Chronic Illness Brain Fog, Part One: What It Is
Updated April 19, 2021 Many people with chronic illness also experience the phenomenon colloquially known as brain fog. This includes symptoms related to problems with focusing and concentrating, memory problems, and basically your mind feeling less nimble than it used to. It can be a really big problem, but it doesn’t receive a lot of…
When Strong Gets in the Way
This post is written for the Facebook Live conversation between myself and Kirsten Schultz on how to stop being so damn strong. You can see Kirsten’s post here. I am very good at lying to myself. So good, in fact, that most of the time, I have no idea that I’m pulling the wool over…
Accessibility Wins (and We Meet the Prime Minister)
This past Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that the federal government is giving Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) $1.34 billion for repairs. And! 20 percent of that is earmarked to improve accessibility. And I got to meet him. But more on that later. The National Housing Strategy and accessibility You have read about the…
When Bodies Break: New Book from the Chronic Illness Community
I am proud to bursting of being a contributor to the exciting new book, When Bodies Break: How we survive and thrive with illness and disability. In it, thirty-two inspiring and resilient chronic illness warriors share their stories of struggle, strength and survival. When Bodies Break is the brainchild of Cam B. Auxer, the woman…
Access/No Access: The Quest for an Accessible Hotel Room
I had to be out of my apartment for week while my landlord installed new flooring to replace the one that had been destroyed in a flood. But first, I decided to check out a few accessible rooms in hotels near my neighbourhood to see which would best fit my needs. Starting with a surprise…
A Streetcar Named Freedom
Ask any person with a disability about the main challenges to living their life and almost all will talk about transportation (and, of course, housing). In Toronto, we have WheelTrans, the parallel transit system for people with disabilities, some accessible regular buses, some accessible subway stations, and now, new and accessible street cars. I have…
A Hotel That Heals: Le Germain Maple Leaf Square Review
The first hint that we weren’t in real life anymore was the name of the toilet. OK, so I’m sure it was the name of the brand of this kind of toilet (total? Really?), but it set the tone. I got kicked out of house and home the last week while a big part of…
In Which I Regain A Part of Me That Had Been Lost
I watched The Meg yesterday and it was life-changing. But I should start at the beginning. I love film — I mean, who doesn’t? — and used to go to the movies all the time. Especially after I moved downtown to an area that has a discount movie theatre. Once a week or so, I’d…
How to be a Photographer with a Disability: The Gear
Updated march 15, 2021 How do you manage to be a photographer — doesn’t your disability get in the way? Every now and again, someone will ask me a variant on this question. The answer involves a number of factors. Today I’m going to talk about the gear — both the cameras and the tools…
#AskLene July 2018
This month on the #AskLene Facebook Live, I talked about disability benefits — what’s good about them, what isn’t, and what it takes to qualify — as well as what to do when people don’t believe you have a chronic illness.
Changing the National Building Code for an Inclusive Canada
I have never visited my sister’s home. I have never been to my partner’s home. If my friends are having a party, I can’t go. My partner and I can’t live together. Housing in Canada is usually not accessible to people who use wheelchairs. It contributes to isolation — you might even call it segregation…
Exercise with Severe RA: Starting the Day with a Dance
I’ve been thinking about exercise. Partly because it’s spring — well, currently waffling back and forth between spring and Springter in Toronto — and partly because I’ve had yet another health professional talk earnestly at me about moving my body. In response to which I pointed out, as I have so many of the times…