Thursday, February 18, 2010
Do I look helpless?
So I'm about to get on the subway when the cashier rushes out of his little booth and asks me which way I'm headed. Thinking that the elevator may be down I quickly ask if it's working and tell him I'm heading eastbound. He says that it's working and then asks if I need any assistance. I thank him and say I'm ok. He then asks me if I'm sure. Uhhh yeah I'm sure, I'm disabled not stupid, I think I know when I'm capable of handling something on my own. What made me even more frustrated was that even after telling him that I'm positive that I can handle boarding the train on my own...he continued to ask if I was sure. Finally I just started to move away from him towards the elevator. I understand he was just trying to be nice and make sure I would be safe getting where I needed to go, but questioning my answer when I tell people I'm capable of handling something on my own make me fell like they think I'm stupid just because I'm disabled. I'm just gonna put it out there for the record...BEING DISABLED DOES NOT MAKE YOU STUPID!
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Wow! That's completely frustrating! I'm Melissa mom to Sonya 2 years old type 3 OI, Akela 5 years no OI and Zoe 8 years no OI. We have just been begining to get the stares and comments lately. Some people are just so ignorant when it comes to disabilities. It's ridiculous that even now in 2010, this is how it is. Ugh! I came across your blog through the OI Research group on FB. We also have a blog at www.swartley.blogspot.com if you would like to check it out.
ReplyDeleteHi Melissa, I totally understand what you mean. It's a shame that in this day and age being different still seems to be looked down upon.
ReplyDeleteI checked out your blog...Sonya is absolutely adorable! I am happy to see that she's up and walking around with a walker :). At that age my mother was deathly afraid to even carry me normally and was still charring me on a pillow. I have Type IV OI and my mother was told that I probably wouldn't survive very long...so as you can imagine that made her very nervous. It wasn't until I was about 5 that I gained some freedom threw my chair. Seeing the pictures of Sonya playing in the snow made me brought a smile to my face. Please don't ever be afraid to let her experience life...she'll catch on pretty quickly what she's capable of doing without getting hurt and the stuff she can't.
Anyways I'm here if you have any questions or need someone to talk to that's been there.