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Got cool handmade fidgets at Pride (:
I lost my brand new loop earplugs :,,,< they would have been so so perfect for my new job!!!
I saw one of your posts about disability aids and you mentioned ear defenders. I am currently looking for a pair for myself (adult - so not child sized). Do you have any brands you recommend? Or any you would advise to stay away from and why?
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Have a lovely day!
Heartek is very good! You can change the size a TON
I'm so excited to try these out! I'm very sensitive to noise, so I hope this makes it easier to exist in public. Currently, I can handle 15 minutes in a busy public space before the self-injury stims and stress seizures happen.
Sensory Aids
Sensory Aids are pry the biggest comfort factor in my day to day. That I fit into two categories.
1. Stuff that helps me deal with external stimuli while I am out (tone down sensory input)
2. Stuff that helps me decompress when I am alone so I can be more comfortable in general
Sensory are the objects that help me function in daily life. First, the ones that I generally always have on me are sunglasses, earbuds, but especially earplugs. Noise is the most overwhelming thing and with earplugs I can tune that down while still being able to hear the people around me. It took a couple days to get used to the slight difference in the sound but genuinely it makes it so much easier to focus when everything is tuned down and sounds from electrical wiring and HVAC systems is removed. I use Loop Earplugs they are not the cheapest and their might be others but wow do they work so well. They are discrete and small, I don’t find them clunky and they don’t make my ears hurt. I frequently forget they are there. They are endlessly reusable and very functional. I have several sets that like in my backpacks, at my desk, and several other useful places that way instead of having to consciously remember them they are just around.
Also in daily life I find having fidgets helpful especially in settings where I need to focus and/or stay still. My absolute favorite are Tangles which are very quiet and the junior size is small enough I can mess with them in one hand while taking notes with the other. The other fidget I frequently carry is a Pop it Keychain just as another option for a way to channel my movement.
I also use sensory aids to maintain my space and to give myself functional space.
For managing smell I have a HEPA air filter which gets rid of lots of the ambient smells and all of the dust from a room while being very quiet. Additionally, if I want to add a smell I have an essential oil diffuser that I also use as a mini humidifier in the winter when the air dries out. At my desk I keep a small container of coffee beans that I can smell ever so slightly while I work. I don’t drink coffee but I like the smell and a small container of bulk beans I saved from getting trashed is a nice little touch.
In terms of bigger feelings of pressure and motion I have two things to recommend. First, hammocks. Oh my titan are they wonderful, the motion, the cocooning, the pressure. A cheap hammock from the internet and a set of straps is great. I actually have one hammock that stays under my loft bed and one that is a double size (so it can wrap around me more) that I take out to set up around campus or in the woods.
Weighted blankets are the other big thing. Going to sleep with them is so much easier. There is just some switch in my brain that flips and suddenly I can chill out and get to sleep it makes my life so much easier and more comfortable. The recommendation is 10% of your body weight but because that isn’t directly all on me and is also around me I have slightly more than that. As long as you can comfortably move it if you try I think it is fine. They are wonderful to sleep with but also just to curl up under when everything feels a little too intense.
A Reminder
One thing that is important to quality of life and treatment with a disability and/or chronic illness is self acceptance. Believing that you’re not making up your struggles or your pain and allowing yourself to use aids without feeling guilty is extremely important.
There are a lot of things we may face that can make this harder on us. So, for anyone who is disabled or chronically ill and needs a reminder:
-If you were prescribed an aid or got one for yourself, you are not faking your need for that aid.
-If you go back and forth between not needing your aid and depending on it, you are not faking your need for that aid.
-If you have a good day, you are not faking your disability.
-Being frustrated and upset does not mean you are overexaggeratting.
-Smiling and having fun does not mean you are faking your disability.
-Absence of a diagnosis does not mean your are faking your disability.
-If a doctor doesn’t believe you are sick/disabled, it does not mean that you are faking your disability.
-You should not feel guilty for your aids allowing you to live comfortably.
-You should not feel guilty for the pain relief your aids provide you.
And most of all~
-You should never feel guilty for not suffering or ‘being tough.’
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