How I found out what I really wanted | Renee Bruns | TEDxTullahoma (youtube.com)
Renee Bruns described her experience as ‘scary and liberating’
A few months ago, I took the stage at my very first TEDx event. My heart was racing and my lip quivered as I rolled onto the stage. I closed my eyes for a brief moment, placed my hand on my stomach, and reminded myself of the very words I was about to say to everyone. As we go through life and chase so many big dreams, we cannot forget about the journey that led us there. Enjoy today – the struggles and the joys – and enjoy your dreams coming true too. It’s the cumulation of it all that makes life so beautiful.
#journey #tedx #tedxtalks #tedxspeaker #travel #empowerment #inspiration
Defying odds, a specially-abled woman, Renee Bruns from Atlanta, Georgia in the US, travelled 129 countries on a wheelchair and recently broke the Guinness World Record (GWR) for the most countries visited in one year.
Renee Bruns is a former Fortune 500 insurance executive who left her role in May 2022 on a mission to see the world and reshape her views of humanity. She was born with an undiagnosed skeletal disorder that has caused her to use a wheelchair full time.
Renee Bruns | Motivational Speaker | Life Coach | Travel Blogger
Through her travels to 129 countries, all 7 continents, and all 50 states, she became a Guinness World Record Holder and has been featured on numerous media sites and podcasts. She is currently working on a book to share her story of navigating the world with a physical disability and the series of events that led her to find self-acceptance, and ultimately a diagnosis of her unique medical condition by a dedicated team of specialists.
Renee is also working on a doctoral degree where her research is focused on positive psychology and the impacts it has on the workforce. She is a life coach helping those who are looking to restructure their lives and helps guide and advocate for those navigating undiagnosed medical conditions.
Finally, Renee is an Ambassador for the Free Wheelchair Mission where wheelchairs are provided for only $96 each to people in need around the world. An American woman has set the world record for travelling to the most countries in a year in a wheelchair.
Renee Bruns, 40, was diagnosed with Diastrophic Dwarfism when she was 16 years old and spent much of her early years travelling around the US with her mother to see medical specialists. By her 16th birthday, she had already visited all 50 US states, an experience that inspired her to see more of the world.
Finally, Renee is an Ambassador for Free Wheelchair Mission where wheelchairs are provided for only $96 each to people in need around the world. An American woman has set the world record for travelling to the most countries in a year in a wheelchair.
“It was a very scary and liberating experience for me,” she told CNN.
‘Do it,’ says a solo traveler who uses a wheelchair. ‘You won’t regret it.’ | CNN
Bruns says that while there is more awareness of wheelchair users compared with when she was growing up, there are still challenges, saying: “it hasn’t been easy to navigate a world designed for people who use two legs”.
“I don’t have a dedicated medical assistant or a helper, if you will.”
She said: “What I have seen in my lifetime is just a lot more awareness. People are much more willing to help. There’s not this scariness factor of someone with a wheelchair.
“I experienced that a lot in my younger years and I don’t get it so much anymore.”
She cites Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand as the countries with the most inclusive infrastructure, noting that more historic destinations tend to be poorer on this front.
While she accepts that the process of making a historic temple in Indonesia more accessible might be a challenge, she describes air travel as the biggest disappointment when travelling, stating that airlines have “a lot more to do” when it comes to making travel more inclusive for people with disabilities.
“In the past two or three years, it’s gotten slightly better,” she says. “And I hesitate to even say ‘slightly,’ because I don’t want to give the airlines too much credit.
“There is an immense amount of work that can go into flying for people with disabilities, and the airlines have a huge, huge responsibility to make it better.
“It is one of the most frustrating parts [of travelling] and just the treatment that the airlines give to people with disabilities.”
Despite this, Bruns says her experience of travelling using a wheelchair has given her an additional insight that non-disabled people may lack, citing an experience in Indonesia when she found herself temporarily stuck after she couldn’t get down a particularly high curb. In the end, a group of strangers came to her aid.
“In a strange kind of way, [being a wheelchair user] has allowed me to see humanity differently than an average traveller will see, because they can just go about, and step down that sidewalk and back up again,” she says.
“It’s no big deal [for them]. But I’m really relying on the help of complete strangers to get me to the places I want to go.”
As of now, she has traveled to 117 of the 195 UN-recognized countries and territories on the globe, and hopes to visit the remaining 78 destinations in the next decade or so.
With each new country she visits, Bruns aims to seek out a local person and “just chat with them about their family, life and culture”.
She says: “To be able to chat with a local person and just get to know them is one of the most rewarding things for me.
“It’s such a solid reminder of how much human beings have in common, and how much we are the same.
“There’s so much hate in the world, but when you really sit down with people from all over the world, [you find that] we are really all the same. And it’s really refreshing.”
Bruns described the Middle East as one of her favourite regions to visit, calling it “fascinating” and the people “some of the kindest in the world”. The destinations she’s most looking forward to visiting next are Saudi Arabia and Madagascar.
Bruns says that while there is more awareness of wheelchair users compared with when she was growing up, there are still
challenges, saying: “it hasn’t been easy to navigate a world designed for people who use two legs”.
She said: “What I have seen in my lifetime is just a lot more awareness. People are much more willing to help. There’s not this scariness factor of someone with a wheelchair.
“I experienced that a lot in my younger years and I don’t get it so much anymore.”
She cites Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand as the countries with the most inclusive infrastructure, noting that more historic destinations tend to be poorer on this front.
While she accepts that the process of making a historic temple in Indonesia more accessible might be a challenge, she describes air travel as the biggest disappointment when travelling, stating that airlines have “a lot more to do” when it comes to making travel more inclusive for people with disabilities.
“In the past two or three years, it’s gotten slightly better,” she says. “And I hesitate to even say ‘slightly,’ because I don’t want to give the airlines too much credit.
“There is an immense amount of work that can go into flying for people with disabilities, and the airlines have a huge, huge responsibility to make it better.
“It is one of the most frustrating parts [of travelling] and just the treatment that the airlines give to people with disabilities.”
Despite this, Bruns says her experience of travelling using a wheelchair has given her an additional insight that non-disabled people may lack, citing an experience in Indonesia when she found herself temporarily stuck after she couldn’t get down a particularly high curb. In the end, a group of strangers came to her aid.
“In a strange kind of way, [being a wheelchair user] has allowed me to see humanity differently than an average traveller will see, because they can just go about, and step down that sidewalk and back up again,” she says.
“It’s no big deal [for them]. But I’m really relying on the help of complete strangers to get me to the places I want to go.”
With each new country she visits, Bruns aims to seek out a local person and “just chat with them about their family, life and culture”. She says: “To be able to chat with a local person and just get to know them is one of the most rewarding things for me.
“It’s such a solid reminder of how much human beings have in common, and how much we are the same.
“There’s so much hate in the world, but when you really sit down with people from all over the world, [you find that] we are really all the same. And it’s really refreshing.”
Bruns described the Middle East as one of her favorite regions to visit, calling it “fascinating” and the people “some of the kindest in the world”. The destinations she’s most looking forward to visiting next are Saudi Arabia and Madagascar.
After experiencing burnout, Bruns took a sabbatical from her job as an insurance executive in 2022 to pursue a year of “intense full-on travel”.
While she’d previously travelled with a companion or her partner, Bruns opted to travel alone on her big trip, booking a one-way ticket to Bali, Indonesia.
Renee Bruns Has Visited 129 Countries in Her Wheelchair — and Wants to Inspire Kids to Chase Their Dreams – Nice News
Sharing her adventures on Instagram, and Facebook she hopes her experiences will help inspire others to see as much of the world as possible.
Diastrophic Dwarfism
Content Area
Diastrophic dwarfism is a skeletal dysplasia that affects cartilage and bone development. Individuals with diastrophic dwarfism have short stature, with short arms and legs. Affected individuals may also have osteoarthritis and joint contractures. Diastrophic dwarfism is also characterized by the following deformities:
- Scoliosis (abnormal curvature of the spine)
- Hitchhiker thumb (shortening of the first metacarpal)
- Cleft palate
- Malformed ear cartilage
- Clubfoot
Diastrophic dwarfism is related to the skeletal disorder, atelosteogenesis, albeit less severe.
Diastrophic dwarfism is quite rare, occurring in 1 in 100,000 live births. It has been linked to mutations in the SLC26A2 gene, which provides instructions for making proteins necessary for the normal development of cartilage, and the conversion of cartilage to bone. Mutations to the SLC26A2 gene interfere with the normal development of cartilage to bone, resulting in the skeletal abnormalities characteristic of diastrophic dwarfism. The SLC26A2 gene is inherited recessively; therefore, affected individuals have both copies of the gene. The parents each carry a single copy of the recessive gene and typically do not show any symptoms.
At the Paley Institute we treat these patients with reconstruction of the hip, knee, and foot. Limb lengthening is sometimes performed to increase stature; however, lengthening is not always indicated due to the severe joint problems in these patients. Diastrophic Dwarfism – Paley Orthopedic & Spine Institute (paley institute.org)
Diastrophic Dwarfism – Paley Orthopedic & Spine Institute – Search Videos (bing.com)
Renee Bruns
From Wikitia
| Renee Bruns | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 21, 1984 (age 40) Maria Stein, Ohio |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Ohio Northern University Capital University |
| Occupation | Blogger Traveler Activist Life Coach Motivational Speaker |
Renee Bruns (born February 21, 1984) is a disabled American female, blogger,[1] traveler,[2] activist, life coach, and motivational speaker.[3] In 2023, she received a Guinness World Record[4] for ‘most countries traveled in one year with a wheelchair.’
In her one year of travel to achieve the Guinness World Record, she traveled to 55 countries.[5] Throughout her lifetime, she has visited 118 countries, all 7 continents, and all 50 US states.[6]
Contents
Early life
Renee was born in Maria Stein, Ohio and attended Marion Local Schools.[7] She was born with an undiagnosed skeletal disorder[8] and at an early age, she decided to visit all 50 states with her family, completing that goal by the age of 18. In 2022, she visited Antarctica and completed her goal of visiting all 7 continents.
Career
Renee earned her undergraduate degree from Ohio Northern University and her MBA from Capital University. She is a current online student at Business Science Institute in Luxembourg where she is working towards her Doctorate in Business Administration.
Renee worked in the insurance industry receiving numerous awards in her 15 year career, including a Breakout Award from Business Insurance magazine.[9] In 2022, she left her insurance executive role to travel the world.[10]
She is working towards visiting all 195 UN recognized countries. She is an active member of the travel community and won the NomadMania ‘Against All Odds’ award in 2022.[11] Renee is also an active podcaster appearing frequently as a guest on related podcasts. Press – Renee Bruns
Podcast Appearances
- Bound & Determined: The Risk of Regret with Renee Bruns[12]
- Counting Countries: Renee Bruns…Live More Authentically[13]
- CompTeam People Strategy Forum: Elevating Time Away: How To Make The Best Out Of Your Sabbatical with Renee Bruns[14]
- Insured Nomads: Wheels Travel The World: Accessible Travel for All with Renee Bruns | TNN68[15]
- Tell Us A Good Story: Episode 161: Renee Bruns[16]
- Wobbly Girl: Episode 8: Renee Bruns[17]
- The Struggle Is Real: 5 Surprising Reasons Americans Don’t Travel…And Why You Should Reconsider All of Them | E101 Renee Bruns[18]
References Renee Bruns – Wikitia Press – Renee Bruns
- ↑ “Wheels Travels”. Wheels Travels. 2023-08-02. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
- ↑ “Mélange Accessibility for All Magazine Spring 2023”. Joomag. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
- ↑ Reporter, The Evening Leader11 May 2023 By BRENT MELTON Staff (2023-05-11). “Record setting world traveller has local roots”. The Evening Leader. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
- ↑ “Most countries visited in one year (CID2)”. Guinness World Records. 2022-01-28. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
- ↑ “Most countries visited in one year (CID2)”. Guinness World Records. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
- ↑ “‘Do it,’ says a solo traveler who uses a wheelchair. ‘You won’t regret it.'”. CNN. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
- ↑ “Globetrotter”. The Daily Standard. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
- ↑ Brandes, Rebekah (2022-11-21). “Renee Bruns Has Visited 110 Countries in Her Wheelchair — and Wants to Inspire Kids to Chase Their Dreams: Exclusive”. Nice News. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
- ↑ “Break Out Awards | Business Insurance”. www.businessinsurance.com. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
- ↑ Chikhwaza, Jeremiah (2022-12-05). “Renee’s Sabbatical Story: Former Executive Travels on Wheelchair”. The Sabbatical Project. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
Got this in the mail February 14, 2023.
22 TED Talks That Will Change How You See the World (msn.com)