My Disability is Invisible
Cindy López
BEFORE YOU READ:
1. What is an invisible disability? What do think are the consequences of having your disability be invisible?
2. Learn about fibromyalgia in the diagram below.
You Can’t See My Struggle
Sometimes, you can easily see that a person has a physical disability. But what about those of us who have invisible disabilities? People don’t realize what we are going through and how we are struggling to manage our disabilities.
Fibromyalgia changed my life in a negative way. Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition with many symptoms. Chronic pain, anxiety, depression, sleeping problems, fatigue, and learning difficulties are the most common symptoms.
I experience all of these symptoms, and so fibromyalgia has affected my education. Having a lot of pain makes me feel like I cannot concentrate when I am in class or doing my assignments. It also affects my short-term memory and makes it difficult to express my thoughts.
Sometimes I feel so tired that I want to give up. But I feel committed to my goals, so I have found alternative ways to continue studying. If I take online classes I try to make sure there are no distractions around me. When I do not remember something that the teacher explained, I go to Canvas and look at the notes. (Canvas is our online learning system.) I also use apps such as Google calendar that are very helpful to remember school assignments, and other activities. I always make sure to do all my homework carefully and on time. I try to get good grades. On the other hand, I try not to feel
stressed about sometimes getting a bad grade. It happens. I just have to keep going.
School systems should do more for students with disabilities. For example, the school should make sure that students know about the resources that the college has to support them. The school should communicate better about all of its health promotion activities. Also, the school could raise awareness that disabilities exist everywhere, even when you can’t see them. Although fibromyalgia isn’t visible, it is a disability too, and it can definitely change your life. However, it does not have to stop you from achieving your goals.
AFTER YOU READ:
1. What do you infer Cindy would like people to know about her?
2. According to Cindy, what should schools do to support students with disabilities?
3. What accommodations do you think schools should provide? Read the chart above and add your own ideas.
Cindy López is a 29-year-old Cuban native currently living in Sonoma County, California. She has been an ESL student Santa Rosa Junior College for over two years. Cindy graduated as a doctor in Medicine from the University of Matanzas in Cuba, and is now completing the required coursework to apply to a nursing program in the U.S. She is dedicated and persistent; she loves learning and inspiring others.