Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic our entire country has been put in lockdown. We have been told to stay at home whilst bars, restaurants and many retailers have closed to limit social gathering. For us city-dwellers even the countryside is off limits!
This is a huge and shocking change for most people, but for me and for other disabled people it is not.
I decided to start this blog at a time of social distancing and self-isolation because this resonates with me and many other disabled people. And all of a sudden, due to these unprecedented times, it resonates with most other people too.
As someone who is passionate about changing perceptions of disability I realised this could be an ideal opportunity to do just that. I’m hoping that sharing my thoughts and experiences of my own journey might encourage others do the same and help us all come to terms with this new and strange reality.
After all, we’re all in this together.
And I’m stuck in the house with a lot of time on my hands!
As a disabled person I am automatically marginalised from society. Many of the everyday things and simple pleasures that people take for granted – a walk in the countryside, a night out on the town, a beach holiday – represent huge challenges for me.
Literally overnight those privileges have been taken away from all of us and it seems no one is immune from this virus… you… me… Tom Hanks… even our own Prime Minister has been seriously ill.
All of us are now disabled in some way and we are faced with the challenge of adapting to a different way of life. I know from speaking to my friends that many of them are really struggling to cope with the huge changes to their day to day lives.
I have had cerebral palsy since birth so I have lived my entire life with a reality that is different and more challenging than for most people. I am used to having to adapt to the world around me in order to make sense of it and get the most out of life.
However, the current situation is difficult for me too; I recently lost a full-time Personal Assistant and I’m having to advertise at possibly the worst time in the history of the world. Also I’m missing spending time with friends and getting out to enjoy a decent coffee!
So let’s start a conversation… what’s disabling you most right now?
