YES. “Disability” is not a dirty word. It’s a descriptive fact of your functioning. I am disabled by schizoaffective, fibromyalgia, type 1 diabetes, and severe asthma.
I have a few different disabilities. Even though I don’t find the word “disability” to be “bad”, I do not want to be disabled, because life is already tough. I mean, I am honestly disabled… and it sucks. To say I’m disabled is fine, but that doesn’t mean I’m proud of it.
If it was called “Disability Awareness Month”, I’d be down. But “Pride”??? Noooooo… definitely not.
EDIT: By the way, I know that not everyone with Sz/SzA thinks they are disabled. And that’s fine. We all function differently.
I definitely agree with this, but I wasn’t sure if sz was considered a form of neurodivergence as opposed to a mental illness. I know it’s classified as a neurodevelopmental disorder like autism and ADHD since it manifests due to atypical brain development in childhood and early adolescence, but I haven’t heard of any adaptive strengths or mitigating characteristics that conditions more often seen as neurodivergence like ASD/ADHD/dyslexia/etc. have that go along with their challenges. The way I think of it is “in an ideally accommodating society or a social vacuum, would this condition be as disabling and distressing as it is currently perceived to be, if at all?” And, at least in my case, I think I would still be very greatly troubled by my schizophrenia because the voices I hear tend to be hostile without provocation and also I struggle with paranoia and anhedonia. I honestly don’t know whether any of this would be better even with the best possible accommodations since it’s clearly a utopian hypothetical, but it’s definitely a thought-provoking question and I thank you for your insightful response!
Yea, I’m not particularly sure if SZ-type conditions fall under the neurodivergent umbrella or not, according to those that use the word regularly, as well as the general consensus on what the term entails.
But I would suggest that it could, considering that SZ spectrum disorders are “divergent” from what scientists and medical professionals deem to be “normal” brain functioning.
I am also one of those people who believe that illnesses on the SZ spectrum are neurobiological in nature— that is to say, rooted in the structure and chemical composition of one’s brain— rather than purely psychologically-based.
So essentially, the brain backfires due to an altered development or chemical composition, and complications arise— which are more often than not displayed by psychological symptoms.
Really great question, for sure.
You said yes, and I would give the same answer as well.
That’s a good point! It’s certainly a possibility and at the very least falls under the literal definition. I would be curious to see how non-sz people with other neurodivergent conditions think of the concept.
I am proud of my condition. I genuinely don’t see it as a disability neccisarily but a different-ability. I think we have a special gift it is tough tho…not denying that
From what I understand it is a global thing but it may or may not be recognized or celebrated in certain places. Admittedly I myself had not heard of it either until relatively recently.
it is tough tho…not denying that