Karate for the disabled??

[ramymensa]

I think every person should have the right to train. martial arts are not only for the 6 foot gladiator like males they are for everyone. MA doesn't necesary teach you to become a killing machine and maybe not help you too much with the girls

 

MA for me is just something I do for myself. I can be selfish as I like, I can take care of myself .. of what I want and I can develop as much as my body allows me. I have no health problems to prevent me from training and I'mm so happy when I see people overcome their problems through training. I have a close coleague who's as skinny as I am. She has asthma, and she trains. She never had problems since she started karate, although her doctor said she's comiting suicide by doing Karate. Still she gained some strenght and feels great.

 

As for people with disabilities .. people tend to fear this and this is why many instructors shut the doors in front of your faces. Maybe they're afraid or perhaps they don't feel proficient enough to work with you. I think MA should be for everybody and yes, you can do karate from a wheelchair, you can do it even from your bed. They should understand it and help you. Although is quite a responsibility to work with poeple that have health problems, I think for a sensei this is the greatest achievement of all. Guess you feel like god

 

It's nice to have champs out of extraordinary people. But to help one that can't move walk again, gain strenght and confidence, that's the true mastery

 

I bow to those who could make such miracles and to those who weren't afraid to try, no matter they were the instructors that said "OK. I train you" or the people with the problems who tried to get some more of this life

[delli04]

I don't know of any karate schools or clubs off hand that participate in training for the disabled, but I do know of Tai Ji instructors who teach forms while being seated. Its aimed for people in recovery from certain types of accidents but I guess it could be applied to people in wheelchairs as well.