On the Other Hand : Navigating Disability, Growing Up, and Finding Your Own Way

Drawing on a lifetime of lived experience, this practical and personal guide offers clear, compassionate support for people with physical disabilities. Written by Emily Tisshaw, who was born without a left hand, it shares real-life strategies and honest reflections for navigating life in a world not built for disabled bodies.

Emily Tisshaw was born without a left hand. So, from birth, she had to do things a little differently in order to navigate a two-handed world. This practical guide grows out of a lifelong process of adaptation, trial and error, and learning how to exist confidently in spaces that were never designed with her body in mind. Blending personal storytelling with clear, accessible advice and disability theory concepts, Emily explores everyday life with a physical disability: relationships and dating, school and the workplace, body image, advocacy, and navigating public spaces and systems. She shares tools, strategies, and honest reflections that speak directly to readers with physical disabilities, without glossing over frustration, fatigue, or inequality. This is not inspiration porn. This is a practical, compassionate guide for those in the PD community who want to live well on their own terms, and for anyone seeking to understand disability through the voice of someone who lives it every day.