How adaptive clothing empowers people with disabilities | Mindy Scheier

翻译人员: YAN GAO 校对人员: Phoebe Ling Zhang

I love fashion.

我热爱时尚。

I actually go to bed every night thinking about what I'm going to wear

事实上，我每晚上床时都会思考

the next day.

明天穿什么。

Clothing transforms me,

服装改变了我，

defines me,

定义了我，

gives me confidence.

给了我自信。

You may not feel the same way about fashion,

可能你对时尚持不同看法，

but I bet you have a favorite T-shirt or a pair of jeans that transforms you --

但我打赌你有最喜欢的一件T恤 或一条牛仔裤，它改变了你——

makes you feel good,

让你感觉舒服，

makes you feel confident,

使你觉得自信，

makes you feel like you.

让你感觉像自己。

When I was younger,

当我年轻的时候，

I wanted to be Betsey Johnson.

我曾想成为 Betsey Johnson （美国著名服装设计师）。

I thought we were kindred, crazy-hair spirits together.

我感觉我们是同类， 都有疯狂发型的灵魂。

I did go to fashion design,

我确实曾进入时装设计行业，

I worked in the industry for years

工作了很多年，

and loved it.

并深爱着它。

I married,

后来我结婚了，

I had three kids.

有了三个孩子。

But life can be heartbreakingly ironic.

但生活竟如此令人心碎的讽刺。

My middle child, Oliver, was born with a rare form of muscular dystrophy,

我家老二 Oliver 出生的时候 就患有罕见的肌肉萎缩症，

or MD.

简称为 MD。

MD affects his muscle strength,

MD 影响他的肌肉强度，

his pulmonary system,

他的肺部系统，

distorts his body

让他的外形扭曲，

and makes everyday life more challenging than most.

让他日常的生活 比多数人更有挑战性。

From the time he could walk,

自他可以走路时开始，

which wasn't until about two and a half,

也就是还不到两岁半的时候，

he had to wear leg braces for stability.

他就必须使用腿部支架保持平衡。

Because he wasn't growing appropriately,

因为他不能正常地生长，

he had to wear a feeding tube that was placed on his face.

他不得不在脸上带着导食管。

He endured stares, and so did I.

他承受着来自旁人的打量，我也是。

But my husband Greg and I told him

但我和丈夫 Greg 都告诉他，

that no matter what,

不管怎么样，

he was just like everybody else.

他都和其他任何人是一样的。

But everyday tasks for Oliver

但我们认为理所当然的日常生活，

that we all take for granted

对于他来说

were incredibly challenging.

都非常有挑战性。

That simple act of dressing yourself -- the very thing that I adore --

给自己穿衣服这么简单的事—— 这件我极其喜爱的事——

was a nightmare for him.

对他来说就是噩梦。

His form of MD does not affect his mind.

他这种类型的 MD 并不影响大脑。

His brain is an A-plus,

他非常聪明，

which means he's acutely aware of his shortcomings.

就是说，他完全能意识到自己的缺陷。

This became very evident when he started school,

这在他开始上学的时候变得非常明显，

and that daily act of dressing yourself was a constant reminder

每天给自己穿衣服这件事 都在提醒他，

of what he could and could not do.

知道自己能做和不能做什么。

So our solution was for Oliver to wear sweatpants every day:

后来，我们的对策 是让他每天穿运动裤：

to school,

去学校，

to parties,

去派对，

on vacations --

去度假——

his uniform.

这就是他的“校服”。

For special occasions, he would wear proper pants.

在特殊的场合， 他会穿得体的西裤。

But many times, because he couldn't manage the button and zipper,

但经常因为他搞不定扣子和拉链，

I would have to take him to the men's room,

我不得不带他去男盥洗室，

which was incredibly embarrassing for him

这对他来说非常难为情，

and the other men that were in there.

对其他在场的男性来说也是。

But them -- I said, "Oh, please. There's nothing I haven't seen before."

但我说，“哦，拜托！ 好像我以前没见过一样。”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

For years we muddled through.

我们应付着过了很多年，

But when Oliver was in third grade,

但当 Oliver 上三年级的时候，

I found out he was more like me than I ever imagined.

我发现他比我想象中的更像我了。

Oliver, too, cared about fashion.

Oliver 也关注时尚。

He came home from school one day and said very definitively

有一天他从学校回来， 很确定地说，

that he was going to wear jeans to school like everybody else gets to wear.

他要像别人那样穿牛仔裤去学校。

Well, I certainly couldn't go to class with him

当然了，我肯定不可能 和他一起去学校，

and take him to the boys' room,

并带他去男盥洗室，

but there was no way I was telling my eight-year-old

但我没办法告诉我 8 岁的孩子，

that he couldn't wear what he wanted to wear.

他没办法随心所欲地穿他想穿的。

So that night,

所以那天晚上，

I MacGyvered the hell out of his jeans.

我改造了他的牛仔裤。

I remembered when I was pregnant

我想到了当我怀孕的时候，

and unwilling to stop wearing my own favorite pants,

我不想放弃穿我最爱的裤子，

even though I was busting out of them,

即使我要把它撑爆了，

that rubber-band trick.

当时那个橡皮筋的妙用。

You moms remember what I'm talking about?

在座的妈妈们理解我在说什么吗？

The rubber band through the buttonhole,

用橡皮筋穿过扣眼

around the button and back?

绕着纽扣缠几圈？

Instant stretch.

瞬间裤子就撑大了。

So I removed the zipper

所以我去掉了拉链，

so he could pull it up and down on his own.

让他可以自己穿上去或脱下来。

I cut up the side seam of the bottom of his pants

我把侧面裤脚的线剪开，

to accommodate for his leg braces,

让腿部支架也能塞进去。

applied Velcro --

我用了钩毛搭扣——

hold your ears, everybody: peel and stick, mind you --

仔细听听，各位， 得扯下来又贴上去，

so that it would close around it.

它就能包裹在周围了。

When I showed Oliver my arts and crafts project,

当我把这项手工艺品 展示给 Oliver 时，

he absolutely beamed.

他非常开心。

He went into school with his head held so high.

他高昂着头去学校了。

Those jeans transformed him.

这些牛仔裤改变了他，

He was able to get dressed on his own,

让他能够自己穿衣服，

he was able to go to the bathroom on his own;

他能自己去洗手间了，

those jeans gave him confidence.

这些裤子给了他自信。

I didn't realize it at the time,

那时我还没意识到，

but this was my first foray into the world of adaptive clothing.

但这却是我进入可适应性 服装领域的初次尝试。

Adaptive clothing is defined as clothing designed for people with disabilities,

可适应性服装被定义成为残疾人，

the elderly

老年人，

and anyone who struggles with dressing themselves.

以及任何在自己穿衣服方面 有困难的人设计的服装。

Adaptive clothing did exist,

可适应性服装确实存在，

but it was missing that mainstream fashion component.

但它缺失了主流时尚的成分。

It was very medicinal and very functional

它在医疗方面很实用，

but not stylish.

但并不时尚。

And that's a huge problem,

这是个很大的问题，

because what you wear matters.

因为你穿什么很重要。

Clothing can affect your mood,

衣服会影响人们的情绪，

your health

健康

and your self-esteem.

和自尊。

Now, being a fashion lover, I've known this forever,

其实，作为时尚爱好者， 我一直都知道这种感觉，

but scientists actually have a name for it.

科学家们实际上对此 有个特定术语，

It's called "Enclothed Cognition,"

叫“穿衣认知”，

the co-occurrence of two factors:

包含两个因素：

the symbolic meaning of clothing

衣服象征性的意义

and the physical experience of wearing the clothing,

和穿着衣服时的身体感受，

both of which have a direct correlation to how you feel about yourself.

两个因素都和你 对自己的感觉直接相关。

There's actually a professor in the UK by the name of Karen J. Pine.

实际上，英国有一位教授 叫 Karen J. Pine。

She wrote a book called "Mind What You Wear:

她写了一本书， 名为《注意你的穿着：

The Psychology of Fashion."

时尚心理学》。

She states in her book

她在书中强调，

that when you put clothes on,

当你穿上衣服时，

you adapt the characteristics of what you're wearing,

就通过穿着展示了你的个性，

whether you realize it or not.

无论你是否意识到了这个事实。

That's why you feel like a rock star

这就是为什么当你穿上

when you put on those perfect-fitting jeans.

非常合身的牛仔裤就会 觉得自己像摇滚明星。

That's why you feel invincible when you put on that power suit,

这就是为什么当你穿上那套 权力套装时感到战无不胜，

and that's why you feel beautiful

这就是为什么你穿上小黑裙

in that little black dress.

就觉得自己很美。

But that's exactly why Oliver felt so isolated

但这也就是为什么 当 Oliver 无法穿上

when he couldn't wear what he wanted to wear.

他想穿的衣服时，感到被孤立了。

He even said to me one time,

有一次，他甚至对我说，

"Mom, wearing sweatpants every day

”妈妈，每天都穿运动裤，

makes me feel like I'm dressing disabled."

让我觉得我在穿衣方面很无能。”

There are one billion people on our planet

我们的星球上共有 10 亿人

that experience some type of disability.

在经历不同种类的残疾。

One billion.

10 亿！

If 10 percent of that billion experience clothing challenges,

如果 10 亿人中的 10% 在经历穿衣困难，

that's an enormous amount of people that may not be as confident,

那就是一个巨大的群体， 他们无法得到应有的自信，

as successful

成功，

or even as happy as they could be.

甚至幸福感。

The morning after Oliver left for school wearing those jeans,

那天早晨，当 Oliver 穿着 那条牛仔裤去学校，

I realized that I could do something about that.

我开始意识到， 我可以就此做点什么。

And so I did.

于是我开始行动了。

In 2013, I founded an organization called Runway of Dreams.

在2013年，我成立了一个机构 叫做“梦想跑道”。

The mission was to educate the fashion industry

目的是为了告诉时尚产业，

that modifications could be made to mainstream clothing

可以在主流服装上做出些修改，

for this community that has never been served.

供给这些从未被服务过的群体。

And it began with an entire year of research.

为此，我还展开了 为期一整年的研究。

I went to schools, I went to facilities, I went to hospitals.

我去过学校，社区，医院。

I literally chased down people on the street who were in wheelchairs

我真的会在街上追上那些使用轮椅，

or if they had walkers

或者使用步行器，

or even if they had a slight limp.

哪怕是看起来有一点跛脚的人。

(Laughter)

（笑）

I know I must have looked insane,

我知道我看上去像是疯了，

but I knew that if I was really going to make a difference,

但我知道如果我真的想做点什么，

I had to truly understand the clothing challenges

我必须尽我所能真切地理解

of as many different people as I possibly could.

不同的人在穿衣方面面对的困难。

I met a young man who was 18 who has cerebral palsy.

我遇到一个 18 岁的小伙子， 他患有脑瘫，

He was going to Harvard University.

即将去哈佛大学读书。

He said to me, "Can you imagine?

他对我说， “你能想象吗？

I got myself into Harvard,

我进哈佛了。

but my dream is to be able to wear jeans on campus,

但我的梦想是 能在学校穿牛仔裤，

like the other freshmen will wear."

就像其他新生那样。”

I met a little girl named Gianna,

我遇到了一个叫 Gianna 的小女孩，

who was missing her left forearm and her hand.

她没有左前臂和左手。

Her mother told me

她妈妈告诉我，

she could not bear to see her daughter's difference magnified

她无法忍受看到 女儿的与众不同

by a dangling sleeve,

被空荡荡的袖口放大。

so she had every single long-sleeve shirt professionally tailored.

所以她将每件长袖衫都 进行了非常专业地剪裁，

Can you imagine the time and money she spent?

你能想象她所花费的时间和金钱吗？

I also had the great privilege of spending time with Eric LeGrand,

同时我也非常荣幸， 能与 Eric LeGrand 交谈，

former Rutgers football player who was paralyzed during a tackle in 2010.

他是罗格斯大学的前橄榄球员， 2010 年在断球过程中导致瘫痪。

I had, at this point, seen some unfathomable things,

在认识他之前，我已经见过了 很多难以料想的事情，

but this, by far, was the most heart-stopping.

但看到他时，他的状况最令我担心。

You see, Eric is a really big guy,

Eric 块头非常大，

and it took two aides and a lifting machine

为了给他穿衣服， 需要用到两个助手

to get him dressed.

和一台起重机。

I sat and watched this process for over two hours.

我坐在那儿，看着这个过程 进行了两个多小时。

When I expressed my shock to Eric,

当我向 Eric 表达我的震惊时，

he looked at me and said,

他看着我说，

"Mindy, this is every single day.

"Mindy，这是我每天的生活。

What can I say?

我能说什么？

I like to look sharp."

我也想要快一些。”

Research done.

调研结束了。

I knew that if I was going to make a change in the industry,

我知道，如果我试图 在行业里做出些改变，

I had to use my background

就必须要用到我的背景，

and really figure out how to make these clothes modified.

并且真正去解决 如何改良这些服装的问题。

So I took the information I gathered over that past year,

因此，我整理了 去年收集到的所有信息，

and I figured out that there were actually three categories

之后我发现， 实际总共有三类因素

that were affected across the board.

在影响大家。

The first were closures.

第一，是扣扣子的问题。

Buttons, snaps, zippers, hook-and-eyes were a challenge for almost everybody.

不管是纽扣，按扣，拉链还是钩扣环， 对所有人来说都是个麻烦。

So I replaced them with a more manageable technology:

所以我用更易掌握的技术 替换了它们：

magnets.

磁铁。

Magnets made our Harvard freshman able to wear jeans on campus,

磁铁让我们这位哈佛新生 能够穿牛仔裤去学校，

because he could dress himself.

因为他能自己穿衣服了。

Second: adjustability.

第二，是可调整性的问题。

Pant lengths, sleeve lengths, waistbands

裤长，袖长，裤腰

were a challenge for so many different-shaped bodies.

对于这么多不同的身形来说 确实是个问题。

So I added elastic,

所以我增加了它的灵活性，

an internal hemming system.

内置了卷边系统。

This way, Gianna could wear a shirt right off the rack

这样 Gianna 就可以 直接穿上现成的衣服，

and just adjust the one sleeve.

并只需要调整一只袖子。

Last: alternate ways to get the clothing on and off the body,

最后：穿衣和脱衣的替代方法

outside the traditional way of over your head.

并非你脑中所想的传统方式。

So I designed a way to go in arms first.

我设计了一种方法， 先把胳膊穿进衣服。

This, for somebody like Eric,

这一点对于像 Eric 一样的人来说

could actually take five steps off his dressing process

能减少穿衣步骤中的五步，

and give him back the gift of time.

帮他节省更多时间。

So I went out,

于是，我上街

I bought clothing right off the rack,

买了很多成衣，

I sat at my kitchen table, ripped them apart,

坐在厨房的桌子旁 把它们拆开，

did prototype after prototype, until I felt I had great modifications.

做了一件又一件样品， 直到得到了令我满意的改良。

And then I was ready for the big leagues:

之后，我准备好了 迎接更大的挑战：

the fashion industry.

时尚行业。

Rather than designing my own collection,

除了只做自己的设计，

I knew if I was really going to make a difference,

我知道，如果我真的想 为大众做出点什么，

I had to go mainstream.

我还必须进入主流。

I believed that I just needed to educate the industry

我坚信只需要告知这个行业

of the enormity of this population

这个群体有多么庞大，

and the fact that these were consumers

而这些消费者

that simply weren't being considered.

根本没有被考虑到。

And I am thrilled to say that the industry heard me.

让我激动的是， 时尚产业听到了我的声音。

Runway of Dreams collaborated with the most amazing,

“梦想跑道”和全球许多最棒，

forward-thinking brand on our planet --

最有前瞻性的品牌展开了合作——

(Applause)

（掌声）

who took my vision to market

他们将我的视角带入市场，

and made fashion history

通过发布首批

by launching the first mainstream adaptive collection.

主流可适应性服装系列 创建了时尚界的新纪元。

And the rest is yet to come.

之后的也会渐渐到来。

(Applause)

（掌声）

So --

所以——

(Applause)

（掌声）

Fashion holds the key to a vital lifeline.

时尚掌握着生命线的钥匙。

Clothing can be transformative.

服装改变人，

Clothing equals confidence.

服装创造自信。

So tomorrow,

所以明天，

when you are starting your day

当你开始新的一天，

and you're thinking about what you're going to wear,

你在思考要穿什么的时候，

I hope you appreciate the process

我希望你能珍惜这个过程，

and think about how what you chose

并想想你的选择

makes you feel.

如何影响你的感受。

Today, Oliver is 13.

现在 Oliver 13岁了

He wears his adaptive khakis,

他穿着改良后的卡其裤，

his magnetic button-front shirt --

正面有磁铁扣的衬衫－－

feels like the coolest kid around.

感觉自己是最酷的孩子。

My boy has total swagger.

我儿子现在时髦又自信，

(Laughter)

（笑）

As I mentioned,

就像我提到的，

Oliver's disease is degenerative,

Oliver 的疾病是会不断恶化的，

which means his muscles are going to break down over time.

这意味着，随着时间的推移， 他的肌肉会越来越萎缩。

This, by far, is the most devastating part for me.

目前为止，这是最让我心碎的事情。

I have to sit on the sidelines

我只能坐在一旁，

and watch my boy deteriorate.

眼睁睁地看着 他的情况不断恶化。

And there's nothing I can do about it.

我却无能为。

So I am looking up from the things that I cannot control

所以，我将注意力从 那些我无法控制的事

to the things that I can,

转移到我可以控制的事上，

because I have no option.

因为我没有别的选择。

And so, I am looking up.

因此，我要向前看。

And I'm asking the fashion industry to look up.

同时，我请求时尚行业向前看。

And now, I'm asking all of you

现在，我也请求你们

to look up, too.

也向前看。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）