{"product_id":"unconditionally-confident-accepting-your-disability-without-allowing-it-to-define-you-9798996061808","title":"Unconditionally Confident: Accepting your disability without allowing it to define you","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUnconditionally Confident: Accepting your disability without allowing it to define you\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eShe Designed A Life She Loved.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs rare as 1 in 50,000-Michaela Mulroe defied the odds: the odds of systemic expectations designed by those who never had to live by them.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBorn with Treacher Collins Syndrome, a cranio-facial disorder that affected her hearing, speech, and appearance, doctors predicted Michaela would live for only eight days as she struggled to breathe on her own. But she persisted, navigating the early reliance on a feeding tube and a trach alongside her younger brother, who was also born with Treacher Collins Syndrome.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGrowing up in an integrated family where the syndrome was part of the fabric of daily life for some but not all, Michaela learned early on how to persist with confidence. From the specialized \"zip codes\" of special education to the high-stakes world of professional advocacy, she spent years mastering \"conditional confidence\"-a fragile self-worth built on outperforming expectations to prove she had the right to exist.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThis is not just another underdog story; it is an authentically raw insight into the invisible systems that govern our lives.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRealizing that the barriers she faced were never a \"her problem,\" Michaela exposes the flaws within the very systems designed to support her. In this memoir, she pulls back the curtain on the \"performing\" that many survivors of trauma and systemic marginalization use as a shield. Whether it is the medical-industrial complex, the educational hierarchy, or social structures that demand we \"fix\" ourselves to belong, Michaela reveals how these flaws become \"our story.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWithin this narrative, a heart-wrenching friendship develops with May-a brilliant mind the system deemed \"not college material.\" By sharing May's struggle, Michaela challenges the tragedy of universally flawed systems and the brutal cost of low expectations. She weaves together her journey with a larger look at the collective struggle to find worth in a world that prioritizes \"perfection\" over humanity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAn Invitation to Rewrite Your Story\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eUnconditionally Confident\u003c\/em\u003e is an invitation to stop seeking validation from systems that don't see you and to start directing your own story. It is a guide for anyone who has ever felt like they had to earn their right to belong, offering a path toward a worth that is absolute, unshakeable, and unconditional.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Unconditionally Confident Solutions\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/04\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798996061808\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 230\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.91lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.56d","brand":"Mulroe","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52801377927349,"sku":"9798996061808","price":22.94,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/unconditionally-confident-accepting-your-disability-without-allowing-it-to-define-you-9798996061808","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}