Paula Carozzo

When Paula Carozzo was five, she underwent a routine tonsillectomy in her hometown of Caracas, Venezuela. A few weeks later, she started having flu-like symptoms, which soon turned into neurological ones: she had no appetite, her motor skills declined, her cognitive functioning deteriorated, and her limbs grew weak. Then she lost her voice. 

She spent months in hospital where doctors tried to figure out what was wrong. Her parents sought second—and third—opinions in Venezuela, to no avail. So, they packed Paula up and moved to Miami. They consulted with a team of neurologists and orthopedists, who concluded that she had suffered some sort of brain damage that induced symptoms of cerebral palsy, a motor disorder that affects movement, posture, and balance. 

The brain damage caused no lasting cognitive impairment. But physically, Paula’s life was irrevocably changed.

Read in the Miami Woman book how Paula’s willpower and positivity helped her earn a degree in business and public relations at Florida International University and get her dream job at a PR firm focused on the beauty, fashion, and entertainment industries. And why she ultimately decided to move toward advocating for inclusivity rights and redefine what it means to live with a disability.

Lifestyle photography shot on location in Miami’s Design District.