The Four Walls of My Freedom: Lessons I've Learned from a Life of Caregiving

The Four Walls of My Freedom: Lessons I've Learned from a Life of Caregiving

Donna Thomson

Language: English

Pages: 262

ISBN: 1770894799

Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub


A riveting and redemptive family memoir, The Four Walls of My Freedom is Donna Thomson’s account of raising a son with cerebral palsy and her passionate appeal to change the way we think about "the good life." Donna Thomson’s life was forever changed by her son Nicholas. A former actor, director, and teacher, Donna became his primary caregiver and embarked on a second career as a disability activist, author, and consultant. Here, she vividly describes her experience in treading delicately through daily care, emergencies, and medical bureaucracy as Donna and her family cope with her son’s condition while maintaining value and dignity. She brilliantly demonstrates the vital contribution that people with disabilities make to our society and addresses the ethics and economics of giving and receiving care. Featuring a new introduction by John Ralston Saul, and two new chapters, The Four Walls of My Freedom is an ardent argument for changing to the way we think about the “good life” that touches anyone who has ever cared for the life of another.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

roles of families and governments in supporting society’s most vulnerable citizens? What kinds of policies can facilitate true partnership between governments and families who seek to care for someone needing help? One such policy is the groundbreaking Canadian Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP). In the late 1990s, Al Etmanski of PLAN called me and told me of his idea to create a fund for people with disabilities. I remember saying, “I have a savings plan for my daughter’s university…why

rates caring above a career, and interdependence above independence. Odone is talking here about the United Kingdom, but the policy ideas are relevant in any developed nation. She certainly seems unduly harsh to those women who have fought so long and hard for an equal place at the boardroom table, but I agree with her that the celebration of paid employment alongside derision for the work of caring is wrong and actually unhelpful to everyone. We all require care at some time in our lives.

be productive and parents should not be allowed to surgically ensure their children never grow up. A new deal that incentivizes saving and allows private investment into businesses that demonstrate a social purpose is a way forward that offers some hope for a good life. Amartya Sen recognizes disability as a central challenge to justice. “Given what can be achieved through intelligent and humane intervention, it is amazing how inactive and smug most societies are about the prevalence of the

subcategories are scanned till he finally reaches his desired word, which is “bagel.” All of Nicholas’ basic vocabulary for daily life is found in the scans that he has memorized. Any new vocabulary, for example for an online course, is added and reviewed as needed. APPENDIX C News Articles Ottawa Citizen, January 24, 2001 Ottawa Citizen, January 18, 2003 ENDNOTES 1.    See http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1998/sen-autobio.html. 2.    Keynote speech, Second

someone they love with a long-term health condition, disability or age-related needs. By 2061, over one-quarter of our population will be sixty-five or older.1 Given the low fertility rates of baby boomers, it stands to reason that in the future, able and healthy seniors will form a significant portion of the caregiving community. Making the future palatable for aging or infirm citizens and their caregivers will require humility, imagination and collaboration. Stakeholders agree that the need

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