Check out Carson Tueller’s Real Bodies shoot for Attitude in 12 images
Exclusive: "The more I use my body in all sorts of different settings and ways, the more confident I feel"
The professional speaker and personal development coach, Carson Tueller, has discussed how he feels about his body in an exclusive chat with Attitude.
In the January/February issue – out now – Tueller, who was paralysed while trampolining in 2013, spoke movingly about his journey since then and how his relationship with his body has changed.
“Before I was disabled, I believed that I had a perfect body,” he shared. He recalled since feeling “frustrated at times living in a world that has not made space for someone like me.” He also said: “It can feel isolating and dehumanising to be barred from full participation in society by access barriers.”
Tueller then continued: “What I’ve found is that the more I use my body in all sorts of different settings and ways, the more confident I feel. I try to take risks; to do things I feel scared of, whether that’s travelling to a place with limited accessibility, or doing a nude photo shoot. The way I see it, I am not my body, but rather, my body is my collaborator, lover, friend, and helper. We work together in a beautiful symbiotic relationship, in a dance with one another.”
“My body is not a problem to overcome; it is my partner, and together we are creating a beautiful, complex, meaningful life” – Carson Tueller
He also shared with Attitude that through his work he has “found immense freedom” away from the perceptions of disability as an obstacle.
Elaborating on his thoughts he said: “Freedom is not a body or a situation alone; it is a way of being in the world. It is how we act that makes us free. My body is not a problem to overcome; it is my partner, and together we are creating a beautiful, complex, meaningful life.
“That’s also the message I’d like people to take away from this. Whether in speaking, coaching or writing, this is the work I am doing with people — creating radical freedom.”
Read the full interview in the January/February issue of Attitude – out now.
Words Carson Tueller as told to Alastair James Photography Drew Blackwell Styling Jamie Grace Fashion Assistant Tyler Sparling Hair and makeup Kela Wong using Balmain Hair and Charlotte Tilbury