Me, personally; I’d loved to have been able to do that after I graduated high school in 2000.

Me, reality; that’s not how it happened versus my mental health.

We aren’t experiencing these issues because we want to be. And that is something the closest to us need to hear from us more. I tried working. Between 2000 and 2016, I attended and graduated from college twice, worked summer jobs, worked temporary jobs, and worked two full-time jobs.

👀

I tried. I also maintained a distinguished attendance record through all of it. That’s not laziness. Period. That’s a willingness to work. Wanting to have a life of my own.

If you have been similar yourself, tell that to your loved ones. Even if they throw it back at you, it’s still an important truth. Every time I was unemployed for a length of time, guess how I felt?

Miserable.
Absolutely miserable.

That’s another clue that I wasn’t lazy. Basic psychology. If you’re lazy you will act like it. If you’re mean you will act like it. If you’re tired you will act like it. Although I’m not seen as disabled, what we often get is ableism. They can do it. Why can’t we?

🤦🏼‍♂️