On Disability, Suffering, and Euthanasia

Are there people whose level of disability places them into a category beyond hope? It's easy to think the answer depends on the answers to some other questions. What about that theoretical person I mentioned who has no neocortex, no possibility of conscious thought? Is it our mind that makes us human? Our genes? A thing called a soul that some people believe we have and others don't? But eventually I realized this line of questioning was the wrong approach entirely. It's not a matter of finding that dividing line between human and not human, worthwhile and hopeless, valuable and expendable. The minute you allow yourself to think that way, you've missed the point. You get hung up wondering where that dividing line is rather than seeking a solution that would make it moot.

Blogging while disabled: A quick cross-post from my social media

I woke up this morning. This may not, in fact, sound like much of a surprise. I am obviously not in a coma, so technically speaking I wake up every morning. However, to give you some idea of what I mean, let me detail how I woke up yesterday. Yesterday, after drifting in and out…

Suggested Questionnaire for Healthcare and Related Professionals – please share widely

[Update!! Those who want a tool similar to this can download one for free from http://autismandhealth.org/%5D I have heard many complaints from autistic people and other people with disabilities about their struggles in communicating with healthcare professionals, etc.. I propose a simple questionnaire for professionals to use. These would be standard intake questions, and the…

Yet Another Essay About Chronic Fatigue

So, here’s the thing about living on the margins of disability with chronic fatigue and brain fog of uncertain etiology (i.e., unexplained symptoms). Have you ever had a bad cold or hay-fever and you had to take a big honkin’ dose of Benadryl or Nyquil one of those other medicines that makes you all spacey…

“Brain Fog” Doesn’t Even Begin to Cover It.

[Here's a lightly edited post from my personal blog, about me. I didn't actually realize that I'd never managed to post it here before. Today is a "clear" day, the opposite of a day with brain fog, and my own record of my own experience seems foreign to me, but I know intellectually how often…

Things that need saying

This blog is where I write primarily about disability rights, drawing both from my job as a caregiver and from my own experiences as a person with chronic illness. I  have a BS in psychology, with a concentration in cognitive and neuro psych. Since graduation, I have worked as a psychology research assistant, tutor, and as…