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Come down to the communities expo today and meet Noah!
We provide peer supports for people with disabilities, by people with disabilities

Today and everyday

In 2020, Subiaco-local Julia Hales became the first person with Down syndrome to be an ABC TV host, smashing stereotypes and giving visibility to people with the condition. Julia co-presented the documentary The Upside of Downs which explores the rise of prenatal testing and termination. This gig came from pursuing a life-long dream of seeing people with disabilities properly represented on television. Since the age of eight, Julia has wanted to be the first main character on Home & Away with Down syndrome and is still working toward that goal. As an award-winning playwright and actor, Julia continues to help break down stereotypes and give a voice to people with disabilities. "People can see us as just Down syndrome," she says. "I want people to see us for who we are and what we do as part of the world.” Julia spends her time outside of acting helping other people with disabilities to lead independent lives. “I'm telling other people's stories and helping them raise their voices,” she says. After all she has already done, Julia isn’t finished breaking down barriers. “My parents always told me, 'You're an amazing woman – you can do whatever you want.' Mum told me to never give up – and I haven't." Read more about Julia’s incredible story here https://go.nrma.com.au/JuliaHales.

What if everyone knew a little sign language?

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Avoid socks at all costs 😅

The Identity Theory of Autism: How Autistic Identity Is Experienced Differently Terra Vance posits that Autistic people experience empathy and emotions differently because the way autistic identity is structured differs from non-autistic people’s identity constructs.

Not all disabilities are visible – why workplaces need to recognise invisible illness This blog is part of our Expert Commentary series, bringing you insights into some of the unspoken challenges women face in the workplace, from experts with lived experience. The series explores a range of topics and perspectives to highlight the ways inclusive and compassionate leadership practices...

"Because treating people fairly often means treating them differently.

Image: Four people with different needs, who wish to cycle.

Panel 1: 'Equality' Four identical bicycles - only one of the people can cycle comfortably.

Panel 2: 'Equity' Four different bicycles, adapted to the needs of each person - now all four can cycle comfortably.

Calystarose

"Because treating people fairly often means treating them differently.

AloneInDarknes7

"This is something that I teach my students during the first week of school and they understand it. Eight year olds can understand this and all it costs is a box of band-aids.

"I have each students pretend they got hurt and need a band-aid. Children love band-aids. I ask the first one where they are hurt. If he says his finger, I put the band-aid on his finger. Then I ask the second one where they are hurt. No matter what that child says, I put the band-aid on their finger exactly like the first child. I keep doing that through the whole class. No matter where they say their pretend injury is, I do the same thing I did with the first one.

"After they all have band-aids in the same spot, I ask if that actually helped any of them other than the first child. I say, “Well, I helped all of you the same! You all have one band-aid!” And they’ll try to get me to understand that they were hurt somewhere else. I act like I’m just now understanding it. Then I explain, “There might be moments this year where some of you get different things because you need them differently, just like you needed a band-aid in a different spot.”

"If at any time any of my students ask why one student has a different assignment, or gets taken out of the class for a subject, or gets another teacher to come in and help them throughout the year, I remind my students of the band-aids they got at the start of the school year and they stop complaining. That’s why eight year olds can understand equity."

momo-de-avis.

"I remember reading somewhere once “we should be speaking of equity instead of equality” and that is a principle that applies here me thinks."

I’m Autistic… that’s not a problem.

I’m an Autistic with an anxiety disorder, that I developed growing up in a world that was not designed with my needs in mind, while not knowing that I was Autistic.

I need help unwinding this trauma. This is a problem.

This is a problem because a lot of Autistic people’s trauma is dismissed, as part of our “Autism” - due to the fact that we are Autistic.

This is a problem, because there are little to no services for Autistic adults like me in my area, that will be covered by the inferior health insurance that is available to me.

It’s International Day of persons with disabilities. Meet Noah, the coolest kid with disabilities you’ll meet today!

Providing peer support and mentorship Disabled people supporting disabled people with understanding all over Australia!

HI, I'M NOAH

I'm just your average 16year old kid living with autism, ADHD, a super rare genetic disease etc etc. I dreamed of creating a service that does more than provide practical support, but provides a mentor who has been there, done that, and has the t-shirt to prove it. Who better to help you than someone who truly understands what you're going through?

Find out more at www.disabledfriendships.com.au and let’s match you up with some cool supports!

Providing peer support and mentorship Disabled people supporting disabled people with understanding all over Australia!

Peer support is most effective when the shared experience isn’t solely focused on the condition, but on a commonality of cultural background, religion, age, gender or personal values (Faulkner and Kalathil, 2012).

Disabled Friendships updated their business hours.