For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move. – Robert Louis Stevenson There is no greater fear nor excitement that comes from relocating. There is no greater need to see what's out there, and search for something more. Something, different. Something...mysterious. Jumping back into reality, the modern world has made it damn hard but utterly convenient to move. The only thing that really holds us back, besides the suffocating security of routine around us, is literally our own family. Our own life. Kids! And if you have any sort of special need, disability or impairment? FORGETTTTABOUTIT!!! But seriously. There is more out there, so much more. Don't let that fear hold you too tight. Don't deny your need. Don't stay unhappy in a place because of your child. I can promise, there are a million possibilities out there. A million different lives you could be leading. I'm not going to push you out the door and throw your clothes after you. I'm even going to lay off on the whole "adventure is out there" bit. What I'm just saying is, there are other places that will cater to your life's high needs and be able to satisfy your need for a landscape change. My list of the best places to live.Here is a list I've made of states I think are worthwhile living in. I'll include some fun facts, family-friendly vacation spots, economy tidbits, and of course, medical centers! If you happy to live in one of the states and feel I left something out, please let me know! I'll gladly add it, if only to encourage a family's ability to spread their wings and find happiness. North Dakota is the 4th least populated state in America. Seriously, it is the 19th most expansive state, yet so few people actually live here! The only thing that seems to attract people to the state is the western hemisphere where are large oil boom is happening. Money is easy to be made in this state from either the tons of farms that need help, to the oil fields, or just from the simple lack of workers. At one point, Fargo was having to ship IN workers because of the shortage in the city. PERKS: It offers a Disability Waiver called a DD Waiver and an Autism Waiver in which the state covers services provided for disabled children and adults along with a lifelong acceptance to medical coverage also provided through Medicare. The Autism Waiver is in short supply but is steadily being brought back up to meet with demands of the state. There is no big influx of population. What's here is whose here. Upper Mid-western people who've lived here their entire lives with a hardworking attitude and a love for the land on which they live. There are a great many social programs offered through the state that are not often used. North Dakota is one of the only states to have a surplus in the budget every year. There are two amazing colleges: North Dakota State University (NDSU) located in Fargo, ND and University of North Dakota (UND) in Grand Forks, ND. Both are great schools with many outstanding academic programs along with sport teams as well. NDSU is mainly known for their football while UND is known for hockey. It is a large growing market with a HIGH need for skilled jobs and laborers. So if you have a job that is specialized in any labor centered field (construction, plumbing, electrical, etc.) the pay may be much higher than the average in the field. CONS: The medical facilities in the state are about average, with the cities holding more specialized care than others. Many complicated procedures or complex conditions are either treated by traveling doctors or referred out of state to other specialized facilities. It is considered a high-need area for therapists but with the colleges offering therapy programs, the need will decrease near graduation time in May. (The nation is considered to have a shortage of physical, speech and occupational therapists). There are not many family friendly centered resorts or attractions; typically residents travel out of state to enjoy themselves. There are 8 islands that make up Hawaii making it the state with the 4th longest coastline and the 8th smallest. It has a variety of cultures with a mix of American, Asian and native Hawaiian. PERKS: It's a tourist hot spot! The service industry is a huge selling point for the state, making quite a bit of money. Service industry and hospitality careers will find no shortage! Also, with the popularity as a vacation spot, there are plenty of activities to do on the islands. Each island offers different types of attractions based on the island itself. Most are family-friendly! Hawaii's disability waiver program is called Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) for those with developmental or intellectual disabilities. HCBS offers more services to aid the disabled to live independently or in family homes vs. institutions. They provide a wide variety of services based on the person's abilities (like job training, personal assistance, skills training, transportation) while also offering FAMILIES of those caring for the disabled (respite, assisting technology, vehicle modification). MA is also offered through this program to cover insurance and offers a wide variety of medical clinics and hospitals. Traveling between islands is pretty easy and convenient so if there is a facility you must get to for treatment, a plane can bring you there in like 45 minutes. CONS: Is it even possible for Hawaii to have a con? It's frickin' Hawaii!! Well, there is the population influx with a steady stream of travelers and certain times of the year being way more crowded than usual. Not all islands are the same. If you want a less populated island, the lower income will be. So choose wisely. Native Hawaiian culture is taken very seriously by those who live within the state. It is not the America offered all across the continental United States. So please tread carefully when addressing cultural heritage and respect the island locals. Maine is the northern most state in the continental United States and is the 39th most expansive state. Seafood is like a staple; water being a basis for a lot of the culture. If you love to ski, snowboard and hike, the Appalachian mountains run right through this state! PERKS: Maine is a picturesque state. Beauty beyond compare. It is close to all the huge cities/states that hold great medical care. If you needed, New York City is only 5.5 hours away. Specialists can't be too far gone with such major hubs only a state away. There is a grouped waiver that includes developmental and intellectual disabilities along with autism. Services are all included together. However, there must be an examination done to determine level of function and need of services which might cut services offered based on abilities demonstrated by the disabled. Maine offers a special fishing or hunting permit for the blind, paraplegics, disabled veterans, and the impaired. They offer services that bring full access of jobs, community integration, and independence. The deaf are offered their own special services through the Division of Deafness (DoD) where they assist with technology, advocacy, hearing-ear-dogs, and representation with certain legislative concerns. The sea food is fresh here. Like actually caught that day, and bought off the docks. Fresh sea food will change your life! Maine also offers a separate services that provides MA to those who are disabled based on federal guidelines. Maine outputs many sources of products like seafood (commercial fishing and lobstering), bottled water in the western part of the state, paper and lumber products, with a rising role of tourism. CONS: It is pretty wild in some parts of Maine with wildlife interacting with people on a daily basis. Moose, eagles, bears, oh my! Obviously, just like North Dakota, Maine has some killer winters! And some years, winter seems to dominate the year. So being more prone to indoor pleasures or freezing your butt off in the cold pleasures might help you survive around here. Maine is typically heated by oil, which must be delivered to your home and can get quite spendy with the long winters ahead! Public transportation is in it's infancy still here, so learn to own and maintain a vehicle (in the summer when it isn't 20 below out there). Cost of food may be slightly raised living in rural areas with grocery stores also 30 miles away, so learning to stockpile might be essential. Well, the cost of living in general is pretty high in Maine compared to other places, but if you ask anyone will lives there, they will tell you: it's worth it. So....wowMy list got to be pretty long while only writing about THREE states. So I'll have to make this some kind of series, since there are clearly other states I meant to mention but with how long this was getting, I knew I'd be losing people. So thank you for reading this far, I'll be sure to do my research on some other states that might inspire that lovely itch of adventure. I hope you all found this interesting enough and share it with someone who might need it.
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AuthorGabrielle Rae is a special needs, stay at home mommy of two boys. She enjoys reading and writing novels in her spare time. @onbothfrontsArchives
August 2018
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