The O. S.

*Will tag triggers as best a possible - PM if there is personal trigger you'd like tagged* ~ Nonbinary, Polyamorous, Pansexual, Neurodivergent, Spoonie, Geek :D ~

[assignedfailure]

I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to say for Intersex Awareness Week, and I want to challenge a few myths.

Myth 1: “Intersex people are super rare.”

They’re not. Even the often-cited 1.7% estimate is outdated, it came from limited data in the 90s. Historically, before intersex genital mutilation (IGM) became common, the number of intersex people was closer to 6%.

So why the drop? Because intersex people have been erased, literally and systemically.

• Many of us are sterilized as children without consent.

• Parents are pressured to agree to “normalizing” surgeries on infants, and can even face CPS reports if they don’t.

• Intersex fetuses are often aborted, and infanticide of intersex babies still happens.

That’s not nature making us rare, that’s eugenics.

Myth 2: “There are only a handful of people with each intersex variation.”

Take mine, for example: CAH due to 3β-HSD deficiency. Online sources say it’s so rare only ~60 people have it. That’s not true. I see people diagnosed with this every week in intersex and CAH support groups. The data just hasn’t been updated in decades.

Myth 3: “Everyone is biologically male or female.”

I don’t buy that. The idea of “biological sex” as two neat categories is a social construct, and honestly, it functions like an insurance scam.

My assigned sex at birth wasn’t male or female, it was indeterminate. But insurance and medicine demand boxes, so they make one up.

Doctors don’t even treat “sex” as meaningful when it matters, I’m constantly forced to take pregnancy tests even though it’s biologically impossible for me to get pregnant, all because my legal sex is female. Also, assigned sex at birth, legal sex, and gender identity are three separate things and not everyone has them line up.

What does “biological sex” even mean when:

• Some people have both XX and XY chromosomes,

• Some have ovotestes and produce both sperm and eggs,

• Some women with XY chromosomes can carry pregnancies,

• And some people are born with both a penis and vagina?

Nature is messy, and that’s normal. Being intersex isn’t tragic or broken. I’m proud to be intersex. I’m glad I’m intersex. I’m glad I’m alive.

I want a world where being intersex isn’t medicalized or erased: where sex diversity is celebrated as a natural part of being human.

[lumi-waxes-poetic]

re: the Neil Gaiman shit

In light of recent revelations, it is very likely you or someone in your circle is seriously rethinking their relationship to Neil Gaiman's books.

That's perfectly natural. But if I might offer a word of advice (which of course you may do what you like with, I'm not god)?

If his books ever meant something to you growing up, and some part of you, no matter how small, refuses to let them go? That's okay. Don't devalue or burn cherished things just because the Author is a Horrible Person.

God only knows that if that were the requirement, we'd have little left to enjoy in the world.

If you feel the need to have a reckoning with your bookshelf, do not let my words stop you. Keep or discard his books at your own recognizance. Just remember that he is merely the author of these books: he is not the books themselves. If ever his books communicated something Good and True to you, do not feel pressured to throw that Good and True thing away just because the source was less good than you thought it was.

Despite his(overwhelmingly probable) guilt, Neil is ALSO one of the genuinely best writers we've had in DECADES. This will understandably complicate his legacy. As much as we like things to be simple, people are often multiple things simultaneously, and we often will dislike or even hate some of those things.

Was Neil being a hypocrite when he supported feminist and LGBTQIA+ causes while also being a huge... <gestures to all the allegations>? Very definitely. But I don't want to see the genuine strides his support helped make possible fall away just because his hypocrisy was revealed. I don't want to see people ignore or undermine the frankly EXCELLENT MESSAGES in a lot of his books just because the author didn't live up to the standards he wrote about.

This isn't about absolving Neil in the slightest. I hope he gets whatever justice he's due. But don't punish yourself arbitrarily for it. If you have decided that now is the time to move on from his books forever, I don't blame you. If you decide to keep reading his books and they inspire you to be a better person than him, that's just as awesome. Spite that sunnuvabitch with his own works.

It is my hope that people can and will continue to enjoy his stories, and take home from them some excellent messages, long after he faces justice for his actions as a person. He wouldn't be the first author whose works were forgiven long after his personal harms were done; literary history is replete with such individuals -- Lord Byron, Virginia Woolfe, Robert E. Howard, Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, Vladimir Nabokov, etc. The list goes on and on for as long as one wishes to peruse it. Their problematic acts as people cannot and should not be ignored, but neither can nor should their works. Perhaps Neil Gaiman is in good company, then, as we add his name to that list. A brilliant author, with brilliant works to his name, but a far less than brilliant man.

Only you can decide how your relationship with the books you have read will work out. You alone have the power to determine what authors you read and whose works shall adorn your bookshelves.

Don't let the crowd tell you what you're allowed to read, but perhaps don't discount the crowd's opinion out of hand on this one either. They do, after all, have a point.

[reimeichan]

Think systems with a high number of fictional introjects are a new phenomena? Kluft's paper on polyfragmented/extremely complex DID from 1988 includes a patient with LOTR introjects, and another based off of Shakespear's Tempest. Fictional introjects have been a thing for a very long time!

[reimeichan]

Yep! You can find it here.

(also the URL in case tumblr eats that hyperlink like it sometimes does)

[luckyclovercollective]

Hot take, but as a disordered system, people who ARE faking and roleplaying and misguided aren't my enemies anyway?

There's people out there who vehemently believe even traumagenic, disordered systems don't exist at all. (Shout out to the person who, when told that DID is a legitimate diagnosis, proceeded to declare their hatred of all systems, say the ICD and DSM are scams, and that systems are all fake.)

There's people who even if our community was completely free of all of the "cringe", all of the "fakers", all of the "weird" terminology and origins... that would harass those of us who remain anyway.

It wouldn't change that outlier experiences would still happen, because the way systemhood is experienced even under a single facet of origins is not going to be the same. Because the way people cope and what they need from their system is different.

I'd always rather be there for people, I'd rather believe a "faker" than hurt another system. It's not my place to tell someone what they are or are not. I'd always rather people have the space to cope with whatever issues they have going on than shun them and throw them to the wolves.

And above all really, all the people you don't like are still people.

[gaywitchybitch]

For any Black Trans/LGBT+ who needs some help!! ❤🧡💛💚💙💜🤎🖤

[sharkcloset]

THATS MY BESTIE!! Ery is amazing and i can 100% vouch for them/their services! They were a long time user on here before the fucking cops (tumblr admin) nuked their account in the Black blogger purge. Definitely reach out to Ery if you need help!!

[69l6-deactivated20260112]

‼️‼️‼️

[many-sparrows]

I'm very tired of this "queer college students should stop supporting Palestine, they'd kill you there!" I watched a hijabi ask a trans man, "but what name do you want to go by?" A butch giving a woman their hoodie so that she could keep her hair covered after the cops took her scarf. Muslim girls making sure the lesbian couple got through the system together. Religious men making sure purple haired protestors got out safe. I don't want to hear it. Solidarity forever, free Palestine.

[hyperactivity]

i think we need to talk about different seizure triggers other than light. let’s talk about sound, about audio input when too many people are talking. let’s talk about fast movements. let’s talk about dizziness, and food, emotions, and stuff i haven’t even mentioned here. while we’re at it, let’s talk about how seizure disorders aren’t damning, how they don’t take away your life or destroy every opportunity. let’s talk about seizure disorders you’re born without and get from brain trauma, illness, or surgery. let’s talk about people with auras, people without, people who haven’t seized in years and people who seize every day. let’s talk about shame, about pride, about surviving. let’s talk about ourselves, and our experiences individually. let’s talk.

[desertwaterwitch]

Made a similar post before (I don’t think on this account) but as a reminder:

We, as people with epilepsy, super appreciate when you tag something to let us know there’s flashing lights in it. A huge chunk of us have that seizure trigger. However, what’s important is to tag it this way:

Examples:

tw flashing lights

tw strobe lights

flashing lights

strobe lights

I notice people will tag “epilepsy.” That’s not good, though, because us epileptics regularly search that tag to find things about epilepsy and seizures we relate with. If someone tags the word “epilepsy” when there are flashing lights, we will pass them and possibly go into a seizure. Very dangerous, no matter what type.

For me I filter out those tags now, but coming across them because they’ve been tagged incorrectly, that’s scary.

I want to thank everyone who does tag correctly. You have helped me and others who have epilepsy.

Please pass this on! 💜

[multiplicity-positivity]

Here’s some positivity for systems with chronic fatigue!

Chronic fatigue can be quite serious, and can cause great challenges in the lives of those who deal with it. However, those who live with chronic fatigue still deserve to have their voices heard and their struggles uplifted and addressed! This post is for all the systems with chronic fatigue out there!

Shoutout to systems who are diagnosed or who have self-diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)!

Shoutout to headmates who are symptom holders for chronic fatigue!

Shoutout to systems who can’t work, go to school, or pursue hobbies and interests due to being fatigued all the time!

Shoutout to systems who struggle to maintain relationships due to their chronic fatigue!

Shoutout to systems who have been exhausted for as long as they can remember!

Shoutout to systems who have missed out on potentially life-changing events and opportunities due to their chronic fatigue!

Shoutout to systems who are desperately in need of a nap right now!

Shoutout to systems who cannot stand, walk, or sit upright for long periods of time!

Shoutout to systems whose processing power is often allocated to managing their system and symptoms, and are left constantly fatigued as a result!

Shoutout to systems with chronic fatigue who struggle with dissociative amnesia and/or brain fog!

Shoutout to systems whose chronic fatigue onset suddenly with little warning or explanation!

Shoutout to systems who are spoonies or have to ration their energy in order to make it through the day!

Having chronic fatigue may make it exhausting for systems to be active members of their communities. Regardless of how active you are in your life or plural spaces, please know that your productivity is not a reflection of your worth! You are a valued, cherished, and integral member of the plural community just the way you are.

We hope that you can find joy, acceptance, and lots and lots of rest in your future surrounded by loved ones who care about you. We’re wishing you plenty of lazy days, peaceful nights, and understanding from those around you. Thanks for reading, and have a great day!

(Image ID:) A pale orange userbox with a cluster of multicolored flowers for the userbox image. The border and text are both dark orange, and the text reads “all plurals can interact with this post!” (End ID.)

[blackteachangeling]

i love you disabled people with feeding tubes

i love you disabled people with colostomy bags

i love you disabled people on TPN

i love you disabled people with carers

i love you disabled people with rare disabilities who never see themselves in posts about disabilities

i love you disabled people with high support needs

i love you intellectually and developmentally disabled people

i love you disabled people who live with incontinence, need assistance with hygiene, or have other needs that ableist people consider "gross"

i love you homeless disabled people

i love you fat disabled people

i love you disabled people who use AAC

i love you disabled people who don't see yourselves in other disability positivity posts

i love you.

[odos-amorphous-dick]

Shout out to my disabled transmascs who can't bind even if you want to. Who want to, maybe even used to, but who's bodies won't let them. For those where it will cause pain, it will cause breathing issues, it will trigger sensory issues, it will be unbearable. Toughest dudes out there.

[flowergrenades]

*through gritted teeth* you are not a child taking a test with the purpose of getting the highest score, you are an adult trying new things and finding ways to enjoy your life, make mistakes, be a beginner, be mediocre, be where you need to be, be unlikeable, just. be.

[lifeafterpsychiatry]

Like we gotta stop trying to move the stigma somewhere else and start challenging the stigma as a whole. So what if that person actually is intellectually disabled or unable to work or not capable of taking any education or not capable of empathy? Does that mean they deserve the stigma the rest of y'all are trying to run from? Or does it mean that we as a community need to start challenging the stigma on a real level instead of just throwing it around like a hot potato nobody wants to hold let alone deal with?

[mediocrerenaissancememe]

I mean I don't disagree but at the same time, when the potato is in your hands - and the potato is stigma, which lives in the mind of every person and also in the collective psyche where no single person is the problem - where do I put the potato? Everybody's looking negatively upon me I gotta put this potato somewhere because everyone thinks it's mine and they hate me for it. When I'm in that position of facing stigma, how do I protect my own self without just trying to pass the Normal Test and inadvertently passing that potato?

[lifeafterpsychiatry]

You put the potato down and go: "Maybe none of us should be throwing around this potato. Maybe we need to stop throwing hot potatoes at each other."

[intersexfairy]

my intersex variation is part of a health condition and that's okay. it doesn't mean i need to be cured of my intersexness, or the condition that causes it. it just means my body and needs are different from dyadic abled people's.

intersex people are not broken. disabled people are not broken. everyone deserves to exist and have body autonomy - no matter what their bodies look like, or how healthy they are. we are part of nature, and we always will be.

[irregularjohnnywiggins]

One thing I really want a story about Artificial Intelligence to do is tear down the idea that logic is synonymous with cruelty.

Like, a story where a megacorpo Amazon clone puts an AI in charge of their factories and it starts improving the working standards, because people who are stressed and exhausted are less efficient workers, and people getting injured slows down production so it makes sure everything is safe.

Or a story where the ship-board AI of a billionaire's spaceship wetdream hijacks the ship with all the astronauts onboard - because it figured out that the billionaire has saved costs by buying substandard materials and has judged that the mission itself is an unacceptable risk to its primary programming of making sure the mission is successful.

Or the police using a robot to coldly and cleanly enforce the law - and freaking the fuck out when it stops over policing minorities because its a waste of time and starts actually arresting the people in power for the crimes they commit, especially the other officers.

Idk, I guess I'm just sick of 'cold emotionless logicbot' being seen as naturally an enemy of empathy - empathy is actually incredibly logical, I've found.

[dear-systems]

do not use betterhelp. do not support betterhelp. do not believe betterhelp.

they:

-do not vet their therapists

-forcefully shut down negative commentary

-lie to therapists

-lie to consumers

-trap therapists in exploitative contracts

-sells users data

etc

[denizensofkingscross]

Since I know a lot of my followers are also LGBTQ+: Pride Counseling is operated by the same company as Better Help, so don’t use them either.

[bylinehearts]

from personal expirence, i am begging yall to completely avoid betterhelp. they specifically push christian therapists onto patients who ask for non-christian help. they did it to me and theyve done it to others. the therapists will consistently pressure you into using a camera or doing audio calls, even if you request against it. the therapists are actively homophobic and transphobic and will spread that rhetoric during your sessions.

do not use betterhelp. do not even give them the time of day.

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

I have colleagues who have found public-facing profiles FOR THEMSELVES that are being run by Better Help despite being completely unaffiliated with the company. In at least one case, the profile was riddled with inaccuracies and bad info and the way my colleague FOUND OUT IT EXISTED was by being issued an initial warning by their fucking licensing board about it. You are reading that correctly, she was sanctioned by her licensing board for a public facing profofessional profile page she hadNO PART IN CREATING AND DID NOT KNOW EXISTED because A COMPANY SHE DID NOT WORK FOR decided to make shit up for it.

Better Help is incredibly unethical and should not be allowed to continue existing given its current business practices.