For years I’ve heard stories from my chronically ill friends of loved ones who abandoned them or who refused to believe that their illness was real. So, I wanted to write a letter to the friends & family of chronically ill people.
Tag: disability accommodation
Is Dissociative Identity Disorder Divergent or Disordered?
I believe having DID falls under the neurodivergent umbrella, but at the same time it is a mental illness that can cause a great deal of distress. So, is Dissociative Identity Disorder divergent or disordered?
Squat and Poop: The Art of Adaptation
CN: bathroom talk The story of how the piece you’re about to read came into my inbox is one of the more serendipitous moments that I’ve experienced. I was listening to Mugabi’s episode of the podcast No End In Sight, a podcast about chronic illness, and I was struck by how unique and compelling his story was. When I learned that he was a writer, I knew I needed to contact him and ask if …Read More
Celebrating Disability Pride Month
Disability is a framework that teaches you to prioritize the needs of your mind and body over the expectations of society. Check out these articles to dive deeper into the experience of disability and chronic illness.
Hanging Out with Your Autistic Friend: A Guide to Social Inclusivity
CN: extensive description of the experience of autism including ableist treatment, triggers, and sensory overload. Mention of ableist term. Autism advocacy as a branch of activism is something I’ve learned a huge amount about just in the last few years, and one of the repeating problems the community faces has been how any “advice” on interacting with autistic people that’s published in large scale media sources, is exclusively written by neurotypical or allistic (the opposite …Read More
Adjusting to Social-Distancing & Other Lessons from Chronic Illness
CN: Extensive discussion of the experience of chronic illness, the emotional experience of living during the pandemic, brief discussion of ableism, grief, and financial hardships. The era of Covid-19 has been a strange time for folks with chronic illness. For anyone with pre-existing conditions that make catching the virus more dangerous, it has been a scary time with the already high stakes that surround our health getting even higher. But recently, everyone else’s world has …Read More
Redefining Disability: An Identity of Adaptation and Creativity
CN: extensive discussion of ableist cultural narratives Before 2014, I knew very little about the concept of disability or disability activism. Believing myself to be able-bodied, I had been protected from the whole world of problems disabled people face as a result of a society that isn’t built for them. My journey to identifying as a disabled person was anything but clear cut. Before the injury that flipped my life upside-down, I thought that my …Read More
Interview for Secular Sexuality
CN: brief discussion of sexuality, sexism influenced medical neglect, reproductive disorders, and disability. Remember my interview about sex and disability last month on the podcast Into Your Body? Story time: Before that podcast was recorded, Vi La Bianca, a previous guest blogger for Yopp, invited me to come onto her youtube show Secular Sexuality to discuss sex and disability. To be honest, I felt nervous about interviewing about a topic I don’t particularly specialize in– …Read More
Podcast Interview on Sex & Disability
A few weeks ago I got together with my friend DJ and we had a conversation about disability and sex for his podcast Into Your Body. Dj’s podcast explores some progressive takes on sexuality and your relationship with your body, particularly exploring how these topics intersect with particular marginalizations. This was my very first podcast and my first recorded interview and I had a really good time talking about some of the deeper nuances of …Read More
Interview on The Poet by Day
After my “Close the Camps” article went semi-viral I received a lot of messages and emails from people interested to talk to me, compliment my work, and get my input on their options for activism. It was a big shift from the level of activity around my blog that I’m used to! But perhaps one of the most exciting contacts I made from this process was writer and poet Jamie Dedes reaching out to me, …Read More