision. Good luck to you both…and thank you for liking the post.
Yes, I agree. Learning when and how to accept help has been one of my biggest challenges. Thank you for reading! The blog is meant to provide resources and information of specific interest to the VI community. I hope if you like it you will follow it.
I agree. After my operation, I volunteered to help provide food and other necessities to homeless people once a week. I met people who were homeless because a medical emergency or illness sent them on a downward spiral. Helping them helped me keep things in perspective and made it impossible not to see how many blessings I still retained.
Great and inspiring interview! I think we all need to remember that what we have at the moment is not forever and that our life can change in every moment. Like it happened to Alissa. I really admire the inside strength that is necessary to go on with your life and not get entangled with “why me?” thinking.
All the best!
Anna
Thank you for this, I think it is important to hear other’s people motivations to be motivated yourself. Great interview.
Great and motivating post. I love the fact that you never gave up and stood your ground in the midst of adversaries and overcome. You have a strong fighting spirit and always always conquer.
https://rawlingsunday.wordpress.com/2017/12/29/did-you-achieve-your-goals-for-this-year/
Now that’s actually very inspirational! I love her can do attitude and i love how she pushes through life even with the challenges she’s facing. Thanks for sharing, Crisly!