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Nicole Luongo | What CP Looks Like

Cerebral Palsy Awareness + Education

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  • About Nicole
    • Press
    • Published Articles
    • Contact
  • Book
  • Go Green for CP
  • Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy
    • SDR FAQS
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  • Why Cerebral Palsy Representation Matters

    Cerebral Palsy

    Why Cerebral Palsy Representation Matters

    Nicole Luongo explains why Cerebral Palsy Representation, and how you can help the word out during Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month.

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  • Don't You Forget About CP

    Cerebral Palsy

    Don’t You Forget About CP

    ‘Don’t You Forget About CP’ is a call to action for the cerebral palsy community to help promote awareness. Our stories matter, and they need to be told.

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  • Promote Cerebral Palsy Awareness

    Cerebral Palsy

    Let’s Promote Cerebral Palsy Awareness Together

    Disability advocate Nicole Luongo discusses how you can promote cerebral palsy awareness + why you should get involved in the advocacy movement.

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  • Go Green for CP World CP Day

    Cerebral Palsy

    5 Reasons to Go Green on World CP Day

    Cerebral palsy advocate Nicole Luongo explains five reasons why you should Go Green on World CP Day, which is celebrated annually on October 6.

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  • Nicole Luongo SDR Changes Lives

    Cerebral Palsy

    How SDR Surgery Changed My Life

    Cerebral Palsy advocate Nicole Luongo vlogs about how ‘SDR Changes Lives’ one year after selective dorsal rhizotomy surgery with Dr. T.S. Park on St. Louis, on the cusp of turning 40 years old.

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  • Follow This Success Formula, Achieve Anything!

    Cerebral Palsy

    Follow This Success Formula, Achieve Anything!

    Nicole Luongo shares the success formula she applied after selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) surgery. Follow her simple advice to achieve anything in life. Ability + Motivation + Attitude = The Secret to Success!

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  • Bike Camp Bravery with Cerebral Palsy

    Cerebral Palsy

    Bike Camp Bravery with Cerebral Palsy

    Cerebral palsy advocate Nicole Luongo vlogs about braving bike camp at 41 years old, after having selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) surgery in 2013. Watch her do what she once thought was impossible.

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  • Mental Health: Take Charge, Feel Better

    Cerebral Palsy

    Mental Health: Take Charge, Feel Better

    May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Let’s talk about it, take charge of it, end the stigma! Learn the statistics, tips to feel better and find out about the connection between cerebral palsy + mental health.

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  • White House Response Regarding Cerebral Palsy Awareness

    Cerebral Palsy

    White House Cerebral Palsy Awareness Response

    Disability advocate Nicole Luongo shares what happened when she wrote to The White House about Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month + SDR, a life-changing surgery for adults and children with cerebral palsy. Follow her tried-and-true tips to get your cause noticed.

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    whatcplookslike

    #Author of Naked Desires
    >100 #GoGreen4CP #cerebralpalsy lightings Founder #whatcplookslike #Writer @huffpost @themightysite @yahoo @yoocandoanything
    #TBT to my trip to #DC in 2019. I always wanted to #TBT to my trip to #DC in 2019. I always wanted to be a lawyer, so I had to get a picture of the Supreme Court! • • I HATED my trip to Washington, D.C. because the city is not accessible. For the first time ever, I spent most of the time in a wheelchair because 1.) My bunion had been hurting for months, and walking was painful. 2.) It’s just TOO MUCH WALKING…period. • • Unfortunate, some of my family members DIDN’T understand that even if my toe was fine, I simply COULDN’T do so much walking EVERY DAY. Someone actually commented that if I fixed my bunion, I wouldn’t have had to be pushed around. NOT TRUE. • • This picture represents one of the few times I wasn’t in a wheelchair. And when I was in it, it’s like people had no clue…they didn’t even notice. They would bump into the chair, etc. It was not a good experience at all. • • The whole experience was so awkward for me. I didn’t feel seen as a whole person, and I didn’t get to experience all the sights like everyone else. For example, when we toured the Capitol building, I spent a lot of time sitting in one place because no one realized that I couldn’t turn myself around, go wherever I wanted. Having never operated a manual wheelchair before, it wasn’t wise to try with so many people around… As we approach the end of #DisabilityPrideMonth, let’s normalize asking for help (something I struggle with, especially when I’m so lonely like now) — whether it be for our minds — or our bodies. Thank you, #SimoneBiiles! • • I’m glad I insisted on using a wheelchair. I was EXHAUSTED every day (it was the hottest summer on record). I can only imagine how much worse I would have felt if I just pushed thru it (pun intended) on my own. Please remember that people who have mild CP, are high functioning (like me) have challenges, too. 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #CerebralPalsy #whatCPlookslike #SupremeCourt #WashingtonDC #SelfieGram #AccessibilityForAll #AccessibilityMatters #ThrowbackThursday
    NEW EPISODE! Link in bio… • In this episode of NEW EPISODE! Link in bio… • In this episode of CP Conversations, I talk to Jacquie Robison, the founder of WAWOS @wawosorg, which stands for "We're All Working On Something.” It’s a multi-national nonprofit with a mission to celebrate children with neuromuscular delays and physical differences. • We discuss getting a cerebral palsy diagnosis, how a trip to the park with her daughter, Sofia, inspired her to create walker capes for children, and the birth, meaning behind WAWOS. • Since July is Disability Pride Month, Jacquie shares how she encourages Sofia to be proud of all of who she is, why cerebral palsy is the least interesting thing about her. 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #CPConversations #CerbralPalsy #CerebralPalsyMom #DisabilityPrideMonth #Mompreneur #Capes #Innovation #Podcasts [ID: A green background. On the right in white text, it reads: CP Conversations. There is a light green line just underneath. Under the line in white text, it reads: Episode 19. On the next line it reads, A Conversation with Jacquie Robison. On the left is a throwback picture of Jacquie kneeling next to her daughter Sofia, who is smiling and standing behind her walker, which is draped in the first walker cape her mom ever created. Superimposed over the picture is another picture of Jacquie. She has light brown, shoulder length hair. She’s smiling, and she’s wearing a white button front blouse and long red and white tassel earrings. At the bottom is the YouTube description.]
    Today is the 31st Anniversary of the Americans wit Today is the 31st Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (#ADA). • • Many people don't know this, but when I lived in #Seattle with my sister while attending Seattle University for two years, I applied for a prestigious internship at the Port of Seattle, and I got the job. I had no clue, I remember someone in my Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity telling me everyone wanted it. • • I was responsible for re-writing ALL of their position descriptions so that they were compliant with the ADA, which had just recently passed. • • I remember having high hopes for the internship, but I quickly learned that I was on my own. After finishing my work on many days, I passed time in my cubicle thinking, "They're paying me to just sit here?" • • Unfortunately, I don't know what happened with the project. It seemed like EVERY week, the meetings we were supposed to have never took place. If I remember correctly, I started getting headaches because of paint fumes, and I had to leave the job. I left all of my documented work in a file cabinet in my cubicle. And, I moved back to Florida a short time later. • • On this #DisabilityIndependenceDay, I remember I taking two buses to Seattle U...getting up at 5:30 in the morning, walking 1-2 blocks (and parts were up a bit of an incline) to the first bus stop. I never missed a class. Then, when I got the job at the Port, I raced thru the Pike Place Market to get on a bus, then onto the ferry. I honestly don't know how I managed all of that, especially since I have #CerebralPalsy. I just did it. P.S. Growing up, I never had any #accommodations, and I didn’t know I could ask for them. 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #whatCPlookslike #Disabilities #DisabilityPrideMonth #ThankstotheADA #ADA31 #Florida #SouthFlorida #SelfieGram #MondayMotivation [ID: A picture of Nicole, an olive toned skinned woman with straight, dark brown hair. She’s smiling, and she’s wearing makeup and a blue tank top.]
    NEW EPISODE for #DisabilityPrideMonth! Link in bio NEW EPISODE for #DisabilityPrideMonth! Link in bio… • • In this episode of CP Conversations, I talk to Caroline Naif from @briellaandme, a mom on a mission to raise awareness for cerebral palsy by sharing her daughter’s (Briella) journey. • • We discuss the challenges of navigating a cerebral palsy diagnosis, how SDR (selective dorsal rhizotomy) surgery changed Briella’s life, what motivated her to become an advocate on social media and why being connected to other warrior families is so important. Since July is Disability Pride Month, Caroline also talked about how she she instills confidence in young Briella. Plus, the soon to be 7-year-old makes a brief appearance! 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #CPConversations #CerebralPalsy #CPAwareness #CerebralPalsyMom #CerebralPalsyWarrior #SDRChangesLives #Podcasts #WednesdayWisdom [ID: A green background. On the right in white text, it reads: CP Conversations. There is a light green line just underneath. Under the line in white text, it reads: Episode 18. On the next line it reads, A Conversation with Caroline Naif. On the left is a throwback picture of Caroline standing behind her daughter Briella, who is in her walker. Superimposed over the picture is another picture of Caroline and Briella. Briella is standing, holding onto her purple walker. She’s smiling, and she’s wearing a black shirt with green and black letters that say CP Warrior. She’s also wearing green leggings with black stars on them, along with black sneakers and black ankle orthotics. Her light brown hair is pulled back, with a green bow on top. She’s cheek to cheek with her mother, Caroline, who is kneeling on one knee next to Briella’s walker, and she has her arm around her daughter. Caroline has straight, blonde hair just below her shoulders. She’s smiling, and she’s wearing makeup and a green shirt with white letters that say Cerebral Palsy Awareness 2020. She’s also wearing black leggings and black sneakers. At the bottom is the YouTube description.]
    NEW BLOG POST! Link in bio… • • Read my poem NEW BLOG POST! Link in bio… • • Read my poem and learn about the Disability Pride Flag designed by Ann McGill. 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #Disabilities #DisabilityPride #DisabilityPrideMonth #CerebralPalsy #Poems #Poetry
    Here’s a poem I wrote for #DisabilityPrideMonth! Here’s a poem I wrote for #DisabilityPrideMonth! • • Share it or save it for later. Please always give credit to the author. 😉 💚💚💚 #NicoleLuongo #whatCPlookslike Author #Advocate #Poet #Poetry #Poems #DisabilityPride #CerebralPalsy #MondayMotivation ⬇️⬇️⬇️ Image descriptions are in the comments.
    It’s that simple! 💚💚💚 [ID: A screenshot It’s that simple! 💚💚💚 [ID: A screenshot of a tweet from Nicole Luongo @green4cp. It says: “All you need to be an #Advocate is a voice. Use yours!” #NicoleLuongo #whatCPlookslike #CerebralPalsy #DisabilityTwitter #DisabilityRights #DisabilityPrideMonth]
    #NicoleLuongo #whatCPlookslike #CerebralPalsy #Dis #NicoleLuongo #whatCPlookslike #CerebralPalsy #DisabledAndCute #TBT #ThrowbackThursday #HollywoodFlorida #Florida 💚💚💚 [ID: A throwback picture of Nicole. She’s smiling, standing, and her hands are on the back of a silver, metal chair with vertical slats. She has dark, curly hair, and she’s wearing a red and black dress with a floral design, along with red lipstick. There are white shutters behind her with colorful, decorative bottles strategically placed.]
    #Repost @r.a.r.e.advoc8 with @make_repost ・・・ Disability Pride truly gave me a new life in the same body I once felt trapped in, which is why I can’t wait for the next part of the Power in Pride Celebration—this Thursday we are talking all about Disabled Confidence with panelists @chronically_ry , @thesporkwitch, @retroshimmer, @whatcplookslike and @alexx_theroborussian, co-hosted by myself and my partner in crime @erin.claiming_disability_llc . I personally found my confidence and power in my disabled identity; before I was #PridefullyDisabled, I truly hated myself. I was in a never ending pit of self loathing because I lived by the ableist society’s standards. When I started unsubscribing to ableism, I was able to see myself outside of the scope of the ableist society. I stopped beating myself up for every flare and started seeing my resiliency instead of weakness. I’m so excited to have this open discussion with all of these powerfully disabled souls—we will share our own journeys, as well as be there to listen to yours, give you any advice, support, or validation you need, and answer any questions you may have. Please keep in mind that we don’t go in a specific order—we promise, if we bring you up to the stage we will get to you! Just maybe not as quick as you’d expect... A big thank you to our partner @diversability for giving us the safe space to hold our celebration; it’s been a monumental event already and it’s so greatly appreciated! If you need an invite to clubhouse, please let any of us know—we have them available and we want you to be able to join this much needed discussion. A live transcript will be provided at the time of the event—RSVP by clicking the link in my bio! #ChronicallySpooky #PowerInPride #PrettyDisabledPowerful #DisabilityPride #DisabledAndProud #DisabilityAdvocate #DisabilityRights #Ableism #DisabilityAwareness #Disability #Disabilities #InvisibleDisability #DisabledAdvocate #DisabilityJustice #DisabledInclusion #DisabilityRightsAdvocate #InclusionMatters #AbleismKills #DisabledAndCute #DisabilitySupport #ArtActivism #DisabilityCommunity #DisabilityBlogger #DisabledConfidence #SelfLove #BodyPositivity
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