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Disabled people are treated like scroungers

reyaadams

Disabled people are treat like scroungers and constantly demoralzed in the media. This is unfair and we should make a stand as they did in the windrush case. We should not be subjected to individual prejudices and bias based on what another has in there mind as to what does or does not constitute a disability/disabled person.

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Comments

JennysDad

Hello Reya (?) @reyaadams and a warm welcome to the community. Good to have you with us.
You'll get no disagreement from me

Here and listening,
Warmest best wishes
Richard @JennysDad

GizmoTiddles

Hi @reyaadams and welcome
I totally agree with you i'll willingly put my name on any petition if and when

Cheers
Gizmo

reyaadams

I understand many are sailing in the same boat and believe in the power of the people. We stand alone you will fall at the gates not if you have a strong gatekeeper. So let's make aloud enough noise democratically, and stop this hostile environment that is being created by the DWP and further supported by NO. 10 Downing Street.

debbiedo49

Welcome

thespiceman

Hello @reyaadams Pleased to meet you. This I am in agreement totally. Mind you has it got worse or better.

Know the amazing work and promotion of all inclusive society. SCOPE doing the challenging and pushing forward to break the stereo types.

This has gone on though since I was born with my disability. Seen a lot of changes but I in my opinion has been a lot more scrutiny of our community.

Never helped with this Government and may I say all successive Governments.

Yes there has been strides in to employment changes and looking at encompassing laws and other strategies to be implied. Not enough and even successive Commons reports have said we as a community are a minority. Missed chances now over twenty years plus, it is claimed.

Unfortunately much to many of this community. Missed opportunities and benefits have now seen our community. Become angry hurting unnecessarily others like themselves.

In reality becoming a voice a chorus of disapproval to the way we are portrayed.

Feelings and emotions running high with full blown stories of society who does not understand. Most importantly do not want to know or care.

Unless it effects them why would I want to care and worry about you. I used to get when helping and assisting others . Who are not like me.

The attitudes are always going to be there. Where are the disabled and mentally ill on drama or film or theatre. Yes they have been characters in any of these. Far and few between.

I remember the same with ethnic minorities. Now almost in every sort of media format.

What are we going to do about it as a community?

Waylay

Good question @thespiceman . I can't really go to demos, and have no money to donate, but I read the comments on articles about disability, and I answer ignorant commenters. I explain my own story. I make sure that I know the facts, and I pass them on.

I have ~400 friends on FB, and I write very honestly about mental health, chronic pain, and what the Tories are doing to us. It's humiliating sometimes, but people tend to listen more when you're honest. I share petitions and articles. I think I do some good.....

JennysDad

Hi @Waylay and @thespiceman,
An interesting conversation. Waylay's response maybe indicates part of the problem, and maybe, too, part of the reason the disabled are being abused by the system as much as they are. How many disabled people can, indeed, attend demos, and how many - so many struggling just to survive - can spare money for contributions?
I am volunteering in support of a still new group called 'Ability in Action' who are attempting to launch their own political party for disabled people. With a current membership of some 200 people, feedback and commitment seem to me to be remarkably poor and it's worrying. Mobility and money don't really come into the equation, so one wonders why they are not fighting harder?
Warmest best wishes to everyone here,
Richard
@JennysDad

Waylay

@JennysDad Fatigue, pain, depression, busy appealing DWP decisions... And many have children, jobs, etc. But yes, we're the obvious group to target. Many of us don't get out much, are somewhat isolated, and often poor. If we look "OK", our existence is often glossed over, and if we put together a large demo, then people tend to think of us as "the disabled", instead of as human beings...

feir

Something like 50% of people my age (mid 40s) are disabled and living in pain. I suppose they've got to cut the number of people asking for help somehow by shaming them. It actually used to work and many people used to struggle, not so much any more because we won't put up and shut up. Nobody is a scrounger for expecting to be able to live as fulfilling life as possible.

I honestly think they're going to have to do some changes in society to make them properly inclusive of disabled people, ones that don't cost a lot of money somehow.

sandyp196

I have a diagnosed psychiatric illness and am often very unwell. But I always feel so guilty when trying to get financial aid. I feel guilty asking my doctor, psuchiatrist, and the mental health for letters of support. They always give them and I generally get the benefits without too much problem although I sometimes have to appeal. There is a lot of stigma and shame and stereotyping around mental health in this country.
I was misdiagnosed with bipolar 1 for years. I now have different diagnosis. My family and friends find it hard to accept my new diagnosis as there are a lot of bad stereotypes around it when bipolar can be seen as more of a celebrity type illness, is in the news a lot and more is known about it than other psychiatric illnesses.
Some members of my family have asked me to just continue to let people think I have bipolar and not talk about my revised diagnosis.
It makes me feel very ashamed which is also why I don't talk about it. Not even on this site.

thespiceman

Hello @sandyp196 Good morning thank you for sharing and being so honest.

My concern is that as a community we need to assist and support each other.

Understand where you are coming from . I come from a family who specifically hated me discussing anything about disability or even mental health.

Had a family member who had severe mental illness. My Mothers brother. Who extremely in one heated debate with her own brother. Told me you are like that or anything . I will cut you off and mis- treat you and put you in a institution . Throw away the key.

Only if and when. Then had to go about doing hospital and doctors visits in secret. Hide medication. Then that was the seventies and eighties. Stigmatised and traumatised by my Mothers reaction, constantly.

With my disability they all went on holiday If I had a operations or any surgery.. Leaving me in hospital. Some times coming out to no one there to support me. Had to stay with friends.

Preventions of benefits and everything I could have had. From a sheltered accommodation for disabled. Which would have made me more secure and content. Had support and well being on site.

Made me a alcoholic and drug addict. All this anxiety and depression caused by being emotional and mixes of embarrassment, guilty and trauma and the abuses of my Mother in my head every day.

Now wish I had come out and be more honest. Wish I had said more. My Uncle killed himself. Because of the ostracised attitudes of society.

Also you wish not to talk about your illness that is you.

Understand now being denied the opportunities and the chances to help my self. I am aware of my disability and mental health and what I need or require.

As a disabled person I want to talk about it. Understand I want to shout out about mental illness. Understand wish to talk and educate society on the harm of addiction and drugs. Alcohol especially.

Of course being with a sensitive, caring approach always.

At least I know there will be others I can reach out to and touch and say I am here.

I am here to listen, hope and pray and be a friend, how can I be a friend?

Take care

@thespiceman

JennysDad

Hello @sandyp196. So very sorry to learn of your experience.
I perhaps don't need to say it, but I'm with @thespiceman on this one.
You have not chosen to be as you are, nor have you made any effort to be as you are. The way you are is like my own baldness, a fact of life that nature presented me with and about which I cannot, myself, do anything. You have absolutely nothing to feel guilty or ashamed about. Absolutely nothing.
There are weak people, inadequate people, people who perhaps should be ashamed of being what they are, who think that 'looking down' on somebody somehow elevates themselves, lifts them up. They are contemptible. You are not.
I don't know - through this forum - who you are or where you are. There is nothing you could share with me that could ever come back to bite you

But here I am, and here is the spiceman and so many, many others who are perfectly willing to accept your truth, whatever it is, to value you and to respect the courage you have to possess in order to get by.
Very warmest best wishes to you,
Richard
@JennysDad

sandyp196

Thank you both the spice man and jenny's dad. That made me cry a bit. Sometimes I am open about my illness but usually when it's beyond my control and I overshare and go a bit crazy (literally).
My family absolutely hate it and are very ashamed. The mental health team have tried to tell them it's not my fault and is a symptom of my illness. But they believe I can control it and just don't because I like the attention.
At the time I can honestly say I do but it's not positive attention.
I can see why it's caused major rifts in my family.
The saddest thing of all is my cousin had thr same illness as me. She died 8 years ago aged 34. Her death was definitely caused by the illness. Not directly, but as a result of thr symptoms and the mind numbing meds.
I find it really hard how my family worship her memory but treated her much like me when she was alive.
I miss her so much toO and believe I will meet a similar fate.
It's sad that my family will only value me as a memory. But they've always been all about appearances.
Very religious. My illness is an evil to them. Not just them but to thr religion as a whole. It's quite an archaic view and not everyone thinks that. But unfortunately my family do
Anyeah i dont want to hIjack someone else's post with my own woes
ThanK you for listening and being so nice.

JennysDad

Hello @sandyp196 and thank you for getting back to us. I think - others may disagree - that your posts are entirely germane/relevant to this thread. Discrimination out their in the world begins with individuals and it is tragic that those individuals should include one's own family.
I am not sure, frankly, that you could 'overshare' here. The special thing about this community is that most of us have learned from experience to be far beyond the platitudes and prejudices of the 'person in the street'. Here you are protected by anonymity and by companions who care.
I've no time at all for the very peculiar people who speak of a 'God of Love' and then accept as 'evil' and as 'punishment' things that an ordinary mortal would not inflict on another if they had the ability to do so.
If you are concerned about hijacking the thread, post a new one for us. Adding @JennysDad will keep me informed whenever and wherever you post.
Your friend,
Richard
@JennysDad

thespiceman

Hello @sandyp196 Please can I thank you for replying back to me. I understand about your family being religious and also that impact on your illness.

Please can I add I am the opposite of that. I am a person who has a faith but had to practise it in secret. Most of my family never knew and had to go and do things in private..

Once found me praying and the results were negative to the extreme.

Unfortunately my family was atheist.

You must therefore understand the situation with religion. That you must heal with in. You must pray to God and cause no sin. Remember the rules of the Church are their rules. All the Churches which ever you belong to have certain restrictions that you must follow.

As my friend @Jenny's Dad says God of Love. Speak of evil and damnation and you will go to hell.

Understand all that, please my friend that is afraid poison to me. I do not go to church. I practise quietly and secretly to me , my church.

Jesus once said you do not need a Church. So I do not.

My concern is you right now. You the important one.

Remember I have trod your path with my parents who have and has kept secret my disability. The real honest truth of it. The reason I am the truth. Especially my Mother. Even now.

After therapy, counselling and other. Has harmed me and has still some where in my conscious get angry , annoyed by parents who treated me indifferent and seriously made me ill. For what the truth.

Need to be confidence and have made a fresh start . Acceptance is never easy. Anybody who is disabled from birth. Will tell you we do not wish to be like this. I do not but now I have to move on. Try to not feel guilty and ashamed as you do. I have to struggle and strive.

Please if you wish to talk to me, am here to listen.

You are in my thoughts and prayers

Take care

@thespiceman

JohnCP

Read comment by @JennysDad regarding Ability In Action as I joined but my Facebook account was hacked in February 2022 (thanks to a community organisation I'm up and running again). Does anyone know if Ability In Action is still active or operational?

amazingblazing62

reyaadams said:

Disabled people are treat like scroungers and constantly demoralzed in the media. This is unfair and we should make a stand as they did in the windrush case. We should not be subjected to individual prejudices and bias based on what another has in there mind as to what does or does not constitute a disability/disabled person.

amazingblazing62

Reyyadams

We will not be Defeated we have our Rights to Stand Up for the other people R not in our Positions so they do not have a say about our Conditions they don't live with the Many Neumerous Conditionds Disabled people live with.

Amazingnlazing628.