When tut tutting outside the disabled loo may not be very fair.......
1 minute read time.
FormerMember
OK....apologies in advance for the slightly risqué title of the blog page featured below but....what do we think of this MacMerseyChesh ?
I found the very personal blog piece linked below to be a fascinating, revealing, and at times uncomfortable read. This is one persons story about a hidden cancer related disability. Its a very clear...painfully clear...expose of what its like for many who are every bit as "disabled" as I am as a wheelchair user, but of course, you can't "see" the disability so its not always the case that people take a minute to think about things. Me ? Ive just spent time outside a disabled loo in one of the countries most famous Dept Stores only to see an Olympic Athlete sprint out of the loo without a sideways glance at someone who never gets to "choose" which loo they can use.
But boy, this open letter below hit home. I still feel slightly like defending us mobility impaired people who often face the very difficult situation of waiting for a disabled loo to become free, only to watch in frustration as what they perceive to be someone with no genuine "right" to use that facility, wanders out and gives you a defiant glare, almost daring you to "tut" at them...or even use stronger words.....but now i feel horribly guilty as id never ever considered the circumstances set out by this angry individual who without question is every bit as "qualified" to use the disabled loo as me. So i guess I'm going to have to count to ten next time a very athletic looking type delays my access to the one accessible loo for miles around......unless of course they are, as i also encountered recently...wearing the bloomin Store uniform and eating a sarnie from the Deli counter !!
Id love to know what you think.....turn the other cheek time and try to understand that hidden disability deserves our understanding...or....dont let this stop you you expressing disapproval because you think most inappropriate use of the disabled loo is just that....inappropriate ?
Cheers, Mark. From the MacMerseyChesh crew (see us on Facebook : Macmillan Cancer Support in Cheshire and Merseyside or on our fast growing Twitter account : @MacMersey_Chesh )
FormerMember
Prior to having cancer i would of tutted, but after suffering the effects of chemo and cancer i now no longer tut when i see someone walk out of a disabled toilet, sure they might be fine but what if they not, question is do people consider cancer a disability, it certain disables you from doing various things, even getting insurance
Damon, points well made. My view on disability has been that what mostly disables us is our environment i.e. i would not be disabled in terms of access if there was step-free access etc. But in reality i have a disability, or impairment as many now prefer to term it.....so without playing around with the language too much i think that people affected by cancer may well face a number of impacts that become a disability....sometimes temporary....sometimes permanent. I find it incredibly frustrating that my once comfortable position around the use of a disabled loo by someone without a disability is now challenged by a searingly honest assessment. We often jump to conclusions. I know I'm guilty of that sometimes when waiting for the loo and a marathon runner exits with no apparent concerns or embarrassment at what they have done....but....its clear to me now that I'm going to have to re think my anger at such apparent misuse and tho, frustratingly, that may mean "letting off" some obvious looking miscreants, i guess i need to accept that there may well be a hidden disability or impact of cancer treatment for instance, that means the person making me wait for the one disabled loo for miles around is every inch as entitled to use that facility as i am. Lesson learnt !!
Its likely that there are many hidden disabilities which people suffer and properly get tutted at when using a disabled loo, I am more than likely one of the people that gets dirty looks for daring to use the disabled toilet, I don't look very ill on the outside, people who know me think i look amazing considing what ive been through and I guess that's why people jump to the conclusion that I just don't want to queue or walk to the main toilets but the truth is i've had cancer twice which has left me with leg problems and I had a recent lung lobectomy which causes lots of pain but people are not to know that so I guess it's not their fault thou maybe people maybe should think before jumping to conclusions!!!
