Having to be a neurodivergent myself it gets hard to explain what Autism is sometimes because of the traits an Autistic person should have medically. I feel like google has so many explanations for Autism than from an actual Autistic person. So many think we have the same traits, we may be similar in some traits but we experience them differently. My hurdle is avoiding sounding like a textbook and explaining my experience as an autistic person. Voicing out gets hard yes! because of my difficulty in communication or is it just that I communicate differently and the Neurotypical world can't understand me? That is my only struggle, though people are also trying to learn. Do you have such a struggle?
My struggle is from a societal perspective. People think am sick because am sitting on a wheelchair. I guess its because the first sighting of a wheelchair is in a hospital. I have to explain to people am not sick and that am comfortable in my condition.
I think in the whole world we PWDs are the strongest, being different is unique and it doesn't mean we all have to be the same, I think if we all were clones we wouldn't be interesting as humans.
For me normal is not normal, if we have different personalities then that's being unique.
@SarahBosibori The challenge is when being different is mistaken for rebellion and seen as something to be corrected, which is what the medical model of disability advocates for. The ideal model is the social model where difference is seen as uniqueness to be embraced and admired.
@BKiwu I totally agree with you, just the other day while I was in a matatu there was a blind man alighting and we arrived a few blocks to his destination, you know how conductors are, they make you alight a few meters from the actual destination and one lied to him that he has arrived. I was just shocked and disappointed. How does a human even???
Amazing post Sash! I can relate
Yeah and it hurts even more that being a Pwd you need to constantly explain yourself to people. Yes it's better if they hear it from you first hand but at times it gets tiring. In my case, I walk with crutches but besides that I also have hemophilia. So everytime I have a bleed in my joints and I have to tell them I'm sick they always think I'm experiencing issues cause of my use of crutches.
I have a spinal cord injury acquired from a road accident. I think my kind of disability is possibly one of the most popular ones. It’s therefore very easy for me to explain to people, I always view it as an opportunity to enlighten people and bring some awareness around spinal cord injury. I have found it best to always keep it simple and not start with the heavy stuff right away.
But I enjoy explaining to others about me cause even when I go to the hospital, I have to explain that I have hemophilia cause it's not something every doctor has dealt with. I'm like a mystery since each person experiences hemophilia in a different way.
Being a PwD is tough, I must agree it makes us the strongest people. We might be put in probably in the same category but the same disability affects us differently and we are all different.
Yes Sarah, it's hard for me everytime to a person who see me and on wheelchair & nothing found abnormal in my body (I am muscular dystrophy) because many even don't know about this uncurable condition.