Barriers to Creating Accessible Housing, Part I: Ontario Building Code Accessibility Standards
As you may be aware, I have been doing advocacy work in accessibility for many years, serving on a variety of committees. In the last three years, I have been involved in the R-PATH Committee, which advocates for accessibility in Toronto Community Housing (TCH). I have long been very frustrated with the lack of usable…
Longing for a difference: Super Bowl Ad and Opioid Addiction Insanity
A little over a week ago, this ad ran during the Super Bowl [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr78_7Kip3Q] It deals with opioid -induced constipation and is, in my opinion, both discreet and direct, as well as very, very charming. It’s a very subtle ad for a medication that might help, but it is also much more than that,…
Guest post: Pregnancy and Parenting Survey
Are you a parent with arthritis? Do you have arthritis and want to have a family, too? Today’s guest post is by Laurie Proulx from the Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance (CAPA).She is the lead on a project about pregnancy and parenting with arthritis. CAPA has created a survey to find out what kind of information…
Share Your Story with Arthritis Research UK
Week in the UK. Arthritis Research UK is a wonderful organization committed to find ways to prevent the onset of arthritis, develop a cure, and to transform the lives of those who live with the different types of arthritis One of the biggest challenges in living with arthritis is that it’s hard to make others…
Is the Term Patient Counterproductive in Advocacy?
Updated May 17, 2021 “We need to support the journey from passive patient to patient leader. “ – Annette McKinnon How do you include the voice of people who live with illness — chronic or otherwise (patients) —in the decisions that affect how healthcare is provided? And how do you do that without these voices being used…
#TOtheWaterfront: Opening the Blue Edge
Last Friday, I was at the official opening of the revitalized Queen’s Quay. But I get ahead of myself. Look for the guy in the green t-shirt, they said… Four years ago, I posted about accessibility barriers in the path to the beach. Subsequently my MPP, Glen Murray, a true champion of universal design, facilitated…
Why I’m Walking*
*This being the theorectical walking in my wheelchair. I’d like you to meet my friend Brad (and his babies Bella and Myah). He and I were the double act in the #LiveBold RA update released earlier this year. Go ahead. Watch it. I loved the first RA multimedia story, but this one is my favourite….
Ten Years Later
What am I doing with a blog? That’s what I asked myself in my very first post on The Seated View. Which was ten years ago today. I also thought (briefly) that I didn’t have much to say. Almost 1500 posts later, I think we know the answer to that one. So, what did I…
Refusal of Care: Disabled Women and Breast Cancer Screening
Updated March 16, 2022 I was long past the recommended age to have a mammogram the first time I had one. The reason? Lack of accessibility in cancer screening equipment and procedures. And I’m not alone. Breast cancer is the most frequent type of cancer among women, yet women who have a disability are…
#LivingARTHfully: Connection and Inspiration
I spent Friday of last week at the Art Gallery of Ontario for the Living ARTHfully Blogger and Online Influencer Event. Canadian bloggers who write about RA, ankylosing spondylitis and psoriasis arthritis came together to make connections, learn tips and information, and brainstorm about increasing online conversations about arthritis. Hosted by GCI Group for Janssen…
Inspiration Porn, Stigma and the Way Out
Imagine a photo of a child in a wheelchair with a basketball, someone running on carbon fiber prosthetic legs or a person with RA deformities knitting. Across the bottom of the photo is emblazoned this text: “your excuse is invalid.” That’s inspiration porn. Porn involves the objectification of one group of people for the benefit…