Ya’el’s Story

Ya’el Frisch, a Policy and Research Officer from Sydney who lives with cerebral palsy, explains the crucial role of advocacy in her life for her and her family. 

I’m extremely fortunate to have grown-up in a family who were well connected with disability advocacy organisations. This means my parents knew how to fight for me to be enrolled in a mainstream school, even though I have profound cerebral palsy. They knew who to talk to to make our neighbourhood and community more accessible, and how to link me into a program of personal care supports while I was still a young(er) person. As disability goes, I won the lottery.

My parents would not have known how to imagine and implement a positive future for me if not for disability advocacy. Advocates broke down the barriers and helped imagine what could be possible.

I now lead a full life as an adult in my own home, working in disability advocacy myself and receiving supports from the NDIS. Absolutely none of the aspects of my life would be possible without disability advocacy, past and present.

Personally and professionally, I try to do my bit to give back, so that others with disability can experience the opportunities I have. Disability information and advocacy must be funded, to give people the hope and tools to imagine a bright future.