Living with invisible disabilities is a challenge. Not only do you have to live with the stigma of having a disability, but you also have to explain why you need the resources that you do. Even something as simple as parking in a handicapped spot can leave you with snide comments and mean looks.
“I look at them and say, well, you know what? I wish I could park in your spot and walk without being in pain, but thank you for your concern,” says Meghan Dow, a former educational assistant.
Dow has multiple invisible disabilities.
“I had a workplace injury back in 2014. Nothing that you know would have made you think, wow, she hurt herself. It was something simple that I did, but unfortunately, the ongoing effects of that back injury spilled over into everyday life,” says Dow. “Since then, I have had three surgeries, lots of physiotherapy, weekly injections for pain, and now suffer from chronic pain. The back surgeries were considered failures. Just dealing with the after-effects of that has been a lot, and then during that, I was diagnosed with celiac disease.”
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that causes the body to react violently to just a tiny amount of gluten.
“If you think about it, a crumb like just one crumb, not a big one, a small one that you know is very difficult to see, can make me sick. In my lifetime, the little pill containers that you get to travel with your Tylenol are all of those little crumbs I can have in my lifetime.”
Invisible disabilities come in many forms, as Equity Diversity and Inclusion expert Joseph Pazzano explains.
(Credit: Eric Fry) EDI Expert Joseph Pazzano
“Invisible disabilities can exist in any category of disability. A physical disability, mental, neurological condition, physical health conditions, anything that is just not immediately identifiable by those around us,” says Pazzano.
He also shares how people see those with invisible disabilities.
“You get in an elevator. Someone gets an elevator with you and hits the button for the second floor, right, and everyone around them groans and thinks, we’re going to have to stop at the second floor and let these people out when we’re all trying to get up to the higher floors. You never know what that person is going through. You never know what their experience is that requires them to need the elevator to get to the second floor.”
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