Photo of white woman with curly red hair in a power wheelchair at a desk using a laptop.

Rachel’s Faves

Assistive Tools Recommended by People with SMA In honor of Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Awareness Month, we asked two of our friends (and Disability community leaders!) to share the tools and gadgets that makes it possible to live independently. What is Spinal Muscular Atrophy?Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic disorder characterized by weakness and wasting…

Photos of Angela Madsen - surfing, rowing, smiling in her wheelchair

Disabled, Out and Proud.

Champion Athlete Angela Madsen shares her perspective. It’s nearly impossible to encapsulate who Angela Madsen is in just a few words: She’s a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, an athlete who has earned multiple medals in multiple national and international sports, a Guinness World Record holder, the founder and director of a California adaptive rowing organization,…

Photo of Dr. Connell, smiling. 4 icons in circles: music note, lotus, crescent moon, stacked stones. Where It’s AT logo.

Helpful Apps for Mental Health

  September is Self Care Month. Self care refers to (often simple) activities to ensure physical and mental fitness. According to clinical psychologist, Lavonna Connell, self care is a critical and important part of every person’s mental health. Not taking care of oneself mentally often leads to physical ailments. Dr. Connell explains that in the…

Graphic of old Ability Tools Weekly logo next to new "Where It's AT: The Ability Tools Blog" logo

WHERE IT’S AT: The New Name for the Ability Tools Blog

The Ability Tools team at the California Foundation for Independent Living (CFILC) opted to let our assistive technology (AT) advocates and the general public vote online for a new blog name. With over 50% of the votes, Where It’s AT won! When you think of an assistive technology (AT) blog – Ability Tools is Where…

The image is of a woman standing in ankle deep water. She is wearing a traditional white karate uniform with her black belt. She is in a karate pose. The text is on a dark blue background. It is white and red, it reads "Ability Tools Blog My Mom, The Fighter. In honor of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) Awareness Month, Emily Flynn shares about her bad@ss mom Susan--an educator and a third degree black belt!"

My Mother the “Fighter”

Written By: Emily Flynn, Ability Tools Program Coordinator Although Mother’s Day has just passed, I can’t help but have my mom on my mind lately. See, I have one of those moms who was born to be a mom. She puts everyone’s needs before hers, she’s got a poker face like you wouldn’t believe; and…

In the photo, Liz is lying on the ground next to her daughter who is sitting on a ride-on toy. The text is light yellow on a pink background. The Ability Tools Logo is at the top. It reads “Ability Tools Blog; Mothering with a Disability; Liz Pazdral shares her mom hacks using assistive technology; www.abilitytools.org/blog”.

AT Mothering With A Disability

Written By: Liz Pazdral, Executive Director of the State Independent Living Council (SILC) and Madeleine’s Mom If you are living with a disability, you know that modifying tasks is the key to success.  This Mother’s Day, I would like to identify some Assistive Technology I used to successfully mother when my daughter was a baby.…

Spring Gardening With California AgrAbility

Written By: Sara Wat- University of California, Davis California AgrAbility For the past few years, the UC Davis California AgrAbility Program and Ability Tools have partnered to bring assistive technology and farming ergonomic resources to farmers, agricultural workers, ranchers, and gardeners across California. Starting in 2014, the Ability Tool’s AT Exchange- Device Lending Library, began…