Ready! Set! Go! Who loves the great outdoors?

May is here and thoughts of summer fun are filling my head! Who is ready to explore some great outdoor adaptive activities? We are all feeling the need for some long overdue activity and the CDC now says it is getting safer to venture into the outdoors. We still need to exercise caution, but they are telling us to step outside and begin to enjoy some sites that are beginning to open up.

I want to share some of the great finds Maryland has to offer to get you thinking about what you may want to explore when you feel safe to do so!

The Downtown Sailing Center offers some great opportunities to explore the sailor in you! Does the water call you? I set sail on May 15th in a Hansa Access Dinghy. You can read about this experience in our News section.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources offers a great lifetime pass to access all their parks and facilities. The Universal Disability Pass (UDP) is a free lifetime pass that does not require renewal. Identification may be requested when the UDP is presented. Click here for the link to the application, as there are so many beautiful state parks to walk, wheel or drive through.

If you are interested in joining an adaptive sports team, the University of Maryland Rehabilitation and Orthopaedic Institute has groups to explore! Click here for a link to information.

Here is a list of a few of the benefits their website highlights:

Adapted sports give individuals with physical disabilities an outlet to engage in community activities, forge new friendships and have fun. Other benefits of participation include:

·         Improved physical strength, range of motion, flexibility and endurance

·         Improved emotional well-being

·         Social interaction with others with similar interests, who face similar challenges

·         Opportunities to engage in competition

Wheelchair rugby, basket and adaptive golf are just a few of the opportunities you have to learn and join a team; most of all make new friends. Golf is my favorite game!

The Baltimore City Therapeutic Recreational Program offers in person and virtual activities for adults and children. You can click here for the Spring Program Guide.

The Baltimore Adapted Recreation and Sports Program (BARS) is a non-profit created in 1991 to provide recreation and sports programs for individuals with physical and developmental disabilities. They literally have something for everyone! Here is list of all the choices you have:

Bowling/ Social events, Camping, Cycling, Kayaking and canoeing, Rafting, Sailing, Shooting, Water Skiing, Snow Skiing, and Ski Bash. BARS is a local chapter of Disables Sports/ USA and supports their motto: “If I can do this, I can do anything”. BARS is open to all individuals with disabilities. Family and friends are welcome to join in for all outings.

So let’s get excited! Look up these great organizations and try one, and create some summer memories!

“I go to Nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put together.” –John Burroughs

These tips are informed suggestions. If you do not feel comfortable with them, please do not attempt them. Instead as always contact your medical professional or your prosthetist for help and advice. 

If you have a question for me about living as an amputee, ask! And if I don’t know the answer, I will find it for you, and I will leave no stone unturned to help you find your own personal new normal. If there is a topic you would like me to feature please let me know! I want us all to grow strong together.  Email me at Dawn@dankmeyer.com. This email is not secure, so if you wish to keep any specific health information private, you should call us!

Dawn Miranda joined Dankmeyer, Inc. almost two years ago as a Prosthetist Assistant after relocating from San Antonio, TX.  To read more about Dawn on our Clinical Staff page, click here.