#disabled in public

[a-little-revolution]

to every little boy staring at me in the grocery store,

I swear I don't look as strange as the face you're giving me.

#disabled in public

[chamomile-coated-cat]

Walking through Lowe's with my crutches, a guy who isn't much older than me with a cane says "how are you doing young lady?" (I took this as an obvious joke for us in the disability community), and I ask him how he's doing and he replied "chunky and funky" and that's gonna be my new modo I love it

#actually disabled #disabled community #physical disability #disabled #disabled in public #chunky and funky

[autismserenity]

know someone who enjoys horror stories? share this one! it's true!

hahahahahahahahahaha aarrggghhhhhhhhhh 3,000,000 deaths due to COVID-19 last year. Globally. Three million. Case rates higher than 90% of the rest of the pandemic. The reason people are still worried about COVID is because it has a way of quietly fucking up your body. And the risk is cumulative.

I'm going to say that again: the risk is cumulative.

It's not just that a lot of people get bad long-term effects from it. One in seven or so? Enough that it's kind of the Russian Roulette of diseases. It's also that the more times you get it, the higher that risk becomes. Like if each time you survived Russian Roulette, the empty chamber was removed from the gun entirely. The worst part is that, psychologically, we have the absolute opposite reaction. If we survive something with no ill effects, we assume it's pretty safe. It is really, really hard to override that sense of, "Ok, well, I got it and now I probably have a lot of immunity and also it wasn't that bad." It is not a respiratory disease. Airborne, yes. Respiratory disease, no: not a cold, not a flu, not RSV.

Like measles (or maybe chickenpox?), it starts with respiratory symptoms. And then it moves to other parts of your body. It seems to target the lungs, the digestive system, the heart, and the brain the most.

It also hits the immune system really hard - a lot of people are suddenly more susceptible to completely unrelated viruses. People get brain fog, migraines, forget things they used to know.

(I really, really hate that it can cross the blood-brain barrier. NOTHING SHOULD EVER CROSS THE BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER IT IS THERE FOR A REASON.) Anecdotal examples of this shit are horrifying. I've seen people talk about coworkers who've had COVID five or more times, and now their work... just often doesn't make sense? They send emails that say things like, "Sorry, I didn't mean Los Angeles, I meant Los Angeles."

Or they insist they've never heard of some project that they were actually in charge of a year or two before.

Or their work is just kind of falling apart, and they don't seem to be aware of it.

People talk about how they don't want to get the person in trouble, so their team just works around it. Or they describe neighbors and relatives who had COVID repeatedly, were nearly hospitalized, talked about how incredibly sick they felt at the time... and now swear they've only had it once and it wasn't bad, they barely even noticed it.

(As someone who lived with severe dissociation for most of my life, this is a genuinely terrifying idea to me. I've already spent my whole life being like, "but what if I told them that already? but what if I did do that? what if that did happen to me and I just don't remember?") One of its known effects in the brain is to increase impulsivity and risk-taking, which is real fucking convenient honestly. What a fantastic fucking mutation. So happy for it on that one. Yes, please make it seem less important to wear a mask and get vaccinated. I'm not screaming internally at all now.

I saw a tweet from someone last year whose family hadn't had COVID yet, who were still masking in public, including school.

She said that her son was no kind of an athlete. Solidly bottom middle of the pack in gym.

And suddenly, this year, he was absolutely blowing past all the other kids who had to run the mile. He wasn't running any faster. His times weren't fantastic or anything. It's just that the rest of the kids were worse than him now. For some reason. I think about that a lot. (Like my incredibly active six-year-old getting a cold, and suddenly developing post-viral asthma that looked like pneumonia.

He went back to school the day before yesterday, after being home for a month and using preventative inhalers for almost week.

He told me that it was GREAT - except that he couldn't run as much at recess, because he immediately got really tired. Like how I went outside with him to do some yard work and felt like my body couldn't figure out how to increase breathing and heart rate.

I wasn't physically out of breath, but I felt like I was out of breath. That COVID feeling people describe, of "I'm not getting enough air." Except that I didn't have that problem when I had COVID.) Some people don't observe any long (or medium) term side effects after they have it.

But researchers have found viral reservoirs of COVID-19 in everyone they've studied who had it.

It just seems to hang out, dormant, for... well, longer than we've had an opportunity to observe it, so far.

(I definitely watched that literal horror movie. I think that's an entire genre. The alien dormant under ice in the Arctic.)

(oh hey I don't like that either!!!!!!!!!) All of which is to explain why we should still care about avoiding it, and how it manages to still cause excess deaths. Measuring excess deaths has been a standard tool in public health for a long time.

We know how many people usually die from all different causes, every year. So we can tell if, for example, deaths from heart disease have gone way up in the past three years, and look for reasons. Those are excess deaths: deaths that, four years ago, would not have happened. During the pandemic, excess death rates have been a really important tool. For all sorts of reasons. Like, sometimes people die from COVID without ever getting tested, and the official cause is listed as something else because nobody knows they had COVID. But also, people are dying from cardiovascular illness much younger now.

People are having strokes and heart attacks younger, and more often, than they did before the pandemic started. COVID causes a lot of problems. And some of those problems kill people. And some of them make it easier for other things to kill us. Lung damage from COVID leading to lungs collapsing, or to pneumonia, or to a pulmonary embolism, for example. The Economist built a machine-learning model with a 95% confidence interval that gauges excess death statistics around the world, to tell them what the true toll of the ongoing COVID pandemic has been so far.

Total excess deaths globally in 2023: Three million.

3,000,000.

Official COVID-19 deaths globally so far: Seven million. 7,000,000. Total excess deaths during COVID so far: Thirty-five point two million. 35,200,000.

Five times as many.

That's bad. I don't like that at all. I'm glad last year was less than a tenth of that. I'm not particularly confident about that continuing, though, because last year we started a period of really high COVID transmission. Case rates higher than 90% of the rest of the pandemic. Here's their data, and charts you can play with, and links to detailed information on how they did all of this:

Here's a non-paywalled link to it:

https://archive.vn/2024.01.26-012536/https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/coronavirus-excess-deaths-estimates

Oh: here's a link to where you can buy comfy, effective N95 masks in all sizes:

Those ones are about a buck each after shipping - about $30 for a box of 30. They also have sample packs for a dollar, so you can try a couple of different sizes and styles.

You can wear an N95 mask for about 40 total hours before the effectiveness really drops, so that's like a dollar for a week of wear.

They're also family-owned and have cat-shaped masks and I really love them. These ones are cuter and in a much wider range of colors, prints, and styles, but they're also more expensive; they range from $1.80 to $3 for a mask. ($18-$30 for a box of ten.)

#covid isn't over #covid 19 #disability rights #disability advocacy #wear a mask #covid conscious #covid cautious #mask up #wall of words #public health #health care

[mimikyu-chr]

shouldn’t have to be saying this, but if i’m having a medical episode in public i should NOT be being filmed or photographed by random strangers. I don’t care WHERE you saw me faint, I don’t care that you think it’s wrong to sit on the floor of a shop, I don’t care that my tics are ‘weird’ to you, and I don’t care that you don’t like me ‘staring’ at you when i’m having an absence seizure. I did not give you permission to document my disability. Don’t film people in general, but ESPECIALLY not vulnerable moments like someone fainting or seizing thank you.

#disabled #physically disabled #cpunk #cripplepunk #cripple punk #ableism #disability #don’t film people in public #nico.chr

[potential-dizzy]

#covid #long covid #disability #public health #this has been a psa #masking

[golden-reedwolf]

Actual hell country

#every day it gets worse here #as a disabled person who cannot drive for health reasons #and couldn't afford a car anyway #walkable amenities are essential for me #sure there's public transport but it can be pretty unreliable #uk politics

[knight-says-rollout]

“how would it work if Cybertronians had disabilities” “What if there were disabled Cybertronians”

THERE ARE

THERE ARE

loosing my mind at how some things that are So good can be So niche why can’t we just be a hivemind

Just one example, my favorite example, is:

Shattered Glass Soundwave!!!

He’s gone through Multiple reformats varying between with his consent and,,, not. The latest of which took place when they didn’t have many materials

So they used half earth metals half Cybertronian ones

As it turns out? Those two things don’t mix very well. His joints are Horrible. They lock up randomly, the worst of which being the door to his tape deck.

He physically isn’t able to dock his cassettes reliably because they might get stuck in there.

What does he do to fix this? So glad you asked!! He has his own assistive aids, in this case: a portable external carrying case

It was made and personalized to work specifically for him and his situation

I love him

#SG soundwave #transformers #tf shattered glass #maccadam #soundwave #fun publications #Cybertronian.. biology? biology #cybertronian biology #been wanting to make this posts for Months but took ages trying to find the damn chracter sheet that actually delved into the details #I can’t have people disregarding my boy like this #obviously there’s a Wide variety of ways we all know mental health and disabilities can translate into transformers #but everyone acts like the PHYSICAL disabilities are something that don’t exist canonically #that we have to either invent ways for the rep to exist or that the rep shouldn’t exist at all #soundwave ISNT the only one either! he’s just my favorite! #Cybertronian disability

[rattusn0rvegicus]

Man I feel like a lot of leftist activists would do a lot better to just use common fucking language to talk about things rather than dense academic shit that's only understandable to people with PhDs and people who spend 95% of their waking life on Leftist Twitter lmao

Like, you're talking with other academics? Great, use academic language. You're a social media account trying to interact with the general public? Don't say "decarcerate", say "find alternatives to imprisonment". Don't say "collective liberation", say "freedom for all". By GOD don't say "bodymind autonomy", say "the ability to have control over our own minds and bodies".

Yes it takes a little more effort to explain shit in common language but I promise you people will stop looking at you like you have two heads and dismissing everything you say as Woke Bullshit if you like, actually get on their level, goddamn it. Not everyone has the privilege to have a graduate-school level understanding of this type of language or spend so much time reading leftist theory that they can perfectly understand this stuff.

#being a public health student has made me even more passionate about this too #like. You want to make a change? You have to make sure the general public UNDERSTANDS WTF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT FIRST #Like for example I think Project LETS is a great concept and is doing great stuff #But my god their public outreach needs some MAJOR work #By using this type of language you are isolating the type of ppl who can benefit from your services to 'college educated Twitter leftists' #Social justice is a MAJOR INTEREST OF MINE and even I struggle with making sense of some of the shit y'all say!! #Like I have to translate it in my head to normal speak #And like. These types of spaces constantly talk about accessibility for disabled people? Bullshit man #What about those with intellectual disabilities or cognitive impairments who struggle with this shit? #What about people who are just learning English? What about people who work full time and don't have the time to learn this terminology? #Goddamn #It's all performative!!!!

[toonheartz]

[ID: A reference image for a blue version of Mickey Mouse.

Their name is Mick, and they're wearing a black hoodie with the hood down, and a sleeveless denim jacket over it. The front of the jacket is covered in many pins, like the trans pride flag, the genderfluid flag, a black patch that says "the first pride was a riot", an ambiguous shape with a red crossed out symbol over it, a watermelon, the autism creature, and a small black patch that is cut off due to the angle, reading "eat the".

The back of the jacket has the Public Domain symbol, white a lower case C on a black background that is crossed out, with ears at the top to match Mick.

They are holding a dark blue offset cane, and have band aids on their leg, nose, and one finger.

Text around her says:

-any pronouns -soft spoken but stands up for their friends -fucks around and finds out -being of pure spite

Back patch should always be the public domain symbol with ears

Feel free to swap patches in the same theme or omit them for simplicity

Uses cane for balance, relieving pressure on his legs, and whacking people

Bandaids are optional and can be any color / placed anywhere (she's very clumsy)."

The very bottom of the page has the hashtag, "mickeysona".

End ID.]

lil something to celebrate the mouse entering the public domain :]

#mickey mouse #toon #actually disabled #public domain #mickeysona #gotta draw something ✏️ #hope the disabled tag is ok since i gave him my disabilities lol #would love to see more disabled mickeysonas though #lets confuse the hell out of disney execs. hopefully #*also yes yes i know its only steamboat willie mickey but theres still a LOT you can do with that #TY rjalker for the image id!! i'm still figuring out how to write those #also the crossed out thing is an “ambiguous shape” bc i dont know if tumblr will delete it for the actual common patch #...even if its like against yknow. not sees

[metalheadsforblacklivesmatter]

SUMMONING ALL DISABLED PEOPLE

Public service announcement

As spooky season starts to ramp up. If you're on medication DO NOT DRINK THE BLACK DRINKS OR FOOD without checking the ingredients.

Charcoal is used as an "all natural" food dye and can make your meds not work as well.

DON'T CONSUME THE BLACK PRODUCTS WITHOUT CHECKING INGREDIENTS FIRST.

-fae

#disability #disabled #public service announcement #chronic pain #chronic illness #mental illness #depression #anxiety #adhd #neurodivergent

[a-little-revolution]

(considering a series called "small victories" where I point out valuable tools for Little people in public??)

#me #acessibility #disabled in public #trans in public

[thatdiabolicalfeminist]

kinda sucks as an immunocompromised & high risk person that i have to deal with people's negative reactions to me masking & refusing to go into crowded places unmasked

because now it's gauche to care about covid

i know humans are social animals but we also have enough cognition to understand when our emotional impulses are at odds with our knowledge of a situation!!

so why after all these studies and statistics is it considered embarrassing to try not to get or spread the single most disabling disease of our time??? a disease that has killed so many people, directly and indirectly??

#covid #also like even if covid really was over i'd never stop masking in public #because i used to have one infection or another 8-10 months out of the year and i am NEVER going back to that ever #esp cuz every infection of any kind has the risk of making me sicker bc of how my disabled body works #covid19 #thatdiabolicalfeminist

[lgbtlunaverse]

"Nie Mingjue would still have died young even if Jin Guangyao hadn't killed him" Not as in "So it's fine to kill him because people who won't live for much longer have obviously already forfeit their lives" (what) But as in "If you don't get that Nie Mingjue has had an inevitable young and violent death hanging over him since he was a young teenager and has embraced it you can't fully understand his character"

#mdzs #nie mingjue #i do not wish to be misconstrued on this #because the first interpretation might genuinely be my least favorite nmj take #because it has so much baggage in regards to the actual real life murder of disabled people. most often by their caretakers!! #and the reaction to it from public the media and the justice system is overwhelmingly 'oh well that wasn't a life worth living anyway' #'plus they were SO hard to take care of rlly if you think about it the murderer is the victim here that must've been so hard for them' #and these characters aren't real. nmj isn't actually dead he was never alive. but i really hope that take is no one's actual view on life #but from a purely story-perspective i also hate the 'everything would've been fine if not for jiggy' takes #STOP MAKING THE BLORBO UNINTERESTING BY OUTSOURCING ALL HIS ISSUES!! THOSE ARE /HIS/ LET HIM KEEP THEM

[alpaca-clouds]

Cars vs Accessible Worlds

Alright, let me talk about one thing in terms of accessibility in science fiction settings - and Solarpunk specifically - that also has more than one side to it: Cars and accessibility. Because it is more complicated than you'd thing.

See: The fact that our world is so car centric really, really hinders accessibility. Wide streets are a hindrance for even normal pedastrians, cyclists and so on. If I want to get from A to B, and the route crosses a street, and there is only a traffic light every like 500 meters, it means tat I usually need either to risk my life or take the long way around to get there. And that is a fucking bother even when you are healthy and can easily take that long way around. And the more car centric a society is, the worse the issue becomes. Here in Germany it is a lot easier still to cross a street than in many places in the US.

And of course this gets a lot worse if you are disabled. Be it that you just cannot walk that far. Or if you are blind and cannot even see in what direction you could go for the next traffic light. Or if you are hard of hearing or deaf, you might be more in danger of being surprised by a car. (And that is without going into how electric cars being so fucking quiet makes stuff even more dangerous.) And, you know, neurodivergent people might also just struggle with the fucking noise that is created by roads and is often inescapable in big cities.

And of course even outside of the environmental issues, the constant presence of cars is also a health risk. Not just because of the risk of accidents, but also due to the pollution and how it interacts. Even if we all were driving electric cars, there would still be all those microplastics created by tires and streets and stuff.

So, really. We do need to move away from car centric infrastructure to make our lives healthier and to make the world more accessible for disabled people too.

BUT...

But there is the issue that some disabled people still might be in need to use some sort of personal transportation device that can cover both short and large distances, because for one reason or another public transport just does not work and cannot work for them.

For example someone with severe anxiety issues, or someone who will be easily suffering from sensory overwhelm. There might be other issues, too. Just some folks will always need something like cars.

And of course there is also the fact that stuff like emergency services will still need streets accessible to cars. Because the emergency services will just not get around using something like cars to get to all the places they might be needed.

And this... makes things complicated. Because infrastructure should not be car centric, no. But it needs to be accessible by cars - and be it just for emergency services.

This is just something that I would love to see more talked about especially within the Solarpunk sphere.

#solarpunk #lunarpunk #infrastructure #car centric infrastructure #anti cars #mobility #public transport #accessibility #disability rights #disability #15 minute city #trains

[flowercrowncrip]

Not all disabled people can take public transport!

Access to a car is absolutely necessary for some people. One of the reasons (out of many) for this is how much extra stuff some disabled people have to carry when travelling.

I’m one of those people and this is how much I have to bring for just 3 nights away (not including my carer’s stuff):

(ID: A photo of a pile of bags and equipment in front of a hotel door including a large tall box for a hoist, a tilt in space commode/shower chair and a pillow lifter. In total the pile is half the height of the door and extends over a meter from the door. /end ID)

So that’s two large bag for life’s, a large rucksack, one gym bag, a smaller tote bag, my hoist (folded down in the big black box that’s as tall as I am – and that’s one of the smallest and lightest you can get), my pillow raiser, my tilt in space shower chair/commode (which can’t be folded down) my big pregnancy pillow, and a few extra bits and pieces that didn’t fit in the bags.

Taking all this stuff on a train would be ridiculous, let alone a bus! It took 3 able bodied adults 2 and a half trips to get it all from the van to the hotel room – it would take forever to get it all across the station and onto the train (and where would it all go when we’re on the train?).

Improving public transport is essential and good, just remember that some people will always need cars.

#environmental ableism #cripplepunk #physical disability #walkable cities #public transport

[millionmovieproject]

#care bears #so cute #masking #mask up #wear a mask #disability rights #disability #covid #public safety #fuck capitalism #capitalism kills #we live in hell #socialism now #abolish capitalism #peoples union