Proud Moments: Vibe’s Accomplishments
by
Anitha Thotapalli 
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Vibe’s Accomplishments
My Son Vaibhav…
Every turn, when people said he couldn’t, he said, “ YES, I CAN. WATCH ME”!
- Listen and find out more about the great accomplishments Vibe has achieved.
- Find out how he got his nickname.
- Vibe’s Mom shares some powerful advice for parents of special needs children all over the world. Take a few minutes to listen.
Hi, I am Anitha Thotapalli, I live in Simi Valley California with my husband Dhanunjay. Our world, October was National Disability employment awareness month and I was working on an article about our 28 year old son Vibe triumphs and tribulations dealing with a disability right from going to school and finally getting into a job. Then I happen to see articles regarding Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft had to deal with challenges faced by his special needs son and daughter. He talked about the same things we ourselves experienced and had heard over and over again from many other special parents.
I realized that a parent with a special needs child irrespective of whether you are a school teacher or a CEO of a corporation has the same fears trials hopes and aspirations for their children. my husband Dhanunjay and I have been on the roller coaster ride of disability world for a long time. It has been a wild ride with many ups and downs but I should say we held on pretty well. We went from initial shock and denial to survival mode pretty quickly. We sought out information about cerebral palsy, vibes condition, various therapy options, risks, cost, and developed a high level plan. Becoming parents of a special needs child changed us forever. For good.
Both of us are convinced and firmly believe that vibe made us better people. From being a type people. He has taught us to slow down and focus on the real important things in life. He taught us to be empathetic compassionate open minded and not to sweat about trivial matters. He also made us realize that when you are down in the dumps the only way out is to come back up with greater force. Usually parents teach their kids about such things but in our case the roles have been reversed. Thanks Vibe. That is his nickname that stuck after one of his college professors called him that apparently for the good vibes he gives out. Now, vibe has beaten many odds in his life when the doctors gave up, he fought hard to survive at child birth. Again, when the doctors decided that his developmental milestones will be significantly delayed and any progress wouldn’t add up too much he proved them wrong by vigorously participating in physical occupational speech therapies for years at home and overseas. Boy, is he still making up for the lost time. When his high school program specialist declared that it will be hard to graduate with a diploma, he worked his butt off to prove her wrong. He graduated with a California HS diploma. Not only that, he also got the AA degree in social and behavioral sciences, even though it took him four years. He started playing for the local wheelchair basketball league. He me Coby. When the job coach said it will be difficult for vibe to find a job. He did it again, He found himself a job in the field of his passion basketball as an instructor with his hard work he impressed his boss to hire him as a front office customer care professional.
This year he has become a productive citizen by paying his taxes all be it but a few hundreds. Every turn, When people said he couldn’t, he said yes I can watch me. What I am trying to say is we all focus disability rather than disability possibility. People with special needs have abilities albeit not the same as normal people they may do things differently maybe at a slower pace maybe at an unconventional way but it is ok to give them that chance. Like all of us, they too need to feel that sense of accomplishment because they too are resilient, hardworking, loyal, and above all, they don’t quit. Be a little patient and prophetic and give them a chance. Most importantly believe in them. Recognize them for who they are rather that what they are. My advice to the parents of the special needs children all over the world. We got this.
Share a Proud Moment with us Next Issue!
Proud Moments can be any time that you have been extremely proud of your child with special needs. It can be when they are giving it their all or reaching a milestone. We share Triumphs every Tuesday on Facebook or send via email to [email protected]
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This post originally appeared on our January/February 2018 Magazine
