#give respect

[canadian-cannibal]

May is EDS Awareness Month

EDS, or Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, is a genetic disorder that affects connective tissues and causes numerous intense physical problems all over the body. Think severe pain no matter what position you’re in, joints dislocating seemingly at random, gastrointestinal issues, fragile skin, becoming seriously injured just by stepping wrong, extreme fatigue and more. It’s a huge disorder that affects many different systems across the body, and it’s incredibly rare, making it hard to diagnose. There is no cure.

Despite the rarity of the disease, I have three close friends who have EDS.

One of them is an incredibly influential mentor to me. She teaches amazing classes and sets up huge camps each year to take care of families and needs in our community, despite the hardships that she and her family have to go through. One day in a class I was taking from her just last semester, she was not able to teach because she was having seizures and could not physically stand. She is often in at least one brace, and it’s not uncommon to see her rolling around on her knee scooter because one of her feet or ankles popped out of place or a tendon tore. Sometimes I will even see her in a wheel chair, and it’s hard to see such a vibrant woman who is usually enthusiastically jumping around and gesturing wildly (maybe not the best idea for someone with EDS, but there’s no stopping her, she’s like a force of nature) confined to a wheelchair. She has told me that when she is in a wheelchair, people don’t talk to her, they talk to the person pushing the wheelchair. It’s like she’s invisible. 

Knowing that has made me a lot more conscious and deliberate about talking to people in wheelchairs or with other disabilities.

Another friend is graduating this year and may or may not be able to walk across the stage to receive her diploma. Some days she can walk on her own, but other days she is confined to her wheelchair. She never knows which one tomorrow will be. I saw her last summer at a youth camp where the majority of the camp is spent hiking through the woods while pulling carts. She was determined to make it through the camp, but by the end of the first day, she could barely stand. The only reason she was able to continue on is because the people running the camp had a cart for especially for the handicapped with seats on it, and the other youth happily volunteered and took turns pulling her up and down hills and all around the camp. 

My third friend is one of my closest friends. She struggles daily with all the crap that entails having EDS. Some days, to me, it seems like her life is a living hell. Yet somehow she has always been there for me, even when I have acted like the idiot I am and made her tear her hair out over my antics.

I’m incredibly grateful for these friends in my life who have taught me that even if someone looks ok on the outside, on the inside they may be literally falling apart. And that’s not just physically. I know this is a post about EDS, but even if someone doesn’t have a disability, we should still treat them with kindness and respect. Everyone who surrounds us is a human being with their own struggles, and who are we to judge? Who are we to tell someone that they are wrong for hurting and crying and being vulnerable? Why can’t we make a safe space for them to fall apart in, and let them fall apart, because it’s ok to not be ok sometimes, then be there for them when they’re ready to pick up the pieces?

My EDS friends have taught me a lot, and I hope that maybe I’ll have shared even a little bit of their light. The world needs it.

So as you do whatever it is you do today, remember to treat others like they’re human beings worthy of your respect, especially those with disabilities. Because they are. Talk to someone in a wheelchair, not the person pushing them. It’ll make a big difference to them, even if it’s small to you. Make a safe space for all of the people out there who are falling apart, even if you can’t see it.

Some resources for EDS:

https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/

https://themighty.com/topic/ehlers-danlos-syndrome/ehlers-danlos-syndrome-support-resources/

https://gptoolkit.ehlers-danlos.org/

[thepeacefulgarden]

[canisalbus]

✦ Freshly ordained ✦

[rogueshadeaux]

“I hate the script, the vault dwellers sound so cheesy—“ my Brother in Steel you realize that’s the point, right? They were bred to act like the physical embodiment of an HR e-mail. Did you not catch the memo that Vault-Tec put out regarding their experiment facilities?

[birdmanbirdplan]

Did a part two to this comic

Turns out Edgeworth just likes to see a more vulnerable side to Phoenix

It doesn’t translate well

[tenmastrousers]

meet downhill longboarder wwx

[ravenpureforever]

On one hand, Young Justice is kind of neglected by the actual superheroes that should be looking out for them in a lot of crucial ways and very much failed by the adults around them

But on the other hand Red Tornado straight up hosts a parent-teacher conference where their respective legal guardians all show up, barring Batman who’s in traffic so Nightwing fills in instead because Robin’s dad does not know he’s a vigilante which is objectively hilarious

[dekariosclan]

Professor Gale Dekarios of Blackstaff Academy: Now, class, I believe I’ve shared with you how I was kidnapped on a Nautiloid, hmm? How I teamed up with a group of adventurers, found the love of my life, saved all of Faerun? And how, through all of that, I still managed to focus on learning whatever new spells were made available to me, even if they required intensive study?

Students: *nodding*

Gale: Excellent. *shuffles papers in his hands, looks down at them, frowns* Then you’ll understand why I’m a tad irritated that half of you couldn’t be bothered to complete your assignments because *squints at papers* ‘your Tressym ate your homework’? *Looks up at class* Truly? That’s the excuse you’ve decided to go with? I myself used to come up with some very creative tales, but I know for a fact that you all do not have Tressyms!

Student: It wasn’t our Tressym that ate it, Professor Dekarios. It was yours.

Gale: …

Gale: *turns to shout over his shoulder* TARA! A WORD PLEASE

[ducktracy]

there are a lot of evil people in the world and a lot of darkness in the world and so it’s very important for me to stress that now more than ever is the time to spread kindness and compassion. combat the evil by not only not partaking in it, but actively refuting it. destroy the notion that being compassionate or generous or kind to someone is uncool or embarrassing or even scary. be the change you want to see. start a chain reaction. positivity only breeds more positivity. do an act of kindness for someone so that that person who is too afraid to do it themselves can see you, realize that they’re not alone, and perhaps sheepishly follow your example. and then the next person who is too afraid but sees that person can do the same. when bad news comes out about bad people or horrible atrocities in the world it’s such an easy impulse to despair, and obviously it’s important to feel what you need to feel. grieve. be angry. be sorrowful. be empathetic. but dust off your pants and get up and be a part of a chain reaction that, no matter how small the scale, and spread compassion and love and care. all the reasons why you might not—“it’s hard! it’s scary! people will make fun of me! it’s useless because there’s too much evil!” are all grade A arguments as to why you should. you have no idea how many people you could inspire to do the same. even if it doesn’t get you anyway far, you can at least say you have the nobility of trying. please choose love and please choose life. you are worth loving and you are worth inspiring others to love

[jadequarze]

I miss them T^T I miss the blue girlies

[guardian-of-soho]

Pratchett’s daughter is saying on Twitter that Good Omens is 3/4 her dad’s.

Here’s the video.

[thepeacefulgarden]

[morganbritton132]

Eddie, posting this TikTok: Uh, excuse me? Why are some of y’all saying I don’t know Erica Sinclair? That I don’t know Lady Applejack?? I know her!

Eddie: Because-

Eddie: *aggressively holds up picture of the Scoops Troop eating ice cream together a week after Starcourt to the camera*

Eddie: I-

Eddie: *holds up picture of Steve giving Erica a piggyback ride so her shoes didn’t get wet*

Eddie: Married-

Eddie: *holds up picture of Sue Sinclair showing Steve how she braids Erica’s hair*

Eddie: Her-

Eddie: *shows picture of Charles Sinclair, Lucas, and Steve moving Erica’s stuff into her dorm room. Erica and Eddie are in the background with no intention of helping out*

Eddie: Dad!

Eddie: *shows picture of Steve and Erica on the campaign trail. Steve’s got a shirt that says ‘you can’t spell America without Erica. Eddie’s photobombing in the background to give them both bunny ears.*

Eddie: Also, we played D&D together *shows picture of a Hellfire campaign*

[doloneia]

we need to abolish the idea that ancient greek myths and legend have a coherent timeline. they do not. for any given myth there are like 10 heroes mentioned that feasibly could not have been adults or even alive. herakles keeps showing up in places where he should probably be dead. anyone could be a suitor of helen. even herakles. even theseus if you count that kidnapping stint he did. nestor is alive for 10 billion years. time is fake and anything beyond vague generational outlines is conjecture

[helpimstuckinafandom]

The fact that we got both Brennan and Lily's reactions in the same shot

[drulalovescas]

THINGS JENSEN ROSS ACKLES SAID SINCE SUPERNATURAL ENDED (paraphrasing):

CROSSROADS 6:

The advice season 15 Dean would give season 4 Dean: appreciate Cas more. Because he'd prove to be the best friend and biggest ally.

JIB 11:

I hope we will get a chance to see that [Dean and Cas' reunion]. I think it would look like we all hope it would. There would be an embrace and then Dean would be like: Can we talk about that goodbye for a minute?

SPNVAN 2022:

I didn’t say anything - I didn’t give him anything. And what I had in my head was, I should have said "I love you too” and hugged him.

NASHVILLE 2023:

Dean's biggest regret was that he couldn't save Cas.