Last summer, Coloplast SpeediCath products were the focus of an Access Health spot on Lifetime TV. To give our readers a sneak peek before the show aired, Wheel:Life interviewed the two featured SpeediCath users, Kirk Ingram and Tatiana Lee. Ingram became paralyzed in 2015 as a result of a diving accident, while Lee was born with spina bifida. With the help of Coloplast products, Ingram has been able to enjoy some of the activities he loved doing pre-injury, and Lee continues to pursue her high-paced Hollywood lifestyle as an actress and model. Wheel:Life has been following the two since last summer, and we wanted to share their incredible accomplishments and upcoming projects with you!
When Wheel:Life spoke to Kirk Ingram last summer, he was working out 20–25 hours per week to improve his bicep strength and shoulder stability. Months later, he’s still devoting as much time toward his goal of holding his almost four-year-old daughter and says progress is definitely being made, albeit not as quickly as he’d like. Keep it up, Kirk! We’re cheering for you!
You may also remember the work he and his wife, Melissa, were doing with Get Up Stand Up To Cure Paralysis. As vice chairman, he helped put together an event last September in which the nonprofit raised $35,000 to be given to SCI research groups in Minnesota. Kirk has since moved into the chairman position and is currently spearheading a project to create an SCI resource book for states in the Upper Midwest called Spinal Cord Injury: A Resource Guide. GUSU is partnering with Sam Maddox for the effort who has already produced Southern California and Rocky Mountain region versions of the guide. Expect to see the final edition sometime soon when it will be available in both print and pdf format completely free of charge! More information on the books can be found at scifirst90days.com.
Since her big break where she appeared in an Apple ad campaign, Tatiana Lee has certainly been busy. She continues to advocate for disability representation in the media and hasn’t slowed down on Instagram where she shares recent projects with over 5,000 followers. In the fall of 2018, Lee was awarded the Christopher Reeves Acting Scholarship, and this spring, she was a Communications Fellow at RespectAbility, a nonprofit that “fights stigmas and advances opportunities for people with disabilities.” She also participated in the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge in April.
One of Lee’s most recent modeling projects was a photo shoot for Zappos Adaptive. A subsidiary of Amazon, Zappos launched their adaptive branch in April of 2017 aiming to provide functional and fashionable clothing and shoes to people with disabilities. Check out this behind-the-scenes video with Lee where she talks about becoming the images she yearned to see as a child growing up with a disability.
As you can see, Coloplast’s SpeediCath products continue to help both Ingram and Lee go about their daily lives while advocating for the causes they’re passionate about. Be sure to head over to Coloplast.us/AccessHealth to watch the full spot and get an in-depth look at Ingram and Lee’s stories. You’ll also gain knowledge on intermittent catheterization from urologist Dr. Dean Tortorelis, and learn how it could help you or a loved one transition back into an active lifestyle.
Head over to Coloplast.us/AccessHealth now to watch the full Access Health spot!
About the Author
Betsy Bailey has a diverse background that includes experience in marketing research, business operations, travel and culinary writing, and playing volleyball professionally overseas.
Betsy has been writing for Wheel:Life since January of 2017 and thoroughly enjoys the process of getting to know her interviewees. She also practices parkour, speaks French fluently, and travels any chance she gets!
