In this episode of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,”
Dana Mathewson, the top-ranked American wheelchair tennis player, shares her journey from being diagnosed with transverse myelitis at age 10 to becoming a Paralympic athlete. Overcoming the challenges of using a wheelchair, she found empowerment in sports, especially tennis. Dana is a Wimbledon champion, two-time Parapan American Games gold medalist, and the first American woman in wheelchair tennis to win a Grand Slam title. She’s now preparing for the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

In Episode 62 of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,” Paralympic wheelchair tennis athlete Dana Mathewson discusses her journey from being diagnosed with transverse myelitis at age 10 to becoming the top-ranked American woman in wheelchair tennis. She highlights her discovery of the sport at 13, the pivotal role of her mother, and her focus on the 2024 Paris Paralympics while advocating for the impact of para sports on disability perceptions.

In this episode of Pushing Forward with Alycia, Julie Sowash, a disability advocate and co-host of Changing Minds and Changing Lives, discusses her journey with neurodiversity and mental health. She emphasizes the importance of creating inclusive workplaces, collaborating with companies like PepsiCo to transform hiring practices, and overcoming biases. Julie shares success stories and encourages both employers and employees to embrace inclusivity, offering actionable advice to create lasting change in the workplace.

In Episode 61 of Pushing Forward with Alycia, Alycia Anderson interviews Julie Sowash, a disability advocate and co-host of Changing Minds and Changing Lives. Julie shares her personal journey with neurodiversity and mental health, and discusses her work in creating inclusive workplaces. Highlighting her collaborations with companies like PepsiCo, Julie emphasizes the importance of integrating disability inclusion into hiring practices and overcoming biases in the workplace.

Jayne Mattingly, a disability advocate, discusses body grief, a concept she coined, which involves mourning the loss of living in a familiar body. She shares her journey through significant health challenges and disability, which led to her advocacy work and the development of adaptive jeans. Jayne also co-founded Disabled Voters for Harris, aiming to empower disabled voters. Her message highlights the importance of embracing body grief and fostering community support.

In Episode 60 of Pushing Forward with Alycia, host Alycia Anderson interviews Jayne Mattingly, a disability advocate and author. Jayne shares her journey through brain surgeries, her Ehlers Danlos syndrome diagnosis, and how these experiences fueled her work in disability advocacy. She discusses body grief, her adaptive jeans project with No Back Gap, and her collaboration with Kamala Harris on disability rights. Jayne’s upcoming book, This is Body Grief, is also highlighted.

In this episode of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,” Lisa Cox, a writer and disability advocate, shares her journey from a corporate career in advertising to becoming a disability inclusion advocate after a severe brain hemorrhage. She discusses the lack of disability representation in media, her work as an inclusive advertising consultant, and her efforts to change societal perceptions through the Disability Reporting Handbook and her TEDx talk, “Why Diversity is Good for Business.”

In Episode 59 of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,” host Alycia Anderson interviews Lisa Cox, a writer and advocate for disability inclusion. Lisa shares her journey from a life-altering brain hemorrhage to becoming a prominent voice in media and advertising. She emphasizes the importance of representation, body image, and inclusive content, and discusses her efforts to help brands incorporate disability in their practices. Lisa’s story highlights the power of perseverance and advocacy.

In Episode 58 of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,” Alycia Anderson interviews Andraéa LaVant, a leading disability inclusion expert and president of LaVant Consulting. LaVant shares her journey from a young girl with spinal muscular atrophy, trying to hide her disability, to becoming an influential advocate and business leader. She discusses her struggles with systemic barriers, her career evolution, and her commitment to empowering others through disability inclusion and advocacy.

In Episode 58 of “Pushing Forward with Alycia,” Alycia Anderson interviews Andraéa LaVant, a disability inclusion expert and CEO of LaVant Consulting. Andraéa discusses her journey with spinal muscular atrophy, her advocacy work, and her role in the documentary “Crip Camp.” The episode explores the importance of representation and intersectionality in disability advocacy, Andraéa’s experience at the Oscars, and her efforts to advance disability inclusion through her consulting work.