Finding Solutions

This past winter, we took a family ski trip to Lake Tahoe. As we started preparing for the trip, I needed to make the decision if I would ski or snowboard. I know how to do both, but neither, very well. I’m a Green Circle or Blue Square trail kind of gal through and through, enjoying a graceful glide down the slopes.  I learned to ski as a young teen, then made the switch to snowboarding in high school because it was difficult for me to grip the ski pole with my right hand. I took a break while living in Florida due to lack of snow and returned to snowboarding when my husband and I began dating as he loves skiing and I wanted to be on the slopes with him. Then on our last ski trip out west a few years ago, I wrecked myself in a snowboarding fall that gave me whiplash for days (thank goodness for helmets) and I was scared to get back on a snowboard. As this next trip approached, I had only been out skiing once since the big fall on my snowboard because I was pregnant or had just given birth during the winter seasons since then.  I was feeling like a novice all over again.  

As I began thinking more about it, I realized that the only reason snowboarding ever appealed to me more than skiing was the lack of poles. I’d chatted with my husband about this before and he’d played around with the idea of getting a friend with a 3D printer to create a special handle mold for me that could help me support the weight of the pole. I also started googling light weight ski poles. Then I had this bright idea that I am not the only one with missing limbs in this world and I bet there is someone out there who also has walked this path, for example, Special Olympics Athletes. And sure enough, I was right!  I did some different search options and found The Active Hands Co (https://www.activehands.com).   Not only did they have gripping aids for hands with reduced function, they have the Winter Sports Gipping Aid, designed specifically to go over winter gloves. All of the sudden, I felt more confident in my ability to ski. I put my order in and it arrived just in time for the ski trip. My hand was slightly tired at the end of the ski days, but nothing like the way I used to feel after being on the slopes. I never lost my pole. I had two poles that I could use to propel myself on the flatter areas. I can’t even tell you how much this helped with my confidence in skiing.

If you’re struggling with something and know deep down that you want to find a solution, not just continue to struggle through it, I dare you to bravely imagine what life could be like on the other side of a solution.  Is it better? Is it worth taking the time and effort to research? Can you ask someone for help who has walked that path before or is going through a similar situation? Turn that dream into a goal and make it your reality. You don’t need to accept the struggle is your forever reality. For me, I now can ski more comfortably. Something I never thought could happen. I would have likely passed on skiing this trip and missed out on some amazing views and time with my family had I not sought a solution. Taking it one step further, this Active Hands company makes grips for weight lifting. I can now lift more than I ever have because I have this new tool. One solution for a struggle for me, led to another. And life is better because of it.  I see that for you too.