Maria Rabaino is a professional dancer who also happens to use a wheelchair in her day to day life. On February 13, 2012, Maria had just started her second semester at college, and she was in a horrible car crash resulting in a broken back at the L1 level that paralyzed her from the hips down. With the mindset of becoming as independent as quickly as possible, Maria spent a month and a half in the hospital learning how to adjust to her new life. Not only did she become independent faster than most people in her experience, but she found a new passion through dance by joining the Rollettes wheelchair dance team. She speaks at schools about the dangers of getting in the car with someone who has been drinking, appeared in a TJ Maxx Commercial, was part of the first wheelchair dance team to ever perform at World of dance, and competed at the ICU world Championships for the Para-cheer Hip Hop division. Maria has recently opened up about her health journey and how she created leg workouts for wheelchair users who have the ability to strengthen their legs. She continues to explore health and fitness and motivate others to focus on what they can do to live the healthiest life possible.   In This Episode, You Will Learn: How Maria regained her independence. What it was like to join the Rollettes. The challenges of ableism. How abled individuals can become allies.   Connect with Maria: Facebook Instagram YouTube Rollettes Wheechair Dance Team Rollettes YouTube    Free Inspiration Rising Five Minute Meditations www.insporising.com/fiveminutes   Don’t Miss A Single Episode: Subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Music. Leave a quick review on any of the podcast apps to tell people what you think about the show. Take a screenshot of the podcast and post it on Instagram or Instagram Stories. Tag us @insporising. We’ll repost and give you a shoutout! Ready to rise? www.insporising.com Support this podcast at — https://app.redcircle.com/shows/a816bcf7-02cc-4363-bb63-17e19ced5e90/tip