cripplecharacters

[cripplecharacters]

Is it realistic to use a cane/crutches to beat the shit out of someone/run someone over with a chair/rollator/etc? I would personally do it but I wonder if it's different for those who use different aids. (If the context matters, it's between two characters who don't really care about larger ramifications in a kind of typical dumb teen delinquent way, they have a vitriolic relationship where they get on but express their emotions by brawling in the parking lot and such things)

Hello,

Not very.

Most mobility aides are not structurally sound enough to be used as a weapon, meaning they would bend, dent, or otherwise break if used to strike someone or something. And if you are reliant on your mobility aid to get around, you wouldn't want to risk damaging it by using it as a weapon in a fight. You might need to use it to run away, and it's very hard to run away on dented crutches. Plus, if it's damaged, you will need to replace it, and replacing your mobility aid can be a real pain and very expensive. Unless they have one of those fancy canes that are specifically reinforced for combat purposes (which are hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars and far heavier than normal canes,) they'll either break their mobility aid or they won't put enough force behind the swing to do damage. It would be a desperate last resort measure.

(Plus, assuming your character can swing a cane or crutch hard enough to do actual damage, it would be very easy to accidentally put someone in the hospital or even the morgue. You aim an aluminium pole at someone's temple or neck and you run the risk of killing them even if you don't put a lot of force behind the swing. Same problem with the face. Hit them in the gut and you can damage organs, at the chest and you can accidentally snap ribs or stop the heart. Aim it at a joint and you could severely mess up said joint. Aim it at the back and you run the risk of messing up organs or the spinal cord. Aim it at any bone beyond something like the femur (trust me, hollow aluminium pole is not going to do more than bruise the femur unless you're Superman, you will break the cane or crutch long before you will so much as crack the femur) and you could cause a serious break, like an open or comminuted fracture. Even aiming it at a major blood vessel like the femoral could cause catastrophic internal bleeding or haemorrhaging. That's another reason it's a last resort measure, because if you can do actual damage, you're likely to do a lot of it. Remember, a mobility aid is still a metal pole. You would break it if you put enough force behind it to cause damage, but there is a potential for serious harm there that you don't want to take unless it's life-or-death.)

You could roll someone over with a rollator or wheelchair. I have seen people run over other people's feet using the wheels of their wheelchairs (one famous example is that Stephen Hawking used to run over the feet of people he did not like with his wheelchair.) You wouldn't be able to run over someone's body with it, that's far too uneven a terrain, but running over someone's foot or hand is plausible. Unlikely to do any real damage, but plausible and at least likely to hurt due to the number of nerves in the hand and foot.

Using a mobility aid as a weapon is a last resort measure- I've seen people state that they would sooner look for an improvised weapon such as a plank of wood before they considered using their cane or crutches to whack someone. If you're writing it as a last resort measure, yes, it can be realistic. But very few people are going to swing at someone's head with a cane if they're just in a little spat or are just sparring. Plus, using this trope just reinforces the idea that disabled people's mobility aids are threats. A cane or crutch is already seen by cops as a potential bludgeon, a prosthetic leg as a potential bomb, a wheelchair as somewhere you can hide weapons. Even though the use of mobility aids as weapons is a very rare occurrence, people assume it is more common, so everyone using a mobility aid is treated as a potential threat or even as if they've already done something wrong when they haven't. And if you attack someone with a mobility aid, it's seen by the law as less of a crime because "they have a weapon and just didn't use it." Best not to perpetuate the stereotype as it does have real-world consequences.

I'd give them some other form of weapons if you would like them to engage in armed combat.

Mod Aaron

[cripplecharacters]

I have a character who, while writing, I discovered had some autistic traits. I did not mean to write them as autistic but should I lean into it and research autism or continue to write them as is without anything stating they’re autistic?

Hello,

You can go either way and it would be fine, whichever you would prefer. On one hand, direct (and accurate) autism representation is always a good thing, but on the other, autism is a very complex thing and requires a great deal of research, plus it tends to be the characters who weren't written to be autistic who wind up resonating the most with autistic readers and viewers, like Data from Star Trek. If you would like to lean into it and write them as direct autism representation, meaning they're canonically autistic, go ahead. If you don't want to do that, that's fine, too. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do.

Happy writing,

Mod Aaron

[cripplecharacters]

Hey, guys? Make peace with yellow teeth. I'm so serious right now.

[cripplecharacters]

Where to Start Your Research When Writing a Disabled Character

[large text: Where to Start Your Research When Writing a Disabled Character]

So you have decided that you want to make a disabled character! Awesome. But what's next? What information should you decide on at the early phrase of making the character?

This post will only talk about the disability part of the character creation process. Obviously, a disabled character needs a personality, interests, and backstory as every other one. But by including their disability early in the process, you can actually get it to have a deeper effect on the character - disability shouldn't be their whole life, but it should impact it. That's what disabilities do.

If you don't know what disability you would want to give them in the first place;

[large text: If you don't know what disability you would want to give them in the first place;]

Start broad. Is it sensory, mobility related, cognitive, developmental, autoimmune, neurodegenerative; maybe multiple of these, or maybe something else completely? Pick one and see what disabilities it encompasses; see if anything works for your character. Or...

If you have a specific symptom or aid in mind, see what could cause them. Don't assume or guess; not every wheelchair user is vaguely paralyzed below the waist with no other symptoms, not everyone with extensive scarring got it via physical trauma. Or...

Consider which disabilities are common in real life. Cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, stroke, cataracts, diabetes, intellectual disability, neuropathy, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, thyroid disorders, autism, dwarfism, arthritis, cancers, brain damage, just to name a few.

Decide what specific type of condition they will have. If you're thinking about them having albinism, will it be ocular, oculocutaneous, or one of the rare syndrome-types? If you want to give them spinal muscular atrophy, which of the many possible onsets will they have? If they have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which one out of the 13 different types do they have? Is their amputation below, or above the knee (it's a major difference)? Not all conditions will have subtypes, but it's worth looking into to not be surprised later. This will help you with further research.

If you're really struggling with figuring out what exact disability would make sense for your character, you can send an ask. Just make sure that you have tried the above and put actual specifics in your ask to give us something to work with. You can also check out our "disabled character ideas" tag.

Here are some ideas for a character using crutches.

Here are some ideas for a character with a facial difference (obligatory link: what is a facial difference?).

If you already know what disability your character is going to have;

[large text: If you already know what disability your character is going to have;]

Start by reading about the onset and cause of the condition. It could be acquired, congenital, progressive, potentially multiple of these. They could be caused by an illness, trauma, or something else entirely. Is your character a congenital amputee, or is it acquired? If acquired - how recently? Has it been a week, or 10 years? What caused them to become disabled - did they have meningitis, or was it an accident? Again, check what your options are - there are going to be more diverse than you expect.

Read about the symptoms. Do not assume or guess what they are. You will almost definitely discover something new. Example: a lot of people making a character with albinism don't realize that it has other symptoms than just lack of melanin, like nystagmus, visual impairment, and photophobia. Decide what your character experiences, to what degree, how frequently, and what do they do (or don't do) to deal with it.

Don't give your character only the most "acceptable" symptoms of their disability and ignore everything else. Example: many writers will omit the topic of incontinence in their para- and tetraplegic characters, even though it's extremely common. Don't shy away from aspects of disability that aren't romanticized.

Don't just... make them abled "because magic". If they're Deaf, don't give them some ability that will make them into an essentially hearing person. Don't give your blind character some "cheat" so that they can see, give them a cane. Don't give an amputee prosthetics that work better than meat limbs. To have a disabled character you need to have a character that's actually disabled. There's no way around it.

Think about complications your character could experience within the story. If your character wears their prosthetic a lot, they might start to experience skin breakdown or pain. Someone who uses a wheelchair a lot has a risk of pressure sores. Glowing and Flickering Fantasy Item might cause problems for someone photophobic or photosensitive. What do they do when that happens, or how do they prevent that from happening?

Look out for comorbidities. It's rare for disabled people to only have one medical condition and nothing else. Disabilities like to show up in pairs. Or dozens.

If relevant, consider mobility aids, assistive devices, and disability aids. Wheelchairs, canes, rollators, braces, AAC, walkers, nasal cannulas, crutches, white canes, feeding tubes, braillers, ostomy bags, insulin pumps, service dogs, trach tubes, hearing aids, orthoses, splints... the list is basically endless, and there's a lot of everyday things that might count as a disability aid as well - even just a hat could be one for someone whose disability requires them to stay out of the sun. Make sure that it's actually based on symptoms, not just your assumptions - most blind people don't wear sunglasses, not all people with SCI use a wheelchair, upper limb prosthetics aren't nearly as useful as you think. Decide which ones your character could have, how often they would use them, and if they switch between different aids.

Basically all of the above aids will have subtypes or variants. There is a lot of options. Does your character use an active manual wheelchair, a powerchair, or a generic hospital wheelchair? Are they using high-, or low-tech AAC? What would be available to them? Does it change over the course of their story, or their life in general?

If relevant, think about what treatment your character might receive. Do they need medication? Physical therapy? Occupational therapy? Orientation and mobility training? Speech therapy? Do they have access to it, and why or why not?

What is your character's support system? Do they have a carer; if yes, then what do they help your character with and what kind of relationship do they have? Is your character happy about it or not at all?

How did their life change after becoming disabled? If your character goes from being an extreme athlete to suddenly being a full-time wheelchair user, it will have an effect - are they going to stop doing sports at all, are they going to just do extreme wheelchair sports now, or are they going to try out wheelchair table tennis instead? Do they know and respect their new limitations? Did they have to get a different job or had to make their house accessible? Do they have support in this transition, or are they on their own - do they wish they had that support?

What about *other* characters? Your character isn't going to be the only disabled person in existence. Do they know other disabled people? Do they have a community? If your character manages their disability with something that's only available to them, what about all the other people with the same disability?

What is the society that your character lives in like? Is the architecture accessible? How do they treat disabled people? Are abled characters knowledgeable about disabilities? How many people speak the local sign language(s)? Are accessible bathrooms common, or does your character have to go home every few hours? Is there access to prosthetists and ocularists, or what do they do when their prosthetic leg or eye requires the routine check-up?

Know the tropes. If a burn survivor character is an evil mask-wearer, if a powerchair user is a constantly rude and ungrateful to everyone villain, if an amputee is a genius mechanic who fixes their own prosthetics, you have A Trope. Not all tropes are made equal; some are actively harmful to real people, while others are just annoying or boring by the nature of having been done to death. During the character creation process, research what tropes might apply and just try to trace your logic. Does your blind character see the future because it's a common superpower in their world, or are you doing the ancient "Blind Seer" trope?

Remember, that not all of the above questions will come up in your writing, but to know which ones won't you need to know the answers to them first. Even if you don't decide to explicitly name your character's condition, you will be aware of what they might function like. You will be able to add more depth to your character if you decide that they have T6 spina bifida, rather than if you made them into an ambiguous wheelchair user with ambiguous symptoms and ambiguous needs. Embrace research as part of your process and your characters will be better representation, sure, but they will also make more sense and seem more like actual people; same with the world that they are a part of.

This post exists to help you establish the basics of your character's disability so that you can do research on your own and answer some of the most common ("what are symptoms of x?") questions by yourself. If you have these things already established, it will also be easier for us to answer any possible questions you might have - e.g. "what would a character with complete high-level paraplegia do in a world where the modern kind of wheelchair has not been invented yet?" is more concise than just "how do I write a character with paralysis?" - I think it's more helpful for askers as well; a vague answer won't be of much help.

I hope that this post is helpful,

mod Sasza

[cripplecharacters]

Hello! I hope you guys are having a good day :) [Smiley face]

I'm writing a story and one of the main characters has CPTSD, and I had a few questions about it. I think I might have CPTSD but I'm not able to get evaluated right now.

I know you say we can do whatever we want when writing about our own conditions, but since I'm not actually diagnosed I wanted to double check things.

Relevent character info: She's been in therapy on-and-off for about 5 years (she had a therapist, stopped seeing him because she moved, and then started seeing a new one) and her trauma revolves around being abused/neglected as a child, witnessing violence, and having assassins sent after her.

Question 1

If she's been in therapy for a years and has a very good therapist, would it make sense that she's able to better deal with stressful/traumatic situations when they come up? Like, being more "resiliant" to being triggered I guess?

For example, she ends up having to work with a group of people, and initially she worries that they might be assassins that were sent after her, but she later realizes that they're not.

Would it make sense for her to not be as hypervigilant/wary around them after realizing this, and more willing to get to know them, and slowly sharing more information about herself as time goes on? Especially if they're also telling her about their past and showing her that she can trust them?

I know that trauma and triggers aren't exactly "logical" sometimes (like being scared of something even though you know it's harmless) so I don't want it to come off as "Well she was scared but then she realized she was being silly so now she's fine lol!"

Should I maybe have her mention to one of them something like "Yeah if I met you guys years ago I would have refused to trust any of you, but therapy really helped me with my issues"?

Question 2

This is sort of related to question one.

I've read that one big thing that determines whether or not someone is traumatized by something/develops PTSD is whether or not they recieve adequate support after the traumatizing event.

So for example, if someone is in a car accident and then they recieve a lot of support from friends/family/therapists, they'll be less likely to develop PTSD VS someone who is in a car accident and then given no support.

In the story, there's a lot of bad things going on. But this time, instead of only having one or two friends to help comfort her, she has a very good therapist and large support network who are there for her.

Would this help prevent her from being further traumatized or making her symptoms worse?

Question 4

Is there a specific order in which symptoms get "fixed"? Like for example, if someone has nightmares, flashbacks, and hypervigilance, would it be possible that their nightmares and flashbacks are less of a problem after treatment, but they're still hypervigilant?

She generally doesn't have issues with nightmares or flashbacks unless extremely stressed or triggered by something specific, but she still has emotional regulation issues (quick to fly off the handle and get mad) and she's quite wary and hypervigilant, especially around people she's doesn't know.

I just wanted to make sure that that behavior makes sense.

She used to be very quiet and people please-y but after therapy she started standing up for herself more, and now she sort of went in the other direction. So instead of just taking everything quietly, she's quick to speak her mind and she's not afraid to defend herself.

Question 5

During the story, she ends up falling in love with one of the people she had to work with, and they start dating about a month after meeting.

I don't want to fall into the "The power of love cures mental illness and now they're all better" trope, so I want to make sure that I show her having occasional symptoms even though she's been doing really well in therapy.

I know it's kind of hard to say since healing doesn't really work on a scale of "0% healed, having a bad time" to "100% healed, no symptoms" but for someone who's been in therapy for years, how often would she still experience symptoms, and what would they be?

I was thinking of showing that she's mostly okay, but still having the occasional nightmare, intrusive thought, flashback, etc.

Hello!

Before I get into the specific questions you have, I just want to give a general disclaimer about PTSD/C-PTSD.

Trauma and trauma disorders are very complex and vary greatly from person to person. The diagnoses for both PTSD and C-PTSD are fairly new (PTSD was only added to the DSM in 1980 and C-PTSD has not yet been added) and the effect that trauma has on the brain is still yet to be fully understood.

I'm speaking from both my own experiences and my own knowledge on the topic as well as some additional research to ensure my information is up-to-date.

Throughout the post, I do mostly refer to PTSD instead of C-PTSD. This is because C-PTSD is generally considered to be a sub-type of PTSD so what I'm describing will generally apply to both. Though there are differences between C-PTSD and PTSD, there isn't exactly a single, commonly agreed upon list of them.

In general, C-PTSD is believed to stem from long-term, repeated/chronic trauma (especially when the brain is still developing) while PTSD comes from a singular event or several separate events. Of course, because C-PTSD isn't in the DSM yet, there are many people who have been diagnosed with PTSD but may better fit the label of C-PTSD.

Personally, I was diagnosed with PTSD as well as a several other trauma-based/trauma-related disorders. My psychologist believes that C-PTSD would be more fitting for what I'm experiencing but, because it's not commonly used in my area, deferred to PTSD.

Interestingly enough, C-PTSD is often mistakenly called "childhood PTSD" because it's most frequently seen in victims of childhood abuse/trauma.

Question 1

Although it doesn't work for everyone, having a good therapist and attending therapy sessions regularly can certainly have a positive effect on trauma and PTSD in general.

Some of the main things that therapists can do include:

Helping your character to recognize when they are becoming triggered.

Helping your character to pinpoint some of the situations that may trigger them.

Working with your character to develop strategies for dealing with their triggers and the feelings that they bring up.

Working with your character to open up about and process their trauma.

Being a safe person to vent to.

Helping your character to navigate difficult situations that arise and helping them to separate their rational thoughts/beliefs on the situation from their initial, trauma-based responses*.

*As an example: A character with trauma from an abusive relationship has a big fight with their new partner. Their first instinct might be to pack their things and leave before their partner gets the chance to hurt them. A therapist can help them recognize that their current partner has never behaved aggressively towards them and identify the ways that this situation is different from their past relationship (They have a stronger support system, they're in therapy, they live in a place with different views on abuse, etc.). With trauma, the past and present often end up blurred -- especially when the present starts to mirror the past -- and it can be difficult to separate the two without help. A therapist can provide this help.

While these things may not make your character immune or even more resilient to being triggered, they can help your character manage it and navigate the situation when it does happen.

Considering the example you gave, I think it could work but there are some other things to consider here:

Why does she originally suspect them of being assassins? Is this something that she suspects all new people of or did they do something specific to trigger the belief? For example, maybe the assassins she encountered tried to poison her and the new people keep offering her food.

How long does it take her to realize that they aren't assassins? What kind of thought process does she go through during this time? Did she speak with her therapist during this time? What does her therapist have to say about it?

What made her realize they aren't assassins? Was it something logical (For example: She uncovers information that proves they aren't assassins) or is it more emotional in nature (For example: She makes a connection with them/bonds with them and starts to trust them)? Are her doubts completely assuaged with this or is she still a bit suspicious in the back of her mind -- even sub-consciously?

It would make sense for her to grow more trusting and open with them as time goes on but, from a PTSD standpoint, trust alone doesn't really have much of an effect on hypervigilance.

Being wary and being hypervigilant are two very different things. The way I usually describe it to people is that wariness is more conscious -- hypervigilance isn't. Even when I'm with somebody I trust, I'll still flinch when they come up behind me unexpectedly -- even if I know it's them. It's a physical response, not something that I can necessarily turn off.

Although your character's wariness may be assuaged, their hypervigilance wouldn't necessarily be something that is eased by trust.

While I do think that having her mention her therapy journey is a good idea (especially considering the fact that there's still a stigma around therapy), I wouldn't rely on it to get your point across about her trauma and trust issues not being an immediate fix.

Instead, I'd encourage you to show how it's a longer process:

Maybe she still has some lingering suspicions/doubts about them on a sub-conscious level and has to mentally talk herself out of them ("You've known these people a long time. They're making coffee for everyone, not just you so the likelihood that they're trying to poison you specifically is low."). While trauma isn't necessarily logical, using logic against these kinds of thoughts can be helpful.

Maybe she still has a physical reaction to something that triggers her. For example, she goes into the kitchen and one of her new coworkers turns around with a knife in their hand from where they'd been cutting food and she stumbles back/gasps because she isn't prepared for it. Not every trigger has to result in a major flashback -- being triggered can just look like your body going "wait a second, I've been in this situation before and it's not safe. Let's take a few steps back until we know it's safe".

If the story is in first person, I'd encourage you to explore her thoughts on the new people, both at the beginning when she distrusts them and later on when she begins to trust them more.

You could also show how she uses some of the tools she's learned in therapy such as self-regulation techniques like grounding exercises or controlled breathing or even just recognizing when she's getting triggered and doing something about it. Depending on what kind of person she is, this could look like her making an excuse to be alone for a moment ("I'm just going to run to the washroom quickly.") or speaking up about her situation ("Just... give me a minute, okay?" or "Wait. I need a second.").

I'd advise against having her explicitly state what is happening ("I'm getting triggered right now." or "I'm starting to have a panic attack.") for a few reasons:

The first being that -- for the most part -- people don't naturally speak like that, especially not when they're already stressed out. A lot of the time, it's not always evident what exactly is happening. The beginning of a panic attack can feel a lot like a spike of anxiety or an increase in hypervigilance.

The other big thing is that words like "triggered", "panic attack", and other mental health-related terms have a history of misuse behind them (Ex: People using "triggered" to mean offended, people using "OCD" to mean neat/organized, etc.). As a result, you run the risk of giving your readers the wrong impression when using them in this context -- especially in dialogue.

One other thing I'll mention is to keep in mind that changing therapists can be very stressful and set your character back a few steps, especially since they have to build that relationship with their therapist again. Keep that in mind when you consider the timeline for these events. If she has just changed therapists, she may not be comfortable enough approaching them about this yet.

Question 2

We don't yet know what specifically causes somebody to develop PTSD. In a broad sense, it's a traumatic event but there are so many different factors at play that can determine whether or not somebody is traumatized, develops PTSD, or develops another trauma-based disorder.

You are right that the level of support somebody gets after a traumatic incident can have an impact -- but there are so many other factors too such as:

The event itself including the duration, the type of incident, their involvement in it (as a witness, a victim, a rescuer, etc.), etc.

Their age and brain development. A child who witnessed somebody's death but was too young to really understand what was happening would have a vastly different experience than an adult who was fully aware of it. Something to keep in mind, however, is that while children were generally considered to be more resilient to trauma than adults, that isn't necessarily true*.

The specific individual -- including their personality, resilience, past experiences/history, pre-existing disabilities and other conditions, etc.

Their experiences during the trauma. There's a common misconception that people develop PTSD only when they don't believe help is coming (for example, being stuck in a car accident in the middle of nowhere). This isn't exactly true but it can have an effect.

Now, on to your actual question: That depends.

Along with the factors mentioned above, their current situation should also be considered. If they're on a series of busy missions and don't have the time to actually process their trauma, they'll have a harder time with healing than they would if they were able to take it easy and process things at their own pace.

While her therapist and support system can absolutely help her manage the more recent trauma, her past experiences in therapy and the skills/tools she's learned can also benefit her -- both in the traumatic moment and after the fact.

In short: Yes, it could make sense that she's more resilient to this new experience than she was to her original trauma.

*There's a great book by Bruce Perry (the child psychologist) that talks about this. It's called The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog and it's a heavy read but a good one.

Question 4

Something that's important to remember about PTSD and C-PTSD is that the trauma can never be fully "fixed" or healed.

Trauma -- especially complex and long-term trauma -- has lasting effects on a person's brain. It changes the way we think, the way we approach new situations, the way we deal with stress. Some types of trauma can even have an impact on the way our kid's brains develop [Link].

While therapies, medication, and support can make a difference and cause symptoms to lessen (or disappear entirely), the trauma will still have lasting effects.

In terms of the order that symptoms get resolved, this is something that varies so greatly from person-to-person that I can't give you an actual answer.

The other thing is that healing from anything (especially something as messy and complex as trauma) isn't as straightforward as it seems. Even with the proper treatment, symptoms don't just decrease steadily or in order.

You may have heard the phrase "progress isn't linear" before. This is very applicable to PTSD and C-PTSD. There will always be setbacks or stumbles or relapses. You can go for years without having a flashback or nightmare and then one day be triggered enough for it to happen. You're still healing, it's just not a straight path.

In your character's case, it could absolutely make sense for her symptoms to lessen at different rates. That said, I'd be wary about portraying it as a straightforward path.

Although recovery is complicated and it's normal to relapse/stumble/have a setback, it's frequently portrayed as a straightforward path and characters rarely experience these setbacks -- which is very discouraging when you're actually recovering from trauma.

Question 5

You might be getting sick of me saying this by now but: ✨it depends!✨

The experience you described (with her occasional nightmares/flashbacks/etc.) is one possibility but it's definitely not the only one.

Somebody can be in therapy for just as long and still experience the same amount of symptoms they did when they first started. Likewise, somebody can have that same experience (with the occasional nightmares/flashbacks/etc.) after only being in therapy for a couple months.

It is important to remember that therapy doesn't get rid of symptoms -- it just helps you process them and teaches you how to cope with them. In some cases, this can cause a decrease in symptoms (for example, talking about an experience can help you process it and decrease the amount of nightmares you have about it) but it doesn't directly get rid of symptoms.

Also worth noting is that therapy doesn't work for everybody and that there are so many other ways of managing PTSD and trauma in general. Some people benefit more from medication (usually anti-anxiety meds or antidepressants) or other types of therapy (such as eye-movement or narrative therapies).

Of course, there are also people that cope with their trauma in ways that aren't generally considered "healthy" such as substance use, risk-taking behaviours, self-harm, etc.

Although therapy is becoming more popular and more openly talked about, I think it's important to acknowledge that there's not just one "right" way to healing from, coping with, and processing trauma.

Cheers,

~ Mod Icarus

[cripplecharacters]

In addition to Pride, it's also Deafblind Awareness Month. Remember to add alt text and video transcripts to your pictures and videos. Thank you!

[cripplecharacters]

new character for mc roleplay purposes! their name is salina aves and she goes by vulture. they are alchemcurion and use any/all pronouns

[cripplecharacters]

I've got some kind of undiagnosed disability that makes me need a cane to walk & was planning to have a charicter with the same issue in my book

I also wanted to give them a nontraditional mobility aid to use along side the cane, that being a small skateboard they carry with them to help them go faster

I, personally, do not have a skateboard that I use like this. Is there anything I should realsearch before I start writing

Hello!

Using a cane isn't a disability, it's the result of one. Without knowing what disability your character has (or anything about how it affects them/what symptoms they have), we're not really able to help much.

That said... I'm having a very hard time understanding how this would work as well as the purpose of it.

A cane is generally used as an aid for either balance issues or support (whether that's for chronic pain, limited mobility, etc.). For balance, it offers an extra point of contact with the ground which helps with stability. For support, it helps take the weight off of the affected limb which eases pain and limits the strain on the limb.

I can't think of a single situation where a skateboard would be a feasible alternative to a cane -- especially since it'd make their issue WORSE in most cases.

A skateboard wouldn't help with balance issues -- a character that uses a cane for balance would have a much harder time balancing on a skateboard.

It also wouldn't help at all for support. The point of a cane in this context is to take weight off of the limb. Using a skateboard would require them to not only put weight on the limb but also to put more pressure/strain on it.

It would also be incredibly inconvenient to carry a skateboard around all the time, especially since your character uses a cane the rest of the time. They'd only have one other hand available. Having to open doors when I'm holding a drink in my only "free" hand is enough of a pain -- I can't imagine having to lug around a heavy skateboard all day.

There's also the question of what you mean by using the skateboard to "help them go faster". This isn't the purpose of a mobility aid. When I use my wheelchair instead of my cane, it's not to "go faster". It's because my body needs more support that day. If your character is only using the skateboard to be fast, it's not a mobility aid. That's just a skateboard.

I'd also encourage you to consider why you want to give them a "non-traditional" mobility aid. There's a lot of stigma around mobility aids already -- especially ones that take up more space such as wheelchairs, mobility scooters, and rollators.

While some people do use a skateboard as a mobility aid (such as Robert Glover [link] and several others with sacral agenesis), it doesn't sound like something that would be feasible/accurate for your character.

That being said, we can't exactly provide specific suggestions for your character without knowing anything about their disability/how it affects them.

As an added note: some of our other cane-using mods decided to give the skateboard thing a try in the name of Science™️ and it uh... did not go well (though everyone is unharmed).

Cheers,

~ Mod Icarus

[cripplecharacters]

In my art style everyone is drawn all cutesy with pastel and kidcore clothes, if I made a character with dwarfism would it be infantilising if they also dressed the same or is it alright when every character has that same aesthetic?

Hi asker,

If this is a standard for everyone you draw, I think this is probably fine.

When it comes to infantilizing disabilities, specifically dwarfism, the problem is that the person gets singled out as the only one who is “cutesy” or “childlike” due to nothing else but the fact that they’re disabled and, due to their specific disability, very short. Their actual personality gets ignored and it’s just “person with dwarfism = just like a child because of height,” which of course isn’t true. People with dwarfism have the same wide range of personalities and aesthetics just like anyone else does.

Now, in your art specifically, the larger trend is that everyone has a similar, kid-core, pastel, cutesy aesthetic. You’re not singling out the character with dwarfism — part of infantilization due to ableism involves that, zeroing in onto someone’s disability and seeing that disability as the reason that person should be treated like a child without taking into consideration the person’s actual wants and needs.

In fact, it would probably be weird if that was the only character you drew that didn’t have the same aesthetic, and you would in that case be singling them out just because of their disability.

Hope this helps,

mod sparrow

[cripplecharacters]

I often see amputee characters in illustrations with a tied off sleeve. Just wondering if this is a thing and if so how it's done?

Hello!

We don't currently have mods who are upper limb amputees. If any followers have first-hand experience, feel free to share.

I've never seen it in person and very rarely elsewhere. I think it only makes any sense if you have a very short residual arm (=don't use it for tasks) and you don't like your sleeve flopping around. Otherwise it would prevent you from using your stump. Most arm amputees are below the elbow and a knot at the end of the sleeve would probably only get in the way.

If someone is genuinely frustrated by the flopping sleeve problem then most amputees I've seen with that issue just get their clothes tailored. It's not some big adjustment generally, and it's less work on a larger timescale.

Obviously you might have situations where it's cold out and the person hides their arm like that to warm it up (basically the same thing you would do if you have a whole arm). But if warmth is a constant issue then putting a sock on the arm would probably be more comfortable. Just like it's more comfortable to put on a glove than tie your sleeves off.

In media specifically it just feels like the billionth reiteration of "doing everything possible to not show the stump". Bandages, tied off sleeves, prosthetics that apparently never come off, etc.

If any followers with amputation(s) have opinions on this trope feel free to share.

mod Sasza

[cripplecharacters]

hi! this is more art-related, so i hope this is ok to ask. i know giving your characters strabismus or the "googly eyes" for a joke/to make the character look silly or "insane" is bad, but what about when characters are tired, half-lidded, and have their eyes pointing outward? or, are like, screaming in pain? would those types of drawings count as putting strabismus in a bad light?

i've also seen scenes in the cartoons i watch where the characters' eyes kind of go wall-eyed or unfocused (for a lack of a better term), usually when they're surprised or have a realization— i hope you know what im referring haha. is that also a bad trope and thus something i should avoid drawing? thank you so much!!

Hey!

In my opinion, it depends on how it's depicted. There's nothing inherently funny or wrong with someone's eyes unfocusing because of fatigue or something intense going on. When I take off my glasses my eyes immediately go in opposite directions, it happens.

Basically ask yourself: why am I putting strabismus here? Is it supposed to make the scene funnier, make the character seem less intelligent, more "derpy", get a specific reaction from the viewer that's specifically related to the character's condition, etc.? If that's the case, don't.

And the reverse: is it just a feature of that character, and it also shows up in more serious scenes? Go ahead. Generally speaking, if the character has actually consistent strabismus (=doesn't just show up in a few scenes) then you're probably fine by default.

As for the last question, IMO it's not as bad/boring as your standard "eye condition=funny" gag, but it's still used to make it more 'comedic' than it would've been otherwise.

As a rule of thumb, I wouldn't count on media who don't have

a singular character, who has actually consistent strabismus, isn't the comedic relief, and isn't shown as "stupid",

to be a good representation of it. If the funny eye condition only shows up once in a while for The Effect then it's probably tired and overdone at least.

If other followers with strabismus have Opinions feel free to share, I don't know what the community consensus is.

Hope this helps,

mod Sasza

[cripplecharacters]

I'm autistic and I've been wanting to write autistic characters for a long time, but, when I come up with a story/character idea, I don't really know how autism could fit into it.

I've written a story about time travel and thought of having one of the main characters as autistic, but I didn't end up doing it because I couldn't figure out what her special needs, difficulties and special interests were and when and how put that between the plot and I still can't really figure out how to incorporate autistic characters into a non-autism-centered plot and flesh out autistic characters. Do you have any advice on how to "fit autism into characters and plots", or more specifically, "how do I start having the subject of autism in mind while developing characters and the plot of my stories to apply it better?"

Hi asker,

The truth is you can't necessarily start with just autism in mind and develop a non-autism plot around it. I'm sure it's possible, but that doesn't seem super easy to me at all. You kind of need the plot and the characters to develop together. Only one at a time and it’ll fall apart, generally speaking.

What, overall, has been what hasn't worked? What about the time travel didn't work? What about your plot made it hard for you to incorporate an autistic character?

I can't tell you how to write A Plot, because this has to be your own thing. But I can tell you that pretty much any plot can have an autistic character. Here is a list of plots I’ve read, very summarized, with autistic characters as a protagonist or a large part of the plot:

slice of life where the general conflict comes from interpersonal relationships and the struggle of navigating these; characters are children and adults like

realistic fiction where the autistic protagonist’s best friend goes missing and she wants to find her

horror where four friends are stuck in a house in the woods, with a killer on the lose and one of the friends is autistic

romance (with all the romance conventions) where one or both people are autistic

realistic fiction where an autistic child may or may not be guilty of a crime (i think i've actually read like 3 of these?)

horror ocean expedition where the journalist brought on board is autistic

historical 1980s middle grade where the autistic nonverbal higher support needs protagonist is in foster care and special ed struggling with missing her missing sister as well as people underestimating her

historical 1930s books where the protagonist’s older sister is autistic and the plot is both normal slice of life stuff and living in Alcatraz stuff

neurodivergent utopia/dystopia with rock candy robots and lost children

middle grade books where the plot focuses on heavier themes like abuse, drugs, death, or whatnot

autistic woman learning to live by herself after the death of her mother

gothic horror where, after a marriage of convenience, the autistic protagonist discovers her husband is being haunted

These are just books that I personally have read (many are middle grade fiction because I just like reading middle grade), many years ago, and just off the top of my head. So there is a bias here of "books I personally know of and in genres I personally enjoy." But I wanted to include them to show you that there's a lot of things you can do, even if just from the perspective of "things this one person has read."

See how different they all can be from each other? You can basically stick an autistic character anywhere. You can think of a plot and then think, "how would my character act/react to this?"

Think about it this way: In real life, various autistic people lead incredibly different lives. And that's without even adding in the elements you can introduce in fiction that don't exist in real life, like time travel or mermaids or dragons or little gray aliens or telekinesis or whatever it is.

I know you're autistic as well, but I think you should research various different presentations of autism. Autism is pretty heterogenous, even with characteristics in common. That might help you get inspired on a particular path for a story, or a specific character path.

Something else that might help you is to create a plot, and then think about how you would react to it. Then tweak that reaction to something that better fits your story.

Honestly, genuinely, it can be difficult to think of this – but the only way out is through.

Hope this helps,

mod sparrow

[cripplecharacters]

Heyo so I've got a character who's missing her leg below the knee, is it alright if I give her crutches and a severe dislike of wheelchairs?

Hello,

my main (and almost only) question is: why, though? You can just give her crutches. Wheelchairs are already seen as an inherently bad thing ('giving up', 'letting the disability win', etc.) and I don't really get what her having a severe dislike of them does for the story.

I'd especially revisit this concept if there are no wheelchair users (who are happy/OK with their wheelchairs) in the story. Again: you can just give her crutches.

mod Sasza

[cripplecharacters]

Are there any other books out there that have a main character with dwarfism in the way of Tyrion Lannister from A Song of Ice and Fire? Stories with dwarfs as a fantasy race or anyone cursed to be dwarfs do not count.

[cripplecharacters]

This is a bit of an odd ask, but I'm planning on making a horse character who is blind, blind by birth. Not an anthro horse, just a horse, but sapient. They don't have any powers that negate them being blind or anything, just a horse. They are also a racehorse (...which in hindsight seems like a pretty dangerous sport for a horse who can't see). What kind of aid could this character have to help them? Maybe some sort of specialized horse cane or something?

Hi asker,

I think some of this depends on your story, but I’ve found a resource that might help you out — https://blindhorses.org

While it’s catered to horses becoming blind, and towards people caring for said blind horses, a quick read through showed that it goes into detail for various accommodations that could help a blind horse even if the horse was blind from birth. One of them includes a “sighted buddy,” like another horse or a pony or a goat, that can help out the blind horse with companionship or helping them navigate their environment.

It also does mention that a horse born blind is likely much more outgoing and confident than a horse that became blind later in life, though!

Hope this helps,

mod sparrow

[cripplecharacters]

Hello! For context this character is, like most characters in this world, an animal/human sort of mix/hybrid.

I was wondering how visible a one sided facial paralysis would look on say, scales? Or maybe, how to show/draw it? It's quite obvious on human skin, what with the sagging/lack of movement compared to the non paralyzed side, but with scaled animals (thinking lizards here) they're not exactly super physically expressive to begin with/scales don't exactly act the same as human skin.. And while they do have an odd sort of mix, I don't really know how to simulate paralysis on the scales part? And there isn't much information I can find, so I figured I'd ask for y'alls opinion!

I can't give much more information, the character is very WIP but this is how far I've gotten :']

(quickly adding, they do have (a?) strabismus, which will help I guess with conveying a facial difference in general but yeah.. still stumped on drawing the paralysis)

Thanks in advance!

Hello!

Interesting question! Doing research for this ask I actually learned that reptiles apparently have the same cranial nerves as humans which is pretty cool. I mostly referenced this paper for context.

So first thing you can do is to choose which condition specifically they have/which nerves are actually paralyzed. Because of the "one sided facial paralysis" I'm assuming you mean a reptile equivalent of CN VII palsy (commonly caused by Bell's palsy in people) but if they have strabismus then they would need to have CN III/IV/VI palsy (or just have it for a non-paralytic reason).

I tried to make a short list of how the all the possible CN [insert Roman numeral] palsies could present in a lizard. If you want the equivalent of Bell's palsy, skip to CN VII. The other ones also cause paralysis, just different kinds. All of these can be either on one or both sides.

CN I/II/VIII/IX/X/XI: not visible. CN XI technically affects the muscles (which is visible) but not of the face. CN III/IV/VI: yeah just strabismus. You can look at this image to see what the difference between them is since it's convoluted to explain via text. CN V: the CN V nerve has three branches. 2 of the 3 (V1+V2) are irrelevant here because they're purely sensory but something to consider for the non-visual stuff. TLDR you can have paralysis of 1 (any of them), 2, or all 3. For visible paralysis: mouth being asymmetrical i.e. doesn't open as much as the other half (the V3 branch). As a sidenote, CN V dysfunction also can cause one of, if not the most severe kind of pain called trigeminal neuralgia, at least among humans. IDK if that's the case for non-mammals since I wasn't able to find much about it. CN VII (the one you probably want to know about): "in general, the only parts of the face of reptiles that moves are the eyelids in species that have them." according to the paper linked above. So scientifically speaking it just doesn't show up* on scales. If your lizard has eyelids then they'd probably have ptosis. CN XII: tongue not moving properly maybe? In a lizard or a snake I guess that would count as a facial difference since it's usually out.

*-not all kinds of paralysis on the face are visible. In both humans and reptiles most aren't visible. If you give your lizard CN VII palsy and it doesn't show up like it does in humans, that's not erasure, that's a different species. If you want to show the non-motor part, then it's also responsible for taste. But you can't emote with scales, it is what it is.

You can also obviously give your lizard other kinds of paralysis, but they aren't visible, just sensory/functional. I'd also encourage you to look up the invisible effects of nerve paralysis, because there are a lot and they can affect functioning just as much (if not more) than the visible part.

Since all of these palsies are very only-one-part-looks-affected you can give them a condition that causes multiple of these for a more 'obvious' effect if that's what you're looking for. Traumatic injuries, stroke, nerve infections, multiple sclerosis, idiopathic congenital, CHARGE syndrome, Moebius syndrome, Guillain–Barré syndrome, etc. can all cause multiple cranial nerve dysfunctions (as a note, some syndromes are more likely to cause one over the other).

I was able to find one photo of a lizard with strabismus but not literally anything else. If any followers have any awesome photos feel free to share.

Hope this helps,

mod Sasza

[cripplecharacters]

Hi! Are any of you aware of a condition that would cause a lazy eye (that is the correct term, yes?) and/or eye jittering frequently but not permanently? I'm basing a character's conditions loosely off myself, but I've never been given an actual word for this which isn't a personal bother but I kinda wanted them to have a named condition in the story ..

Not necessarily something specifically for this, but also just something that it could be a symptom/trait of.. I only really need names so I can further research it and see how it could apply to them, but I'm struggling to find anything lol

Thank you in advance!

Hello!

By "eye jittering" I'm going to assume you mean nystagmus. "Lazy eye" is another name for amblyopia, but sometimes people also call strabismus that (the fact that they're very frequently comorbid doesn't help). Amblyopia is when your brain fails to process input from one eye and, over time, ignores it in favor of the other one, and is often caused by strabismus. Strabismus is when your eyes are visibly misaligned (cross-eyed, etc.) and doesn't have to be permanent.

As far as I understand there's no cause for amblyopia that would be frequent but not all-the-time just because of the kind of disorder it is. It can be treated, but it's still a long term condition. Because of that I'm going to assume you mean strabismus, but if I'm wrong feel free to resend the ask.

Nystagmus has approximately one billion causes and can be caused by seemingly everything. Intermittent nystagmus could be congenital or idiopathic, and many of the types mentioned here.

Strabismus is a bit simpler because it's caused by specific nerve or eye muscle problems (that the nerves control). Basically any neurological disorder that can affect the cranial nerves can work. Unless you want to go into a lot of detail, you can give your character pretty much any of the below conditions for a non-permanent strabismus (TLDR, outside 3rd cranial nerve palsy the eye should be able to align at least sometimes).

Some conditions that could cause both:

congenital where strabismus and nystagmus are the only symptoms (many such cases),

poor eyesight (probably most of such cases),

multiple sclerosis,

albinism,

optic nerve dysfunction,

trochlear nerve dysfunction,

stroke,

cerebral palsy,

brain injury,

generally just brain damage,

anything that only causes strabismus, since it can cause nystagmus.

Hope this helps,

mod Sasza