What is Disability?

Previously, I would have described it as a condition or disease that makes aspects of a person’s life more difficult. Though this is somewhat true, I now feel that the term ‘disability’ stands for much more. When people are faced with a condition, they adapt. They learn to live in a different way and make the necessary changes and adjustments to their environment. The outside world doesn’t do this. Instead, we are expected to find alternatives ourselves and sometimes this isn’t possible. We frequently have to miss out on opportunities because there isn’t the right accessibility, there aren’t the right adjustments and there’s no flexibility for those that need it. This is what defines a disability. I am not disabled by my Tourette’s. What disables me is the reactions and judgment I receive from the public. The inability and unwillingness to accept me for who I am and what I can’t control. The discrimination and ignorance. When I was in a wheelchair, it wasn’t being in it that disabled me. It was the environment and how it wasn’t built with those who use a different mode of transport. There are only certain areas of the street where it is possible to cross, and some pavements are too thin to manoeuvre.  Many buildings were inaccessible due to thin doors or lack of ramps. Store layouts are difficult to navigate, some without lifts and other means to access the whole building. Disability is characterised by the environment and attitude of other people, these are the things that limit us. We have modified our lives to fit our disability, it’s a shame society haven’t done the same.