Wayne Connell joins John O’Leary on his Live Inspired podcast What Living with an Invisible Disability Teaches Us About Real Love and Connection When someone asks you who you are and why you’re here, what’s your response? For Wayne Connell, founder of the Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA), the answer is simple: “I’m here to help […]
30 Years of Making the Invisible No More: The IDA Story Today, January 1, 2026, marks a monumental milestone for the disability community. It has been exactly 30 years since a spark of empathy and a desperate need for validation evolved into the Invisible Disabilities® Association (IDA). What began as a personal effort to help […]
Imagine a world where the challenges faced by those living with invisible disabilities are not only acknowledged but actively supported. What if we actually See the Invisible? This May, the Invisible Disabilities® Association (IDA) invites you to be a part of making that vision a reality through the annual 2025 Invisible Disabilities® Walk & Roll. This empowering […]
Alaska adopts voluntary invisible disability designator on ID card/Driver’s License JUNEAU, AK – In partnership with the Invisible Disabilities Association, the state of Alaska Legislature authorized their DMV to provide a method for a person to voluntarily designate on a driver’s license or identification card, a discreet symbol that identifies a person with a medically […]
Join Invisible Disabilities Association this October 14-20 to “get the word out” as our nation recognizes invisible disabilities week. They will be providing lots of activities and resources through IDA for you to share with families and friends, companies and groups to be involved in this week dedicated to informing others about people living daily […]
Invisible Disabilities Awareness Campaign Gives People Opportunity to be Heard and to Win Great Prizes Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) and Allsup launch the #IAmInvisibleNoMore Video Campaign and Contest allowing those impacted by invisible disabilities to share their stories to bring awareness and have the opportunity to win prizes. PRESS RELEASE: Parker, CO, February 28, […]
Invisible Disabilities Association Fundraising Will Benefit from an Improved Facebook Donation Policy You can now contribute to the Invisible Disabilities Association on Facebook and rest assured every cent will go to our critical cause because of an improved Facebook donation policy. CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Nov. 26 that the company would stop deducting fees on donations to […]
IDA Facebook Frames a Huge Hit During Invisible Disabilities Week IDA Facebook Frames were first introduced for the 2017 Invisible Disabilities Week (IDW) and they are extremely popular. The frames are an overlay on a person’s profile photo. They share a message that the profile belongs to someone who lives with an invisible disability or […]
Invisible Disabilities Week wrap up gave us pause to reflect on how thankful we are to all of our followers, community and hard-working team of volunteers for helping to make this 2017 Invisible Disabilities Week a huge success! As a result, the Invisible Disabilities Association was able to support and spread messages of awareness, education and […]
Invisible Disabilities Champions include Wayne Brady to be Honored at the 10th Annual Awards Gala in Colorado on Oct. 21 Lone Tree, Colo. (Oct. 03, 2017) Invisible Disabilities® Association (IDA) honors its 2017 Invisible Disabilities champions on Oct. 21st at the 10th Annual Awards Gala, Laugh Out Loud, in Lone Tree, Colo. Among this year’s recipients is […]
Join Invisible Disabilities Week on Oct. 15-21. By doing so, we are unified in our mission to bring awareness, education and support to our neighborhoods and around the world about invisible disabilities. People often ask what the term invisible disability means. In simple terms, it is a physical, mental or neurological condition that limits a […]
Mandy Harvey performance of “What a Wonderful World,” which took place during her appearance at the Invisible Disabilities Awards Gala in October 2016, was released in July 2017 on YouTube. It has climbed quickly to close to 20,000 views on the Invisible Disabilities YouTube channel. “What a Wonderful World,” featured on Mandy’s jazz album “Smile,” […]
People want to know about your illness, so they ask you. You explain it, but they still refuse to believe you. You think, ‘You just asked me and I just told you.’ They are thinking, ‘But they look OK on the outside.’ “The truth is, no one really knows what the illness or injury has […]
How do you go about defining invisible disability? Is it a specific illness or condition, such as multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, bipolar disorder, diabetes, a Chiari malformation or syringomyelia? Is it the symptoms of an illness or disability, such as pain or fatigue or neuropathy or brain fog? Why do we even use the phrase? Where […]
Wired Together, a brain retraining and neuroplasticity symposium was hosted by Brain IDEAS. Neuroplasticity, brain training, brain-based therapy, rewire your brain, brain mapping, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), mindfulness, and therapeutic humor. Microbiome, unconscious mind, attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, dyslexia, Alzheimer’s, Down syndrome, nutrition, and stroke. Post-traumatic stress […]
“Some disabilities are more obvious than others. Many are immediately apparent, especially if someone relies on a wheelchair or cane. But others — known as ‘invisible’ disabilities — are not. People who live with them face particular challenges in the workplace and in their communities,” said National Public Radio (NPR). “You know, it’s that invisible […]
Resolve to Believe Even Though You Might Wonder How Someone Who Looks So Good Can Be So Sick Resolve to believe. As yet another year dawns and, of course, I need to make at least one resolution. The good news is that I know I can keep this one. I resolve to believe you! I […]
Top 10 Blogs of Disability.gov featured Invisible Disabilities Association for the fourth time. IDA Founder and President, Wayne Connell is a regular guest blogger on Disability.blog by Disability.gov. IDA is elated to announce that its blog made the “Top 10 Guest Blogs of 2015.” Wayne and his wife Sherri Connell were thrilled to receive the recognition for the fourth consecutive […]
Acquired Savant, Derek Amato, goes on the air with Colorado and Company’s Host, Denise Plante. Derek talks about invisible disabilities and the Invisible Disabilities Association. He also shares his story of how he is one of only 30 known people who became “Acquired Savants” after a head injury. Derek is the only person known to acquire the […]
The number one question people ask of our organization, the Invisible Disabilities Association is “What is an invisible disability?” The term invisible disabilities refers to the invisible symptoms such as debilitating pain, fatigue, dizziness, cognitive dysfunctions, brain injuries, learning differences and mental health disorders, as well as hearing and vision impairments. These are not always obvious […]