Ashleigh's Story
Ashleigh chases adventure
Twelve years ago, Ashleigh was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune condition and began to lose her eyesight.
At the time, she was speaking with a psychologist who gave her an important piece of advice.
“We didn’t know how quickly my sight would change and his advice was to live your life with as little regret as possible,” she says.
To this day, Ashleigh still lives with this goal in mind. For her, that means travelling, chasing new experiences, and working as a litigation lawyer.
Now legally blind, Ashleigh continues to seek out adventures on the Gold Coast with her husband Craig often by her side.
“I still wanted to retain that sense of fun and freedom, and we have a big passion for boating which is perfect.”
In her work, Ashleigh has also discovered a passion for personal injury law.
“I understand that period of change where all of a sudden you've got limitations because of injury or impairment,” explained Ashleigh. “I really enjoy helping people through that process.”
Living with an acquired disability, Ashleigh never thought she would be someone who needed support services. But after developing a secondary condition that impacted her energy, she realised that accepting support was an important decision. “I applied for the NDIS, and it has been life-changing. Now we’ve got a bit of support to take that load off Craig and help me go about life.”
When she started searching for support services, Ashleigh had found it difficult to know where to look.
With the Disability Gateway, finding information in her area is much more convenient.
“Back when I became disabled, Disability Gateway didn't exist,” says Ashleigh. “Now you've got everything all in one place it makes it so easy to find what you need.”
Audio Visual
| Audio | Visual |
|---|---|
| [Background music playing: soft guitar] | A woman sits at a desk while typing on a computer. |
| My name is Ashleigh, I am a litigation lawyer. | Ashleigh is sitting in a chair and talking to the camera. Her loungeroom is in the background. |
| As I started losing my eyesight, I actually went and saw a psychologist and he said, live your life with as little regret as possible. | Ashleigh is smiling outside in the sun. We cut to a blurry shot of blue rippling water. |
| For me that was chasing experiences. | Ashleigh is sitting on a couch next her husband. They are talking and pointing to pins on a map of the world. |
| I live in the perfect area for boating on the Gold Coast. | We see a close up of a flag and an anchor on a boat. |
| The wind in my hair and the breeze on my face and I just feel free. | Ashleigh is smiling while looking over the water. |
| I obviously can't drive the boat but I am the deckhand or I like to call myself the cruise director. | Ashleigh and her husband are standing behind the steering wheel of the boat. Ashleigh uses a tablet to zoom in on a map. |
| The boat is the dog's boat. We get into trouble if we take the boat out without him | Ashleigh is holding a dog lead and walks onto the boat with a big black dog. Ashleigh puts a life jacket on the dog. |
| My husband is also a lawyer. He has really been my rock. | Ashleigh and her husband are sitting on a couch while looking at a photo album. They laugh and smile. |
| When I became disabled, Disability Gateway didn't exist. It makes it so easy to find what you need. | Ashleigh is on a computer and scrolling through the Disability Gateway website. |
| My interest lies in personal injury law. | Ashleigh is sitting in a chair and talking to the camera. Her loungeroom is in the background. |
| I have a really good understanding of what they're going through. | Ashleigh is doing tasks around the boat. She throws a rope and pulls down a lever. |
| I really enjoy helping people through that process. | A closing slide appears with the Disability Gateway logo, the Australian Government logo and the website URL: www.disabilitygateway.gov.au |
Audio Visual
| Audio | Visual |
|---|---|
| [Background music playing: soft guitar] | A woman sits at a desk while typing on a computer. |
| My name is Ashleigh, I am a litigation lawyer. | Ashleigh is sitting in a chair and talking to the camera. Her loungeroom is in the background. |
| As I started losing my eyesight, I actually went and saw a psychologist and he said, live your life with as little regret as possible. | Ashleigh is smiling outside in the sun. We cut to a blurry shot of blue rippling water. |
| For me that was chasing experiences. | Ashleigh is sitting on a couch next her husband. They are talking and pointing to pins on a map of the world. |
| I live in the perfect area for boating on the Gold Coast. | We see a close up of a flag and an anchor on a boat. |
| The wind in my hair and the breeze on my face and I just feel free. | Ashleigh is smiling while looking over the water. |
| I obviously can't drive the boat but I am the deckhand or I like to call myself the cruise director. | Ashleigh and her husband are standing behind the steering wheel of the boat. Ashleigh uses a tablet to zoom in on a map. |
| The boat is the dog's boat. We get into trouble if we take the boat out without him | Ashleigh is holding a dog lead and walks onto the boat with a big black dog. Ashleigh puts a life jacket on the dog. |
| My husband is also a lawyer. He has really been my rock. | Ashleigh and her husband are sitting on a couch while looking at a photo album. They laugh and smile. |
| When I became disabled, Disability Gateway didn't exist. It makes it so easy to find what you need. | Ashleigh is on a computer and scrolling through the Disability Gateway website. |
| My interest lies in personal injury law. | Ashleigh is sitting in a chair and talking to the camera. Her loungeroom is in the background. |
| I have a really good understanding of what they're going through. | Ashleigh is doing tasks around the boat. She throws a rope and pulls down a lever. |
| I really enjoy helping people through that process. | A closing slide appears with the Disability Gateway logo, the Australian Government logo and the website URL: www.disabilitygateway.gov.au |
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Ashleigh's Story
 | This story is about a person with a disability called Ashleigh. |
 | A long time ago Ashleigh got sick. |
 | The illness made Ashleigh lose her vision slowly. |
 | When Ashleigh got sick she talked to her psychologist. |
 | A psychologist is someone who helps your mind feel better. |
 | The psychologist told Ashleigh to make some goals. |
 | Ashleigh’s goals were:
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 | It took a few years for Ashleigh to go blind. |
 | Today Ashleigh is a lawyer. |
 | Ashleigh lives in the Gold Coast with her husband Craig. |
 | Ashleigh and Craig love going out on their boat. |
 | Ashleigh said being blind doesn’t stop her from having fun. |
 | Getting a disability made Ashleigh do lots of new things like:
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 | Ashleigh was confused about where to look for support services. |
 | The Disability Gateway website made it easy to find services in her area. |
 | Ashleigh likes the Disability Gateway because it has lots of information in one place. |