There Is No Shame in Asking For Help

There is no shame in asking for help.

We live in community. And at the core of a successful community are relationships built upon networks of interdependence. Why then, is asking for help hard for so many? 

There is no shame in asking for help.

Is it because we are a society that values independence? We are bombarded by images and messages of how to raise our children to be independent, but independence does not have to mean solitary.

There is no shame in asking for help.

We can teach our children and young adults to become their own advocates and empower individuals to articulate their own needs. We give our children a gift by teaching them how and when to ask for help.

There is no shame in asking for help. 

And yet, I have heard the frustrations of family members of people with disabilities who feel that they always have to ask – for help, for accommodations, for inclusive opportunities. Constant advocates may find themselves hoping that, “Just once…I won’t have to ask… (the school, the doctor, the synagogue…)”

Can we find the balance?

There is no shame in asking for help. But what happens if you grow tired of asking?

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