Embodying Defiance

I live in a country where my government is hostile to my existence as a disabled person. As this excellent tweet and replies show, the never-ending fight for needed support and benefits such as PIP means walking a tightrope between playing the game in order to jump through the correct hoops, and pushing back against levels of …

Advertisements

But Give Us Roses Too…

"Hearts starve as well as bodies.  Give us bread, but give us roses too" Last night was the What's On Stage Awards in London.  Despite my love of theatre, this event would have entirely passed me by had I not been on twitter at the right time and seen my feed blowing up because of …

The Fall Revisited – Reclaiming My Body

Just over a year ago, I wrote my third piece on this blog.  It was titled The Fall and in many ways it set out why this blog started.  If you're ever looking for a central why this space exists, you will find it there.  It was born out of a frustration, a rage and a sadness that I …

Unconventional Love – A Post for Valentines’ Day

I find myself in a strange and new position.  This upcoming Valentines day is my first where I feel in any way attached to the date, my first as someone with a significant other.  On reflection this is a marker of how much my perspective about myself has shifted in 12 months, it’s been gigantic. …

Time To Talk Day Must Lead To Bigger Conversations

Today is Time to Talk Day.  It’s a day that leaves me with a sense of conflict.  I recognise the very needful work that campaigns like Time to Change do, and how much they have improved and broadened both the conversation, and acceptance of mental distress in the UK.  I often have cause to ponder …

Please Stop Asking What’s Wrong With Me

I've just been greeted with the question I hate maybe more than any other.  It's one I get asked relatively often, though thankfully not as often as many others... "Can I ask what's wrong with your legs?" I've been asked this so many times over the years that it really shouldn't shock me.  But always, …

Why I’m Hacked Off With RJ Mitte

Note: This is a followup to my previous piece on 'The Upside', for more context you can read that here... The debate within the disability community continues about The Upside, this is not surprising - cripping up seems always to be a subject that's especially volatile, but it's been kept going for longer by a couple of …