Invisible Disabilities Are Real
[Image Description: My First Former Buddy Club President logo is in the bottom left corner and a sunflower is in the bottom center of a dark green graphic. "Spreading awareness and acceptance of invisible disabilities is suicide prevention" is in center-aligned white bubble text.]
Supporting the whole disability community matters online and offline all year round. Saying that people "don't look disabled" is harmful because it sends ableist and discriminatory messages even when people in the disability community say it. There are many people who constantly normalize saying "don't look disabled" for some reason. It is so annoying. Please. Stop. Doing. That. I am serious. Not all disabilities are obvious just by looking at or watching people. These are called invisible disabilities. Normalizing this biased remark leaves many individuals with invisible disabilities questioning their own lived experiences, fear of judgment and stigma, reluctance to ask for help, and invalidated. Furthermore, it worsens their physical and mental fatigue, increases their risk for disability burnout and suicide, the burden of masking, and social isolation. Every disability journey is different.
Related Links:
- Disability Pride Matters All Year Round
- Your disability journey is still valid even if...
- The ableist statement I can't stand the most
- Saying "You don't look disabled" is stereotyping and prejudice
- Facing Imposter Syndrome as a Motivational Speaker with an Invisible Disability
- Define normal
- Check on people. Even the people who seem like they have it altogether.
Disabilities do not show up completely the same for every single individual in the disability community whether their disability or disabilities are visible or invisible. Some people's characteristics as part of their autism, Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), mental illness, learning disability, intellectual disability, neurological disability, physical disability, or chronic illness are not as obvious as others. This intersectionality is especially sound when people in the disability community are verbal, masking, do not have all of the same challenges, limitations, accommodations, modifications, and Specially Designed Instructions (SDI), are in general education classes, graduated college, work jobs without accommodations, do not disclose their disability to everyone, disclose only some of their disabilities, or are undiagnosed or late diagnosed. Besides being in denial, undiagnosis and late diagnoses can also be because of misunderstandings, neglect, or financial hardships to afford psychological evaluations. Some people do not stutter as frequently or intensely as other people who stutter. Some people with Tourette's Syndrome have tics that do not show up as frequently or intensely as other people's tics, may have less tics than others, or their tics may only be unleashed in certain environments. Some people with intellectual disabilities are unable to read while some other people with intellectual disabilities can read. Many people in the autism spectrum community are nonverbal while others are verbal. Many people in the deaf and hard of hearing community use Sign Language and wear hearing aids while many others choose not to. Many people in the blind community cannot see at all while many other blind people can see some things with low vision. Many people in the physical disability community use wheelchairs, walkers, canes, or crutches while many others do not need them. Many people with seizures, chronic illness, or mental illness are unable to work paid jobs while many others can. Many women with Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS) (formerly called PCOS, short for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) use birth control medication and struggle with infertility while some experience PMOS the other way around. Ablation surgery does not always work the first time for every person with afib and the list goes on.
Related Links:
- What is a Learning Disability?
- Interventions for Young Children with Intellectual Disabilities
- The Importance of Treating Everyone with Respect
- Free Will to be Kind
- The Challenges Associated with Hypersensitivity and Hyposensitivity for People with Invisible Disabilities and Low Support Needs
- Meeting the Needs of Students Who Use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Devices
- Educators Need to Show More Faithfulness to Students, Families, and the Education System
- Fair does not always mean equal
- What Help Is and Isn't Explained
- All Identities Matter Equally
- How to Use Disability Inclusive Language Guide
- The History of the Disability Pride Flag
- What Disability Pride Means to 16 Self-Advocates
- 25 Notable Women in the Disability Community from History
- 11 Notable People in the Disability Community Who Intersect into the LGBTQ+ Community
- 18 Notable Hispanic/Latinx People in the Disability Community from History
There are many people who are unwilling to accept that these truths are part of reality. They cannot handle the truth! The disability community is massive and incredibly diverse. There is an estimate of 1.3 billion people in the disability community in the world. In fact, the Disability Health and Data System reports that eighty percent of disabilities are invisible/nonapparent. Let of all of that sink in. Furthermore, some disabilities are not present at birth and develop later in life, such as but not limited to Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), clinical anxiety and depression, diabetes, chronic pain, Chiari Arnold Malformation, afib, PMOS, rare diseases, limb loss, hearing loss, paralysis, and cancer due to trauma. Not every single individual in the disability community opens up about their disabilities as well. Being able to open and disclose disabilities is a privilege. Not everyone has access to safe spaces to open up about their disabilities and opening up about disabilities in unsafe spaces can jeopardize vocational and social opportunities for people in the disability community nor do they owe anyone an explanation.
Related Links:
- 44 Signs That a Hurting Person Is "Crying for Help" Without Crying or Speaking Up
- 104 Warning Signs of Suicidal Thoughts
- What is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?
- Trauma's Impact on Mental and Physical Health Can Be Really Scary
- When Trauma Gets Trapped in the Body, Mind, and Spiritual Self
- 17 Recommendations for If You Get Sensory Overload from Any Illness with a Stuffy Nose
- 10 Tips for If You Get Sensory Overload from Hot Weather and Sweat
In addition, everything in my previous posts about what makes a true disability advocate applies to everyone who says that they are disability advocates whether they or you are a paraprofessional, general education or Special Education Teacher, service provider, Local Education Agency (LEA), healthcare professional, caseworker, lawyer, advocate, family member, partner, child, friend, neighbor, colleague, or employer of anyone in the disability community. Nevertheless, just saying, "I am a disability advocate", "I (do) support people in the disability community", "I have a friend/family member/student who is disabled/with a disability/disabilities", "I work in Special Education", or "I (do) include disabled people/people with disabilities/people in the disability community" about oneself does not automatically make anyone a disability advocate. All true disability advocates consistently show it through their actions and character.
Related Links:
On and off of my disability advocate influencer page, I recognize the fact that disability is the largest minority group that anyone can join at any time. I recognize that everyone should always be kind because everyone is going through something that no one knows anything about. I recognize that "not obvious", "invisible", and "rare" never means nor guarantees nonexistent. Thank you so much to everyone who genuinely recognizes invisible disabilities and the fact that every disability journey is different.
Check on your strong friends.
Check on your struggling friends.
Check on your distant friends.
Check on your funny friends.
Check on your grieving friends.
Check on your independent friends.
Check on your people-pleasing friends.
Check on your quiet friends.
Check on your outgoing friends.
Check on your friends with a strong support system.
Check on your wealthy friends.
Check on your happy friends.
Check on your successful friends.
Check on your busy friends.
Check on all of your friends, period.
To learn more about supporting the invisible disabilities community, click on the below links to some resources:
- Invisible Disabilities Association - invisibledisabilities.org/
- The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower - hdsunflower.com
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