The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) defines a disabled person as someone who has a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
When you think of a disabled person you will instantly picture someone in a wheelchair, or something similar. We all do it, being disabled has a massive stigma to it of something unbelievably horrendous. Which in some cases is unfortunately true. However there are those that are disabled but they aren't in a wheelchair or aren't exactly how you would picture someone who is disabled to be. This causes alot of people to almost dismiss those disabled that aren't disabled in an extreme way. This is also true of the government, well of the division of the government that deals with disability living allowance.
If you was to see me and come chat to me say in a pub or restaurant or somewhere sat (all be it probably with my legs up resting on another chair and my crutches lent next to me) you would not label me as disabled. I look on the face of it perfectly normal, you would probably assume that I had been in a car crash or had a sporting injury. However I am by basic definition disabled, I mean im definately not 'able'. I suffer with severe periostitis, nerve damage in my back and severe chronic pain (amongst other little things as an effect from the main things). These problems mean I cannot sit with my legs bent for more than a couple of minutes, same goes for standing or walking, I do have the occasional relatively good day, although even then I have taken alot of medication and can still only manage to sit/stand/walk for around 5 minutes. If I do try and make the most of a good day then that will mean the day becomes a bad day. this is one of the reasons why if you was to just see me you would presume I was fairly okay. this is because if I do have a relatively pain free day then I want to keep it that way, I don't want to try do any extra because then I know I will be laid up in excruciating pain.
Anyway my point to all this is trying to explain to the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) of my conditions and there effects. I recently received a letter from the DLA saying because I can walk (hobble with crutches in alot of pain) for 5 minutes that means I can walk. Also because I can stand and then lay down and then stand and then lay down that means I can cook a meal. This really got to me, for one what they have said is wrong, If I do 'walk' for 5 minutes then I need to rest by laying down for at least 20 minutes, maybe even up to several hours. Where exactly is there that someone can do this?? When I said earlier that you may find me in a pub or where ever, this is incredibly rare, i normally only leave the house for medical appointments. I have a driving license although i am not able to drive so i rely on other people taking me places. When i do go to say pub i have to be cheeky and put my legs up on an extra chair, I normally drink alot to try take some of the pain away and I talk and laugh but am inside dieing and wanting to be laid up at home. With regards cooking a meal, well how many meals can be cooked when you have to lay down every couple of minutes. Seriously try it, it's impossible, not to mention a fire hazard if I was to use the grill/hob or whatever. I tend to eat cereal (sometimes microwave meal) if my mum or girlfriend haven't prepared a meal for me the day before.
So I was told i couldn't receive DLA on these grounds I have mentioned, as well as the fact that I can sometimes do certain other things, such as going to toilet on my own, getting myself out of a chair, getting in and out of bed etc etc, which to be honest I struggle with but I don't always need help with these so that is fine. The DLA completely ignored the fact that I can't pick myself up from the floor, also completely ignored alot of things that should be important but you see the DLA has had to cut down on who it gives help/support/money too. I don't want a load of money, I just want help where i need it, I mean you've probably figured out that I can't work. I would like a blue disabled badge so if I do get taken somewhere then we can park close enough for me to be able to get there.
Now this is where it gets extremely tricky and incredibly annoying/stressful. There is a huge conflict between what my counsellor/physio/pain clinic/specialists tell me and what the DLA tell me. My counsellor wants me to accept my new disabled life to forgot the person that I once was beforehand, however I need support from the DLA to do this. My physio wants me to try going in a swimming pool to do a weightless jogging motion to try fix my core and sort out the extra damage not being mobile has caused. However I can't afford this without help from the DLA and also I can't tell the DLA that I am trying to get more mobile as they would then say I can't have the support. I can't get the right medication from the pain clinic as they see my condition as long term and worry about the long term effects of certain medication. Basically for me to be able to get DLA I have to stop trying to get better both physically and mentally. They want me to just lay up all day everyday (which is what I almost do anyway) and to basically be the cliched disabled person to allow them to give me DLA and support.
I can't improve on my own, as much as I hate to admit it and as mush as I hate needing help and benefits, I need support. But they won't at the minute give me support so i just have to lay here, moaning on a blog that probably no one will read or at least never read right through to the end. There is no help or support for those that aren't the typical stereotyped disabled, we are in a grey area and it can't stay this way, something has to change and i really hope it changes soon. I know I don't have it no where near as bad as some, but I do need support and at the minute I'm not getting what I need/want or deserve.
Thanks for reading, please share your stories with me and let me know if you are in the same grey area please.
Thank you
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