CLEVELAND (CNN)–Determined to master martial arts, a wheelchair-bound man proves that anything is possible if you just believe.

All his life, Paul Brailer has been told the things he couldn’t do.

“I can feel the front of my legs, not the back, and not from the knee down. Being told ‘no, you can’t, you shouldn’t’ your whole life, you develop a low self-esteep.

Brailer was diagnosed with spina bifida. He’s been in a wheelchair since birth, but he didn’t let that stop him.

He said the mind is just as important as the body for everyone, especially someone in a wheelchair.

It’s something he learned after losing friends.

“About 6 months after I found out my friends passed away from being out of shape and poor health, two of my friends were mugged,” he said.

And that’s when he decided to do something about it.

“I want to encourage other disabled people to have self-confidence,” he said.

Now, Brailer has created “Criptaedo,” a special kind of self-defense for people just like him.

“With Paul, it’s purely enthusiasm,” said colleague Charles Campbell.

Over the past three years, he’s traveled to neighboring states to teach others his methods.

“I’m healthier than I was 7 years ago. I have more confidence than what I had 7 years ago. And that’s what Criptaedo is, that’s what the art of karate is,” he said.

“When he gets out in the community to the abilities expos, he blossoms with these people,” Campbell said.

Brailer’s main goal? To build self-esteem and show that the impossible is indeed possible.

“Just because you got wheels under your butt, doesn’t mean that you can’t, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try,” he said.

Paul became a second-degree black belt in karate last year, a first at his gym.

He hopes to connect with karate schools across the country to teach people young and old his methods.