Please don’t pity disabled people.
We live with what we are given. We understand that our situation is different, but most of us know how to adapt around it.
Pitying us gets us nowhere. Validation gets us somewhere.
Pitying makes us feel bad (or worse) about the disability or condition that we live with. We know you don’t mean it like that, and most of the time, there are no ill-intentions with it. It just comes across to a disabled person as an “ooh, your life is harder than mine. I must apologize for something outside of my control.”Don’t make us feel like that, please.
Instead, validate us. Make us feel accepted and “normal.” Validation makes us feel good, as if you see us like you do any other person. An example of this would be, “I didn’t even notice,” or “You’re normal in my eyes.”
Validate, don’t pity. Thank you.
Derek I. Schmitz 