Am I still invisibly disabled as an ambulatory wheelchair user? 

Some people can walk short distances. But, it does not mean they don't have a disability. You can have a mild, medium, or severe disability. But, it does not mean your disability is any less because you can walk short distances.

This is a year old, and my first video I'm seeing from you, but I'm touched. You're a very eloquent, clear speaker. I am disabled and getting my first wheelchair tomorrow, but I am ambulatory too. Chronic pain, severe fatigue, and undiagnosed heart issues have brought me to finally try a chair to manage these symptoms. This whole topic is so important to me. Thank you for speaking about it.

Absolutely loved this discussion and the inclusion of intersectionality. Definitely this will never be a simple issue, it's complicated by so many other factors. I don't have much access to healthcare because of income, currently I mostly use a cheap cane and sometimes I'm able to borrow wheelchairs when I go to long events. But there's lots of things on top of that which also complicate it--I'm thin, young, white, and queer, which changes how people interpret my behavior and my health. Navigating society is a mess. I really enjoyed listening to your perspective, and I'm glad RU-vid suggested this to me haha. I definitely think invisible disability is a spectrum and never exists independantly of other factors.

Wife and I are watching this, I’m understanding a lot more of what she goes through right now. She’s an ambulatory wheelchair user, and when I got her the real nice custom chair, she did feel guilty. Our privilege shows, and we work so hard getting her walking more and more. Your story as a child at Disney wanted to make me cry. Thank you so much for sharing.

This really rings true. I'm using a chair now as walking is severe!y painful due to AS. So much of what you say is true .

Abled vs disabled and the connection to racism is so spot on. I will keep on hoping that less and less people will feel the need to judge. That being said, I just bought a disabled sticker to put on the back of my car (after 12-14 years of driving without any form of announcement of being every bit disabled as the last 2-3 years when I finally got my disability parking card (due to some hacked up laws in my country I was ignored by the state as soon as I was “able to” get married, lost my disability according to the state, not just the financial aid itself or any bonuses or allowance or whatever but being disabled itself 🤷‍♀️). Of course I never parked in any of those spots until I got this disabled parking card but still… it’s like you wish for death stares to happen if you don’t have any announcements or disclaimers on your car, wheelchair or heck, even on our own bodies! So I figured I’d stick a “disclaimer” on the back of my car. In all honesty, I primarily did it because I am struggling so hard to get my scooter in and out and maybe am eligible for a lift since they have messed up when they wrongly calculated that the ramp I am currently using would be a perfect fit (my car has lot’s of damage and I even got another -bigger- car with a lower loading threshold just so I could use the method they said was easy peasy). My marriage fell apart a year ago and now I have to do it all myself. If only my husband hadn’t taken on the loading in an out (yes I previously was bound to have him along for the ride to be able to use that scooter. Needless to say I didn’t get out much lol), I would have been able to give the ramp back and ask for a better fit. But now there’s too much damage so I do hope that the lift is a possibility for me, now that I’m on my own for it all. If not, it is trail and error so that ramp and my trunk shouldn’t be getting too much ongoing damage but the technique I need to use to just be able to get that scooter up and down that ramp relies on quite a lot of strength of myself as I need to lift that scooter myself in order to get beyond that too sharp corner on each end of that ramp. Honestly that guy from the disability center messed up big time but my husband made it that I now rely on a new enquiry instead of merely altering the incorrect option they provided.

I love your videos

Cool yup I get glares from old lady's when I use my scooter it's quite a snazzy one and I have been using it around my town for a couple years so I don't get glared at as much , but it sucked I was also feeling wired as I get glared at when I use disabled loos when I don't have my mobolity aid or I use my stick because they think it's a seat I carry around with me it is but it's also a mobility aid that I use , but I don't get glared at anymore in my scooter or rollater

👏👏👏👏👏👌

I walk and use a wheelchair and no one has yet to say anything to me. I’m recovering from back surgery. I also had neck surgery also.

It's not true that people don't questions people in wheelchairs, though.