#disabled driver

[cy-cyborg]

So Australia brought in a new law stating that autistic people now have to get medical clearance to drive. Even if you were late diagnosed and had your licence for decades, most states are still saying you need to get medical clearance. Queensland is the worst, with several thousand dollar fines if you don't. Other states aren't penalising people directly (or not as sevearly), but I believe if you don't disclose it, it can impact your insurance and cause issues if you're involved in an accident (even if you weren't at fault).

I'm using vague language here because the thing is, this whole thing is very vague and confusing. No one seems to know anything, even the government agencies who are supposed to be enforcing it.

So as a physically disabled Autistic person who already has to get medical clearance to drive anyway, I just want to let anyone new to this whole system know to be VERY careful where you get your information from and make sure to double check everything, even when its coming from usually reliable sources.

Unless you are talking to someone who's job it is to specifically deal with disabled drivers, most of the system has no clue. This includes cops, this includes your state's government service centre (e.g. services NSW, services QLD etc) and all the places you usually look for personal transport-related beurocrocy and laws. Even talking to your state gov's transport department directly (e.g. transport NSW) isn't garuenteed. It's not a bad place to start, but with how messy this whole thing is, please double-check what you're being told.

My assessments deemed I needed a specific type of hand control to drive safely. This is a very common modification that has been around for decades and has been regulated under Australian law for nearly as long. Yet every time I get pulled over the cops get really freaked out about it because they don't know what the laws are surrounding them. that's usually why they pull me over, because the part of the hand control that is visible from outside the vehicle looks kind of similar to an illegal racing mod, and then once they determine its not the same thing they always want to check everything I do have is legal, despite not even knowing what theyre looking at. Every time I need to get my licence details updated, every time I need to do anything at services NSW, they always get really confused because no one knows what they're supposed to do or what you need to do if youre not a "normal" driver.

That won't stop abled and neurotypical people from CONFIDENTLY insisting the do know though, and giving you the wrong information.

And this is with laws that have been in place for decades.

My point is this whole thing sucks at the best of times, but the way they brought these laws in is going to cause a shitshow in the system that was already struggling to deal with even the more "well understood" disabilties. That, combined with the general misinformation already circulating about autism... just be careful of the information you're being told, double check everything, etc etc.

[disabled-dragoon]

Pisses me off sometimes that people don't even try to understand my anxiety around driving, and just chalk it up the fact I'm "new" or "always anxious", instead of actually bothering to let me explain.

Yes I know it gives me more freedom and independence

I know it's a good life skill to have

I know people, specifically future employers, will, for some ridiculous reason, be "more impressed" by me if they see that I, an ambulatory, very physically disabled person can drive.

Buts that not the point??

I think my worries are perfectly valid when we're talking about driving around a massive death box capable of mass destruction on the drop of a dime.

And people will say "oh I was scared to but you'll get used to it" Or "you just have to drive more and it'll help" Or "you're just preaching to the choir here, I get it"

No! You don't!

You're in a very similar choir but we are by no means singing the same songs!

It's just.

AHHHHHHHH

[feluka]

i hope mr beast gets on a bus in egypt and the bus driver (in typical egyptian bus driver fashion) starts driving away before the person getting off fully gets off and only has one leg out and he's not anticipating it so he loses his balance and falls and hits his head and dies

[kingfakey]

i think it’s very easy to say “i’m not ableist” but most of us would crack after 5 minutes of serious examining of our internalized beliefs. & yes this actually applies to other disabled people, and also to myself, because disability encompasses such a staggering number of conditions that we’re all bound to have internalized beliefs about them, and refusing to poke at those beliefs because you believe you aren’t ableist is uhhhh not helpful, to say the least.

[r3musmoony]

just had an absolutely godawful moment at university rn and in such a shit mood so I'm tryna focus on the positives.

If anyone wants to share a positive moment they've experienced with their physical disability (of any kind) please feel free to share in the comments or reblogs

[itshomobirb]

if my parents keep talking to me im going to (remembers that suicide jokes are bad for mental health) go outside and dig a hole to narnia

[disbabeled]

Absolutely begging able bodied people to remember that the accessible seats on public transport are NOT FOR YOU. You have the ability to walk two steps to sit in literally any other seat. Why do you insist on sitting in the ones specifically reserved for disabled people?

"Oh but I'll move if a disabled person is coming."

First of all, you can't always tell when somebody is disabled.

Second of all, not all of have the ability to stand there while you gather up your stuff and move, especially when the bus/tram/subway/whatever is moving. Sometimes we need to sit down immediately after getting on, which is why the seats right next to the doors are RESERVED FOR DISABLED PEOPLE.

[b-blushes]

thursday quest - no physical therapy today - make and eat lunch sooooo early but i can do it!!!!! - get ready for wedding - attend wedding! yay! (: - decompress well when i get home <3

[goodguydotmp3]

I'm at my wits fucking end

Can anyone spare 40usd so I can get food delivered?

I probably just won't eat if I can't it it. I'm a disabled person with no help and no access to social services can I please get a fucking break

Cashapp venmo paypal

[communistfries]

Does anyone else remember when the discourse on twitter was that you're a bad person if you get upset about your doordash/instacart order being wrong. That was wild

[crimeronan]

forgot i very wisely put my braces on because i'm busing all over town today doing pre-storm errands & i had a moment of being like "wow, weird, the bus drivers are being EXTRA nice to me..... with all the other passengers they seem to be in a hurry but for me they keep waiting to move til i fully take my seat... am i limping really badly today or something??"

and then i looked down at my bondage geared legs and was like oh. right.

girl. you are crippled.

[disabled-dragoon]

Someone on my mother's soaps is relearning to drive after a stroke and they're using hand controls very similar to the ones I use and it got me weirdly excited

[sunrise-stitchery]

Had an absolute shit day so I will not be setting up the sewing machine today. Out of spoons completely.

[suffercerebral]

me having gone to bed at 6 am every day for the past week and generally spiraling mentally while rotting in bed waking up this morning: a 4 mile hike in the heat is a really good idea right now, and while we're at it let's start like 3 art projects

[chatdomestique]

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but Doordash, Instacart, and similar services are disability services, and if you choose (because it is a choice) to become a delivery driver, you are expected to accommodate for a wide variety a needs, which (and I can’t believe I have to say this) includes entering apartment buildings and walking up stairs.

The customer is not obligated to accommodate you; you are obligated to accommodate them.

[x-v4mp3y3lin3r-x]

stock car racing is such a horrifying sport and when you grow up in a culture where it's normal, explaining it to people who know nothing about it so fucking interesting. this girl asked me "do they often retire with injuries?"

and then I realized there's no good way to word "If they don't die in an accident, yeah, probably"