Asking for help is difficult. I find this hard to do. Getting the words out makes me feel like I am weak when I want to be strong.

Now that I am 80, my eldest son helps me. I am grateful. I always say thank you. My loved ones are my best helpers.

I’ve had two ankle reconstructions on my polio leg. One at age 14 and the later when I was 42. I am now 80 and balance is an issue for me. I use a walking stick when I go away from home.

My kids just knew I needed help lifting and carrying things. I never asked them for help. They stepped up to the plate. In the mid-1980’s, my fatigue worsened. “Post-polio” was not talked about then.

I know there will come a time when I can no longer take care of myself. Right now, getting dressed to go volunteer is a challenging task. But I am determined to live each day to the fullest!

Eventually I will move closer to my kids. I can count on them to help me. I brought them into the world and they will help me be comfortable as possible.

My parents were told I would never walk. I was initially paralyzed in all four limbs.

Although I was only seven years old in 1954 when I had polio, I remember everyone was scared and their emotions often overwhelmed them because we were facing what was then the most dreaded of diseases.

The routines at the hospital revolved around wool-covered, sand-packed hot packs, stretching, painful range of motion, and warm water tank therapy. I wore braces on my arms and legs. When in bed, I had to lay only on my back and keep my feet pinned up against the footboard to prevent footdrop.

The arm braces prevented my shoulders from straining too much when I wheeled myself in a wheelchair. I was told to be cautious so I did not pull my shoulders out of their sockets. So, I did not just use my arms to push the wheelchair wheels, I also moved my legs to pedal around the hospital.

Who would have thought that the use of my legs would strengthen them so much that I surprised my parents by walking. A blessing in disguise. I learned you just never know when adversity is the invention of something that helps in an unintended way.