Author: Derek I. Schmitz

Derek, 20, disabled, chronically ill, non-binary (they), and queer person. Lead Advocate @ Derek Schmitz: Advocacy, accessibility consultant, author, and paralegal. Views mine, not a lawyer. Alabama, USA - Progressive

New Diagnosis

Derek I. Schmitz3 Comments

I have been dealing with an excess of doctors appointments to identify the source of my lack of energy and increased pain. Most of these appointments have been with a rheumatologist at Children's of Alabama in Birmingham. We ran blood work that indicated that antigen HLA-B27 was positive, which is an indicator of arthritis. With that… Continue reading New Diagnosis

2020 Election

Derek I. Schmitz

I'm petrified about this election. Donald Trump is a racist, homophobic, authoritarian bigot who is running for a 2nd term. Donald Trump has vowed to gut healthcare and LGBTQ rights laws. If he wins, LGBTQ people WILL lose rights and disabled people WILL lose healthcare. With his enablers, even if he loses this election, he’ll… Continue reading 2020 Election

Archived Twitter Thread: Personal Rebuke of Internalized Ableism

Derek I. Schmitz

This is an archive of my 10/09/2020 thread on internalized ableism. The thread can be viewed here. I wrote this a while back. Reposting it for those who need it. (A thread) I know it’s tough right now. Your brain is telling you things that aren’t true, through a little voice in the back of… Continue reading Archived Twitter Thread: Personal Rebuke of Internalized Ableism

Archived Twitter Thread: Pill Prices

Derek I. Schmitz

My morning pills (6 total) cost $4.17.My afternoon pills (3 total) cost $2.49.My night pills (6 total) cost $4.17.So in total, I take $10.83 of medication per day. Multiply that by 30. $324.90 is how much I would spend on medication per month without Medicaid. I pay $21.95 out of pocket for a 100-count of… Continue reading Archived Twitter Thread: Pill Prices

Structured Christianity

Derek I. Schmitz

TW: Religion , Homophobia // Here are my thoughts on structured Christianity that's probably gonna make my follower count drop. Please read it all! I think structured Christianity is a bust because of how it indoctrinates people to hate and use their religion as an excuse for doing things while they cherry-pick the Bible and… Continue reading Structured Christianity