For the disability pride asks: 8 and 11?
8. Does your disability affect any part of your identity?
Not my identity specifically (though I would say it is an integral part of me,) but it's definitely impacted my hobbies and passions. I wanted to do musical theatre as a career for a little while, but I realized that wouldn't work well if you can't see the edge of the stage, so....
BUT
In saying that, I still do musical theatre at school as a hobby. Althoufh I have a hearing loss, I have a minor principal role (with a big singing bit) and I'm also head of the vocal ensembles, so I help everyone learn their parts. I also do music and choirs and school (I help run the choirs lol), I lead my church congregation in the hymns, I love to play piano and sing, I love to dance and i love to write. These are all things that other people would tell any other deaf person "you can't do that", but I like to say "go pull your head out of the ground" and do it anyway. It doesn't matter if you're fabulous at it or not. I went and did laser tag with a bunch of church friends. I can't see in the dark. I can't hear in loud environments. I came last.
But let me tell you I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was SO FUN and I loved it so much. Do what you enjoy, as long as you don't hurt yourself and/or others.
11. How would you label your support needs?
Niche and very weird. My biggest problem is that my disabilities are practically invisible, even though they're sensory disabilities. A lot of people can't immediantly see my vision problems (until I'm wearing sunnies inside, or they see that my worksheets are on a pale cream paper, or how big my font size is,) and my hearing aids probably get mistaken by younger generations as airpods or Bluetooth earbuds. The other thing is that I "function normally" for lack of a better phrase. I prefer to listen rather than sign, I have pretty much perfect pitch, I can pick up accents, I talk clearly and at first glance, I don't show any signs of a hearing loss. This is frustrating because people in places such as fast food places or or shops or piblic transport will get irritated when I don't understand an instruction or mishear them, or even when I get too nervous to say what I want immediantly and then tentatively pipe up later. (Has happened: got scolded by a subway lady because I didn't understand how subway worked and it was in a massive food court in a shopping centre, so I couldn't hear what I was supposed to do. I felt horrible for a good hour after that.) It's also really awkward going up to the counter so I can read the menu while I squint at it like an old lady, or fumbling through a crowd and bumping into people because I can't see properly.
My needs are not so much physical support and actions but more of understanding and recognising when I'm struggling in situations. Whether that's at school, at the shops, in crowds or in the dark, it's so much easier when I have people to back me up. It also helps to have a visual aid so people know "okay she can't hear" or "she can't see." That's one of the reasons why I want a guide cane because then it's a visual cue as well as a mobility aid. Basically what I'm saying is that people need to be more patient because you never know if the seemingly perfectly functional chick in vintage clothes reading a book is actually deafblind. You've been warned.
However, there are some physical needs that I do require. Hearing aids and glasses are the obvious ones, but I also have sepia-tinted sunglasses for any kind of bright environment, whether that's sun or the smartboard in the classroom. I also have worksheets printed on a sort of cream-coloured paper and printed a little larger so I can read it. The stairwells at school are notoriously dark, so the student support teacher and i have been ensuring that the edge of the stairs are painted a bright, almost neon yellow and that lights are out in (we're working on the lights.) I also get extra time for homework and exams because 1. Hearing and listening fatigue and 2. The amount of brain power I use to listen, concentrate, read, etc at school is ridiculous and I have practically no brain power when I get home. That's always helpful. (I also get rest breaks in exams.) For my singing performance for music, my teacher let's me use foldback headphones, where both the backing track and my voice are sent to my ears directly. We're also working on getting me someone to speak the listening sections for my French exams so I can lip-read as well. The school also put Braille signs in the change rooms in the sports centre, which is really cool, but also because they get outside groups using the centre.
I have very niche and personalised needs, and they will change as my vision worsens overtime, but I hope that made some sense. :)
