By Scott Taylor
Disability. When we think about this word, it can provoke many different thoughts and emotions. Some examples of thoughts people might have can include, “What must this person's daily life be like?” “Are they able to work?” “Are they able to take care of themselves?” the list goes on. This is especially true for people in general society, and one of the biggest reasons that shapes this way of thinking from my perspective is a lack of exposure.
This was very much highlighted to me recently when I watched a new series that started on SBS (also on SBS On Demand) called What Does Australia Really Think About... The first episode of the series was about disability, and was hosted by former Paralympian and Australian disability community leader Kurt Fearnley.
As somebody who has lived experience, having had a disability since birth, when thinking about the word "disability", my thoughts often are "OK, this is my situation and my daily life.” However, I also think about my life goals and achievements today, tomorrow, and future.
Sure, just like everyone else, I have my good days and my not so good days. Notice I am very deliberate with my word choice there; that's on purpose. These days I have a lot more good days than the other, and this comes about purely from the way I think, my perspective and my view on life more broadly.
By achieving my goals with the support of my team, who Hireup employs, I have learnt the benefits of exposing another person who has had limited experience of disability previously to someone like me. But, of course, as a person who lives with a disability, these benefits I speak of don't just impact me in terms of social interaction, gaining more self-confidence, and my ultimate goals: to live independently and have mainstream employment. There is also a positive impact on those people supporting me.
I have had many support workers/team members talk about what spending an extended amount of time with me has done for them. One of the comments mentioned quite a lot is that through building a friendship with me, they now understand that for some people with disabilities, all they need is someone who shows belief in them. Once support workers see the light bulb of what is possible for someone with a disability, and people with disability get that belief from the support worker, it is so satisfying.
After watching this episode, sure, there were some parts where I was frustrated to hear how other people with disabilities are still spoken to/about and treated in general society. But, ultimately, I hope what people learn from it - particularly those who don't have or aren't around disability frequently - is that words, and how you say those words, can significantly impact someone with a disability, especially mentally.
Also, for those of you who are considering or would like to support someone with a disability, it can be a precious and rewarding career professionally, of course. I also know from firsthand the significant impact it can have on you as a person.
What Does Australia Really Think About Disability is definitely worth a watch for everyone.
