The day you get married is supposed to be one of the best days of your life.
There’s all the anxious anticipation and the final reward of pledging your love to the person you want to spend your life with. Still, any positive event is sure to generate at least some jealousy and negativity—and it’s made all the more possible, in some cases, by the internet.
That was what happened to Sean Stephenson and his wife, Mindie Kniss.
On first glance, Stephenson and Kniss have an obvious height difference.
Stephenson stands at only 2’ 8” compared to his wife, who is 4’ 11”. As it turns out, he was born with a rare growth disorder called osteoporosis imperfecta which affects about one in every 15,000 people. The disease causes the bones to be very brittle which can may lead to serious injuries and fractured bones.
As a result, Stephenson had broken more than 200 bones by the time he was 18.
After posting their wedding pictures, Stephenson and Kniss were ambushed by internet bullies.
Many people wondered how the pair could’ve matched and questioned whether or not Kniss was interested in Stephenson for some ulterior motive. Was it money? Could he satisfy all of her needs? Could they even have a normal sex life?
Fortunately, it was the loving couple who were in for the last laugh.
The truth is that Stephenson and Kniss are both motivational speakers.
Stephenson has given an inspirational TED Talk with nearly three million views on YouTube. He is also a board-certified therapist, a best-selling author and has given counsel to the likes of Bill clinton and Richard Branson. Kniss is also a high-powered businesswoman: she does executive coaching, is the CEO of Radias, a company and is a global humanitarian.
Though no response was really needed, Stephenson and Kniss spoke out against the negativity:
“It’s appalling to suggest that my husband cannot satisfy me sexually and it’s none of their business.”
For his part, Stephenson was a little confused—and maybe even amused—by the comments:
“Sex is probably the biggest part of my life.”
Though Kniss and Stephenson’s accomplishments dwarf the average people’s, their reply was important.
Stephenson has a self-professed mission to “rid the world of insecurity.” As a result, he could not abide a personal attack on himself and his wife. The truth is that world has a wide range of negative stereotypes that we apply to the disabled that are not only inaccurate—on some level, they are evil.
Through his work and life, Stephenson wants to send a message to the world.
Disabled people can have fulfilling lives and can achieve as much or more than able-bodied people. That includes fulfilling and exciting sex lives, as well. The pain and difficulty of our actual problems is often nothing compared to the difficulty of overcoming pressures from other people telling you that you don’t belong, or who are predicting your failure. In his own work, Stephenson has a message:
“Never believe a prediction that doesn’t empower you . . . I have a belief that has served me in my life, and that is, ‘Everyone is rooting for me to win, even those that do not know it.’”
Above all, Stephenson and Kniss’s marriage shows us what the power of love and positivity can overcome.
Check out their original wedding video below!
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