“Products mocked as “lazy” or “useless” are often important tools for people with disabilities”
Plenty of us who are able-bodied (for now!) need to check ourselves and our “jokes”. Jokes are supposed to 1) “punch up” and 2) be funny.
Products mocked as “lazy” or “useless” are often important tools for people with disabilities: From banana slicers to sock sliders to pre-peeled oranges., By s.e. smith via Vox.
Imagine being unable to slice a banana over your morning cereal because your hands are paralyzed or joint contractures make it hard to grip both the banana and the knife. If you’re a baker who loves making cakes, what would you do if you couldn’t separate an egg by casually cracking it on the edge of the bowl and using the shell to tease the yolk and white apart? The inability to perform these kinds of activities independently can have huge consequences for people with disabilities.
A variety of impairments can make these tasks challenging, including hand tremors or weakness, paralysis or paresis, limited range of motion, arthritis and other joint conditions, chronic pain, neurological disabilities or stroke, developmental disabilities, and amputations. These issues may be congenital or acquired or even temporary. Some people, for example, just need support while they recover from surgery or injuries. And so those products Oliver and the internet at large enjoy mocking? Not so useless after all.
I use a water-pik for dental hygiene - does that make me lazy?? No. If you find a product that helps with activities of daily living (feeding self, clothing self, washing self, etc.), that’s great! It’s an extension of dignity.
[I]magine being literally unable to put on socks unassisted before leaving the house on a cold winter day, and not being able to slip your socked feet into a pair of sturdy boots on your own.
Sometimes, living independently as a member of the disability community means having to rely on a little help, and in many cases, a gadget can be very useful. Help may also take a human face: Personal care assistants, aides, home health attendants, and other direct service professionals are vital, though there’s also a heavy social expectation that family members provide unpaid caregiving labor, a practice many people with disabilities oppose along with other exploitative labor practices.
Def puts me in my place and gives me something to think about. These days, I have to increase the zoom/font so I can read what’s on my g.d. screens I’m attached to. And, I already wear glasses with the blue light special screen blocker, too!! Sheesh!
