Alberto and making every moment count
"Overcoming the psychological barrier between myself and the people around me has been one of my biggest challenges. You can always find people who accept you exactly how you are, but there are many who find it hard to see you as an equal human being."
My name is Alberto and I was born in Madrid, Spain, on February 3, 1993. I was born at 7 months of pregnancy and since birth I have had cerebral palsy. As my mother is German, I went to a German nursery and when I turned 6 I made the jump to elementary school. My parents wanted me to go to the German School in Madrid, but since this school was not adapted, I went to a public integration school that could cover my needs.
I graduated from high school and the Spanish baccalaureate doing a majority of my exams orally; in large part thanks to the facilities and resources given to me by the Educational Center and to organisations such as ASPACE, an organisation whose objective is to offer a platform for people with cerebral palsy throughout Spain, which allows them to reach the highest level of personal and professional development.
Once I passed the Spanish ‘selectividad’, which marks the final years of education before University, I began my law studies at the Autónoma University of Madrid, which offered me the resources I needed. I graduated in Law in 2016 and I am currently doing an internship in Garrigues, one of the largest law firms in Spain, after completing a Masters in International Business Law.
On weekends, it can be said that I have a very active social life. I move around the city in my electric wheelchair and meet with friends and family and, when I can and with good planning, I travel. In this way, I am able to express my ideas and relax after a hard week elbow-deep in legal texts. As a child, I quickly realised that some of the people around me were wary of knowing me and that I had to approach them before they approached me. This was one of the biggest obstacles in my childhood.
"I was lucky, since I found myself in educational institutions with the attitude and resources that allowed me to take my exams and continue my classes in a way that suited my needs, but I have met many people in a similar situation to mine that were discouraged to continue beyond compulsory education. There is very little willingness to adapt to specific needs.”
For me, the first step towards the full inclusion of people in a situation similar to mine has had to lie with people with disabilities; we have to prevent ourselves from being invisible. I have seen how society around me adapts to what is visible, however, as young people with disabilities are not encouraged to leave their comfort zone, finding the willpower to become visible is difficult. Family members play an important role when it comes to empowering and encouraging us to face everyday challenges. I have been taught that I could achieve things on my own, which for example has led me to move alone on public transport without help, a goal which only a few years ago had seemed barely possible.
I am very much aware that I would not have reached where I am now without help. The people around me, family and friends, have positively influenced me to overcome the obstacles in front of me, so that when I fell, they encouraged me to get back up and continue.
A social circle that was always the "first line of support" and which I do not want to forget, have been the entities that work to enrich the lives of people with disabilities, supporting us to go beyond our physical or psychological limits. For example, the Ana Valdivia Foundation, one of the organisations in which I am most active, offers a community for people with cerebral palsy and their families throughout Spain.
Another of these platforms, which I went to since I was very young, is the Sports and Challenges Foundation, which aims to integrate people with disabilities into society through activities such as camps with adapted sports, with which I was able to travel all over the country.
Thanks to these activities, I developed several friendships, and I was able to expand my perspective and my lifestyle beyond family to meet new people, leave home more frequently and expand my self confidence, skills and willpower. I also found a wheelchair basketball team in Alcobendas, in the outskirts of Madrid, where I became involved in the sport and was able to go to national championships and feel part of a team. With wheelchair basketball I had to be competitive to win.
"In my opinion, life is like a game, where the competitive spirit is fundamental to overcome the challenges you face, not to collapse before the setbacks which may appear."
The Real Madrid Club gave me the opportunity to become coach of their wheelchair basketball team, which allowed me to develop new skills managing a group. The sport had great effects on my development and the desire to achieve my goals.
It is vital to maintain a positive attitude in the face of difficulties throughout life. From not being able to hold a pen and write for myself, needing others to take notes for me in class, to days in which my limits exceed my willpower. Accepting my limitations and converting them into advantages makes me stronger. For example, I have realised that I will have to earn more than the average if I want to live alone in an adapted home, or that I will have to make sure that the entrance step is not too high for my wheelchair. Step by step I face my problems and try to overcome them.
We give the deepest thanks to Alberto for sharing his story and, from his perspective, his help towards empowering and enabling others.
When he feels that he is unable to progress, Alberto sends the message:
"Although it would be easier to let others who love me and help me do most of the work for me, my ambitions and goals keep me motivated and remind me that, although my limits are important, if I can wish it, why not try it?"
