Disability Shit

Main blog: @macaroni-mug Crip Punk

[acestims]

Hey, hey guys. I have a reminder to share with you.

You’re allowed to want things that you don’t need.

(I’m specifically talking about mobility aids here because y’know,,,disability blog)

Like, I don’t need a wheelchair. I won’t die or be completely bedbound without one. I can walk and stand, I’ve been doing it my whole life. But I still want one, because despite all that, it’s still painful and tiring to do those things. Yes I can leave my flat and go out to places, but I don’t want to when I don’t have to because I know it’ll be exhausting.

Similarly, I don’t need my cane, I walked without it for over 18 years. But I wanted it, and I got it, and it’s helped me so much.

Idk what my point is here just,,,let yourself want things, especially things people tell you that you have to need in order to have them. And let yourself get those things you want!

[librarycards]

here is a case in point: ppl on here lambast the social model, which is fine, except that they're doing it with a fundamental misunderstanding of what the model actually is. it isn't "anticapitalism cures disability," it's "divorced from an economic model that condemns certain bodyminds to abjection via norms, architecture, etc, the lived experience of impairment fundamentally shifts, meaning that the social/cultural category of disability fundamentally shifts".

the model is designed not to claim to "get rid of" disability, but instead to refuse an approach that blames individuals for our own abjection. it points the critical eye instead toward systemic problems that render us expendable, unimportant, unpersons.

[librarycards]

to put a finer point on it, the social model doesn't say (and no model "says" anything, it's a framework rather than a prescription) "under communism there is no having-trouble-doing-the-dishes" or "under communism there is no serious chronic pain". it says that these experiences will not result in someone being relegated to a subordinate/"useless" category under a capitalist caste system. it understands that the social category of disability is grounded in artificial notions of what humans aught to do, and what we ought to need; this, we understand using the social model, is *socially* contingent, and the way we discuss impairment and difference of all kinds is not fixed/inherent.

people, in short, are not "biologically" useless or too-needy, regardless of their embodied/enminded experiences. their relationship to the world - and to the status of 'being disabled' by social conditions - is not natural, but contingent on the availability of access to support, care, and other resources. in a world built by ableism (such as our own) it is necessary to reorient the ways we approach impairment such that our comrades are able to access public life, regardless of need.

[autisticadvocacy]

2 UC Berkeley students make history as 1st nonspeaking autistic graduates

Both graduates hope to inspire others with nonspeaking autism and say those with disabilities can achieve a lot if they are able to participate.

“I want people to know that we can achieve a lot if we are able to participate.” David Teplitz and Hari Srinivasen have become the first nonspeaking autistic graduates from U.C. Berkley. 

[ultraviolet-techno-ecology]

Embossed braille should be standard on computer keyboards. 

It would raise braille literacy more than anything else I could imagine - among both the blind and the sighted. Currently braille is actually vanishing due to an increasing reliance on audiobooks and screen readers. 

I think that braille has a lot of potential use among non-blind groups. As an alternative to traditional writing for dyslexics. As a way to help photosensitive people type with their eyes closed. Or simply as a means to help sighted people find things without needing the lights on all the time!

[acutelyhomosexual]

Accessibility note: It’s important that braille doesn’t vanish because it’s one of the only written language that works for blind and sight-impaired people. It is necessary for them to interact with the real world where screen readers and audio devices are not available to them, such as elevators, most major metro systems, stairwells, doorways, the bumps in the sidewalk at corners are actually developed in conjunction with audio signals so blind people don’t step off the curb into traffic before the correct time. 

Digital technology has made accessibility so much easier for all of us disabled people, but we still *need* the real-world accommodations that we fought and died for

[psychoticallytrans]

This blog will always be in support of people with subclinical or undefined disabilities.

As we see with the recent narrowing of the diagnosis of autism, as well as how the definition of EDS was narrowed, the diagnosis criteria for disabilities is not purely scientific, and often carries motivations that are closely tied to ableism. If someone is subclinical for a disability but is suffering from or limited by it, that will be respected here.

The second is more personally motivated. We never found out what my father's most disabling disability was, but by the end of his life, he couldn't be touched without experiencing pain. The fact that I can't put a name to his disability does not mean that he was not disabled.

Not knowing how to name your disability is isolating and frustrating. But here, you are part of the disabled community.

I hope that you get the care and accommodations that you need, even without a diagnosis to put force behind it.

[bonni]

it really bothers me that so many people on this site treat ableism like it’s black and white.

just now i saw a post where op was like “i’m glad that spinners are popular because it normalizes fidgets and decreases stigma” and someone replied like “no!! it’s absolutely TERRIBLE that neurotypicals are using these fidgets because when they get in trouble they make things harder for mentally ill kids!!” and like you guys do realize that? you’re both right? it isn’t a decisive fact that neurotypicals using fidgets is either good or bad, there are both benefits and consequences that need to be taken into consideration.

a few months ago there was a post going around that was like, *neurotypical voice* why are you bouncing your leg, and somebody reblogged it saying that the post was ableist because autistic kids can get overstimulated by leg bouncing. i go to a school for the mentally disabled, and i’ve been in this exact scenario, my classmate wasn’t able to focus because i was bouncing my leg and although i felt bad i told him that i wouldn’t be able to stop for long because i do it subconsciously due to my adhd. he wasn’t being ableist for asking me to stop, and i wasn’t being ableist for saying i couldn’t, we just both had different needs. in the end, our compromise was that i went to work in the computer lab.

you have to understand that there is always more than one side to issues like these, and that we should be striving for understanding and balance over demonization of one side and blind support of the other. this is especially relevant when people on both sides are mentally ill or disabled, because sometimes symptoms will clash and you just need to deal with it.

[frutee]

can everyone on this site just please. read this last paragraph a few times. this is a great anecdote to express this. black and white thinking is bad.

[caitas-cooing]

Conflicting access needs are real and we can’t get rid of them only communicate and work around them

[dissociacrip]

even "mild" chronic pain can suck. really bad. your body just aches constantly and even though it's minor, it can eat away at you. please take your pain seriously no matter how bad you think it is. no one deserves to endure it if it's not something that can be treated or mitigated.

[talkethtothehandeth-deactivated]

Hello, I just found something really important if you’re chronically ill/disabled.

I’ve had to contact the crisis line before— both the phone hotline and through text. Whenever my struggles also had to deal with chronic pain or my disabilities, I would always hear the, “You’re so brave!” Or, “You’re such an inspiration.”

And we all know how that is.

While lying on a heating pad and being able to relax because to medicine, I finally got hit with the idea to search “Chronic pain text line” on Google. I found one that is ran by disabled people. This is located in the US, and I’m not sure if there are ones in different countries.

Replies won’t be immediate as there are certain windows of time (based on your location) that responders will be available, but you can easily check the calendar to see what times you’d be able to connect with someone.

If you’re interested, you can text CARE to

[phone]

It’s for every disabled person, those diagnosed, those undiagnosed, and anyone who needs support.

Take care of yourselves. 🌿

[heyatleastitsnotcancer]

Our website for the SSI Restoration Act of 2021 is launched! It provides resources on the current SSI system, what the bill will fix, stories from disabled people on SSI, and ways to contact your state reps to support the bill (seriously it makes it so easy. We have it set up to send letters to your state reps and it only takes a few minutes. There's also resources for how to call and a script for calling). Please please check the website out and if you're on Facebook, like the Facebook page "Campaign to Fix SSI" which will provide regular updates.

[teaboot]

Wait what's a buildings fire evacuation plan if you aren't supposed to use the elevator to get down

[lazodiac]

You go down the stairwell/fire escape. Is that weird?

[teaboot]

But what if you have a walker or a wheelchair??

[durpacerangerrogjro]

in america at least, in this situation, there isnt one. either your loved ones or the firemen can get you out using the emergency fire escapes or stairs, or you die 

[teaboot]

That's fucking horrific, thank you

[official-lucifers-child]

“fun” little story:

last summer my friend who is an amazingly talented artist and i were in this super tall building, and she’s in a wheelchair and i’m pushing her around the room. it’s an art exhibit and some of her art was chosen to be showcased there and so it’s all fine and dandy until suddenly an alarm starts going off

a FIRE ALARM

everyone starts running for the stairs and my friend just looks at me with this forlorn look on her face

“i can’t go down the stairs”

but i’m a stubborn bitch “i’ll carry you”

“what about my chair? it’s too expensive for me to be able to get another one if i can’t get this one back”

“i’ll carry that too”

and i did. we went to the stairs (by then most people from our floor were gone) and i lifted her up in a fireman’s carry over my shoulder and then lifted her chair up and used the ridiculous amount of adrenaline that was coursing through my veins to make it down approximately 20 half-flights of stairs until we met some people exiting lower floors, one of which who kindly took the chair. I changed positions so i was holding my friend bridal-style which was, somehow, easier and the person who took her wheelchair (with her permission to handle it of course) accompanied me to the ground floor and then out the doors

basically there is no real protocol for people who can’t use the stairs in an emergency. it’s up to the people with them, if anyone, to help them or the person to somehow make it down the stairs alone, unassisted

thank fuck that it was just a faulty alarm system, because if i was unable to carry her down those stairs and the building was on fucking fire???? then i don’t know what would have happened to her, but i don’t think it would have been very good.

it’s fucking ridiculous and ableist to the absolute max.

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

I use a cane. When I did a day-long fire safety training at my northeast American university (UMass Amherst), I asked that exact same question: “what am I supposed to do if the fire alarm goes off and I’m in my lab on the twelfth floor?” 

the fire marshal hemmed and hawed for a while and then said to take the elevator- you’re supposed to leave it free for the fire department to use and they want able-bodied people out fast not waiting for elevators. if the fire alarm has just gone off the building probably hasn’t suffered enough structural damage to make using the elevator dangerous, and modern elevator wells are heavily reinforced. many large and high-trafficked buildings on my campus have fire rated elevators that link in with the fire alarm system so they won’t let you off on a floor with a possible fire. 

if the elevator isn’t working, wait in the stairwell and call the fire department to let them know where you are. modern stairwells are also heavily reinforced- it might not be pleasant but modern building code usually requires fire-resistant stairwell doors in office and big residential buildings, also to help firefighters get in and out safely. older buildings’ stairwells may or may not be retrofitted with fire-resistant doors but a stairwell is generally the safest place to wait if you can’t get out. 

what happened to your friend was horrible, and i’m very glad you were there to help her out, but you can absolutely use the elevator to evacuate if it’s not shut down. those don’t-use-the-elevator rules are for abled people.  

[tisfan]

This is GOOD TO KNOW. why do they not tell people this??

[ravynfyre]

Okay, firefighter here. If you are not physically able to use the stairs, and the elevator is NOT compromised, use the elevator. But you MUST be ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that the elevator is NOT compromised before you get into it, because there is always the chance that once you get into it, you may not exit it. Power could go out. The elevator may actually BE compromised and you just couldn’t tell from where you were until you were in there, and it suddenly shuts down on you. Something else could happen. 

Understand that once you enter the elevator, you could POTENTIALLY be taking your life into your hands there.

It is NOT LIKELY, to be perfectly honest. It’s only in a pretty catastrophic scenario - think the Twin Towers, USA, on September 11th - that the elevators will be compromised and out of service. But there is a NOT ZERO PERCENT CHANCE and you need to understand that and accept it.

As for leaving the elevators free for the firefighters, okay, here’s the deal. Unless your nearest fire station is literally right next door? Your first on scene fire truck is NOT likely to be there on scene and needing that elevator before you get to the ground. It takes us TIME to find the address, gear up, and drive to the building. Then we need to hoof it into where the elevators even ARE, so YOU HAVE TIME to use the elevator to get down to the ground floor... BUT ONLY IF THERE’S NOT A RUSH ON THE ELEVATOR! And THAT is WHY we don’t tell people this shit. That’s WHY we tell people to NEVER USE THE ELEVATOR... because every self-entitled asshole will use it because they don’t feel like walking, and then put YOU in danger by delaying the elevator’s arrival to you.

IF, however, the elevator IS compromised, or you just can’t get it to come for you, or whatever, and you either don’t have anyone with you who has the adrenaline fueled BALLS to be able to toss you over their shoulder and hoof it down the stairs with you - because, let’s face it, that is RARE AS FUCK, then HERE IS WHAT YOU DO:

You call 911 and tell the call taker that you are in the building that has a fire alarm going off, and you are not able to evacuate because of a physical disability, and you tell them what floor you are on, and EXACTLY what stairwell you are waiting at. And the very FIRST thing that the firefighters are going to do once they arrive, if it is, indeed, a REAL emergency, and not a false alarm, is come get your ass and bring you down. Whether that means carrying you down the stairs, or whether that means locking out the elevators so that no one else can override them and coming to get you themselves, they WILL come get you FIRST THING if it is a real event. And if it is a false alarm? You will probably be the first person who is not involved with the building to know, because the call-taker is going to stay on the line with you until you are under someone’s care and out of danger, or until the scene has been sorted out as real or false, and you are out of danger that way.

These are pretty standard operations in the fire service throughout the United States. There may be some minor variations based on specific municipalities, but, for the most part, this is pretty typical: LIFE BEFORE PROPERTY. So, as long as SOMEONE knows where you are - hence why you call 911 - Firefighters will come get you. You are NOT alone, and you have NOT been abandoned. I PROMISE. It’s like, our whole reason for doing the shit we do: to save lives and to break shit. Sometimes, we get lucky enough to do both at the same time.

High rise fires suck ass, and I always hated them. But the very FIRST thing I asked anytime we got one was if we had “any entrapments” - which is what we call anyone who could not self-evacuate for ANY reason. We ain’t leaving you behind. And yes, your friend who doesn’t have the stamina to carry you down can stay with you, too. Because I would never ask that of someone, honestly. 

Also, just a little FYI... MOST fire alarms are false alarms. Not to make anyone complacent or anything, but, yeah. Most of them are either system malfunctions, someone accidentally hit a pull station, or someone burned popcorn in a break room. So don’t let a fire alarm freak you out until you need it to - by smelling or seeing smoke or flames. 

[y-that-crazy-five-foot-two-chick]

I know it's got 100k notes but I haven't seen this and even though I would 100% attempt to haul any one of you down a dozen flights of stairs, I know enough of my followers are disabled in more ways than one and ought to know this

[jenroses]

There was once a fire alarm in the hotel I was in and I literally called the front desk to ask if it was real because I use a wheelchair most of the time and I could climb down that many steps to save my life but I'm not fucking doing it for a drill. It was neither, someone had pranked the alarm.

[lifeafterpsychiatry]

I wish disability positivity was less about preaching "you can do anything you put your mind to if you work hard" and more about telling disabled people "what you can do right now matters even when it's less than or different from what society expects."

[everylittlethingtheydoispainful]

Healthy people who say stuff like “they’re still doing things so they can’t be in THAT much pain” need to understand that after a certain point pain becomes boring. No, you never get used to the pain, but you do gradually become bored. After months or years of mindless suffering in bed eventually you learn how to watch TV, do a light hobby, etc., even while in extreme pain, simply because chronic pain is incredibly dull and humans need entertainment.

[lobisoma-deactivated20210910]

i’m gonna write down a thing about eugenics abortion later bc the way ableds on this site misconstrue it pisses me off

[lobisoma-deactivated20210910]

okay i am back let’s get into this.

when disabled people talk about combatting eugenics abortion we’re very markedly not talking about putting restrictions on abortion. because, as many people seem to at least comprehend, eugenics is a systemic process and not defined by one’s individual choice.

when we talk about eugenics abortion, we’re talking about doctors coercing pregnant people to abort disabled fetuses even if they do want the child. we’re talking about disabled and psychiatrised people being forcibly sterilised, overprescribed birth control, and coerced into abortion if they do manage to get pregnant. we’re talking about parents of disabled children being aggressively discouraged from having any further biological children, even if their child’s disability is not genetic. we’re talking about people having to choose to abort very wanted children because socioeconomic conditions would make it nigh impossible to properly raise a disabled child.

and it doesn’t stop at disability. black, indigenous and immigrant people are also forcibly sterilised, overprescribed birth control, disproportionately coerced into abortion, and given subpar and often outright negligent care during and after pregnancy and birth when they do manage to avoid all those prior complications. 

when we talk about combatting eugenics abortion, we’re talking about guaranteeing people’s reproductive rights, not taking them away. because reproductive rights are not just about choosing not to have children, they’re also about no longer being forced not to have them because society considers you and/or your child undesirable.

it was never about individual choice. it’s about systemic genocide.

[brightlotusmoon]

[ghoulslug]

whoever decided that base model assistive devices have to be so fucking ugly and boring was a fool why must we suffer with beige or black plastic and plain silver metal why can’t i have a neon green wheelchair that doesn’t cost several thousand dollars

[wjehfbvwierbf]

It's always frustrating when I bring up my chronic pain in a conversation for context, like people talking about dressing nice making them feel good, and I say "yeah, I have a lot of pain and getting dressed up nice feels so rewarding" and then it's all "oh I'm so sorry" like..... No I'm trying to be happy and positive and smile hello????? Ableds learn to talk normal pls

[kitchenalia]

if i heard that a woman aborted a fetus because prenatal screening had revealed a disability that i shared, i would simply not shame her

[kitchenalia]

RIP to people who think bodily autonomy is conditional but im different

[kitchenalia]

i’ve been getting a lot of comments/questions about this post. some is good, some is bad. i’ve decided not to respond individually and instead say:

i said what i said. i wasn’t confused about saying it.

if i found out a woman had aborted a fetus because she found out that fetus had a disability that i have—disabilities that i have firsthand knowledge of being painful, difficult to live with, and often resource-intensive—i would not be angry with her. i would not feel like she doesn’t think people like me should not be alive (unless she actually said so).

fetuses are not little potential “you”s. projecting your own anxieties onto a woman’s abortion (”i wouldn’t have wanted to be aborted” is common reasoning in plenty of pro-life circles; it’s not better here) is invasive and nonsensical.

bodily autonomy isn’t conditional. you don’t know a woman’s exact reason for abortion and you don’t need to. women’s rights to abortion need to be protected, even if you feel icky about some potential reasoning behind an abortion, which you aren’t even fully privy to in the first place.

disabled people should always be in the care of people who have the resources and desire to take care of them. insisting that disabled children be born simply to ease your own moral qualms with abortion is frankly unethical in my opinion, resources are often very slim for disabled people. not to mention our quality of life is often just lower in general. you can argue all you want in the notes about “mild” disabilities but you aren’t the arbiter of what constitutes a mild enough disability to make an abortion terrible and immoral and shame-worthy. 

women aren’t vessels. regardless of how morally pure you feel your crusade is, they simply aren’t.

speaking as a disabled person, energy is literally always better spent on changing society—by increasing resources for caretakers and disabled people alike, speaking frankly about quality of life, correcting notions about what disabled people’s lives are like, punishing mistreatment of actual disabled people [not potential ones], and putting research into easing the pain/suffering of people as much as possible—than it is on getting mad about women getting abortions. and it isn’t just better spent that way, it’s just immoral to do the latter.

in conclusion: RIP to people who think bodily autonomy is conditional but im different.