Able and Disabled

Hey All! As mentioned in my blog post this time last week I was preparing for a day out that would be the first step of an amazing opportunity! The big news I had been keeping under wraps was in fact that I have been chosen to participate in this years 'Scope for Change' programme, a six month project that will give me the skills to be an even more capable and avid activist for the rights of disabled folks. The purpose of this programme is to provide me with the networks and techniques to be an influential campaigner. Many involved within the UK Disability community will be more than aware of the work and significance of Scope as a leading national charity, meaning that excited does very little to describe how I feel about the prospect of this mind-blowing opportunity! My personal reasoning for participation in the programme, as a large proportion of my Facebook friends will know, is because I want to help create a world in which everyone finally understands that not all im...

Hey! Tomorrow I am travelling back into London for the day (I am currently home for the summer) for an event. Because of this absolutely amazing but potentially tiring day out I'm planning to get an early night, meaning this might be a slightly shorter and more concise post. Therefore, I thought this would be the perfect time to share my - tips for a day out when also dealing with chronic pain, fatigue, anxiety and potential overstimulation. I may seem particular but it's all entirely necessary for me to enjoy my trip. 1. Do any preemptive pain management methods recommended to you - for me this means possibly taking my medication to prevent pain rather than ease it, or this might just mean packing a few essentials (deep heat, pain killers, etc.) Of course when taking medication always follow the doctors instructions! 2. Do any planning that will put your mind at rest - I can experience reasonable anxiety if things feel unknown or out of my control and this can cause me t...

Hi All! Sorry for the delay in writing this post. As you may have noticed I try to post here at least once if not twice a week, but it has been about a week and a half since my last post. However, I hope that the following story will explain my slight absence. While disability does not always make it impossible, it can make it difficult to achieve certain childhood milestones; climbing trees, learning to swim, being on a school sports team. Indeed, all these goals are still achievable but I think it would be wrong to deny that their attainment may be less simple and for this reason I think that the success of some should not devalue the struggle of the individual. For me one of these struggles was learning to ride a bike. Cerebral Palsy does not remove one of their right to ride the two wheeled vehicle, but my natural lack of balance and poor coordination had never lent themselves to this particular skill. I had tried over the years but with little success. Possibly the moment whic...

Hey All! I recently discovered that similarly to the 'Baby on Board' badge TFL (Transport for London) also offers a 'Please offer me a seat' badge. The 'Please offer me a seat' pack is available to request for free on TFL's website and comes with both a badge and a card. The message on the card sums up pretty well why I like TFL's approach to this scheme: "Please offer me a seat. Remember not all impairments and conditions are visible." I wanted to use this week's post to discuss why I think this idea is so very brilliant but also some of the personal challenges I've experienced regarding the badge's application. I really admire the way that TFL has approached this idea. I've had my pack for a short time now and the online application was incredibly easy and non-invasive. There is no where on the form that asks you to prove or even disclose your reason for your requesting the badge. I've had people question me about ho...

Hey All! We all appreciate the odd compliment and like to think that those around us notice or appreciate the things that we do. It is our nature to wish to inspire and be inspired? However, is the impact of this very word weakened when a disabled person is told that they are 'inspirational' simply for not being sad about being disabled? Recently I have been reading (and thoroughly enjoying) Francesca Martinez's book "What the **** is Normal?!" and it has reminded me of this topic's constant relevance and importance. Throughout my life I have come into contact with people who have aimed to congratulate me but have rather patronised me. Sure, compliment my stubborn nature or the things I create or the things I know, but not my ability to simply exist with disability. It is my belief that more often than not being inspirational is not about who you are but rather what you do with who you are, it is an action. This is why today I am constructing you a list of p...

Hey All! If you have been on Facebook, Instagram or maybe even Snapchat this week you will have noticed that the 14th to the 20th of May is Mental Health Awareness Week. Of course I absolutely love the idea of Mental Health Awareness Week! I'm more than happy to be an advocate for anything that encourages people to talk about their mental wellbeing and maybe even seek help. However, this year I've been struggling with what to post online, hence I have procrastinated this very blog post until Sunday evening. The reason I've been struggling to know what to say that my annual social media post sometimes heavily contrasts my approach to discussing my own mental health in person. Every year I post something on social media, this year my blog, about my own struggles with mental health issues (especially anxiety) and of course I talk about you need not struggle alone, how if you reach out there will be someone in this world who wants to listen and hopefully help make things a ...

DISCLAIMER: I AM ONLY ONE PERSON WITH CEREBRAL PALSY AND I AM NOT A DOCTOR. THOUGH MANY OF THESE SYMPTOMS ARE COMMON SYMPTOMS OF AGEING WITH CP, MY EXPLANATIONS MAY NOT BE MEDICALLY PERFECT AND I WILL MOST LIKELY EXPERIENCE THESE ELEMENTS OF CP DIFFERENT TO SOME OTHERS WITH THE SAME DISABILITY. Hey All! Anyone who knows me in person will know that I often joke about feeling old for my age, whether that be due to my taste in tv shows or my taste in music or my general personally. Indeed, I am an outspoken Golden Girls fan. However, the presence of Cerebral Palsy in my life does have the ability to take this feeling to a whole other level. I feel as though despite the increasing presence of both children and adults with CP in the media, discussion around the symptoms and impact of the condition focus far more upon the perspective of the child experience. Of course, many of the symptoms we experience never fully go away and the extent to which they effect you will depend upon the seve...