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I WAS DIAGNOSED with cystic fibrosis when I was 19 months old – it is a genetically inherited disease that primarily affects the lungs and pancreas.
Ireland has the highest rates of cystic fibrosis in the world per capita and more than 1,400 people here suffer from it.
I often get chest infections due to my condition and when I do I get very breathless so I can’t walk as far as other people.
Sometimes I really struggle with my breathing, especially when I pick up an infection.
Thankfully we got a disabled parking badge for my mum’s car a few years ago and it is really helpful when I’m sick.
The only problem is that unfortunately, some people in society don’t seem to understand that there are many forms of disability and some of those disabilities are not immediately visible.
As cystic fibrosis is a hidden disability people regularly come up to myself and my mum and challenge us for parking in the disabled space.
They ask us if we are aware that we have parked in a disabled space? Sometimes they inform me that there is ‘nothing wrong with you’ and ‘you shouldn’t be parked there.’
This is despite the fact that my mum’s car is displaying the disabled parking badge.
Recently a member of the public actually followed us to see where we were going and to challenge us for having parked in a disabled space.
I found this incident quite scary.
I find it upsetting that people are implying that I don’t look disabled and that we are wrongly using the spaces.
What is worse is that even if we inform these people that I have a chronic lung disease, so I do have a disability – instead of apologising they usually continue to say that since I can walk, we shouldn’t be parked in the disabled space!
I find these interventions by members of the public quite insulting and extremely embarrassing. I’m only 15 so I find the whole thing quite shocking.
It seems that many people misunderstand the purpose of the disabled spaces. They do provide extra space for a wheelchair user to get in and out – but they are also the spaces nearest to the doors. That is why people like myself are entitled to the badge.
When I am sick with cystic fibrosis I feel very uncomfortable and nervous going out in public and I need to be parked near the entrance to the building.
At those times I’m already feeling vulnerable and I don’t need this harassment from members of the public.
Even at the hospital, I feel that everyone is looking at me and judging me when we park in the disabled spaces, simply because I don’t appear to them to be disabled.
Unfortunately, I think the design of the disabled parking badge may be contributing to this problem because the logo is a representation of a wheelchair. I think it needs to be redesigned to something that signifies and is inclusive of all disabilities.
I’m sure lots of other disabled people are having the same problem, the public just doesn’t seem to understand that not all disability is visible. Not every disabled person is in a wheelchair.
Likewise having the wheelchair logo on the spaces themselves, also gives the impression that the disabled parking spaces are only for wheelchair users – which is not correct.
I’d rather not have to speak out about this issue, to be honest – but people need to remember that you never know what someone else is going through.
This is true in all aspects of life, everyone is dealing with challenges and frustrations in their lives that others cannot see. Individuals with hidden disabilities are just one example.
I think it would help if the disabled parking logo was redesigned or simply replaced by the word ‘disabled’.
Benat Broderick is a cystic fibrosis advocate & ambassador and a secondary school student.
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When I was young, a bit of good weather was something to be enjoyed.
But when you open up this site, the minute there’s a bit of sunshine, all you’re told is floods, lightning, and forest fires.
These leftists in the Journal can find joy in nothing.
Misery and degeneracy are hardwired into their brains.
@Marjory: This is one of truest comments ever in the Journal. Well done Marjory. Life is too short for moaning.
@Marjory: News outlets report facts. You can always choose not to read them if they upset you. Should floods and forest fires not be reported? Should weather forecasts be banned?
@Brendan O’Brien: that’s NOT what she means. Way to go to misconstrue her comment
@Marjory: there was no mention of floods and lightening the last few days as there was no risk of them happening. Today, according to this article, there is a risk of floods and lightening in the west. It’s called a weather forecast, and thunder storms, when appropriate, have been part of the forecast for as long as I can remember
@Brendan O’Brien: I’d forgotten how naive people can be.
Thanks for the reminder.
@Des Daly: You don’t think it’s a tad excessive to claim that ‘Misery and degeneracy are hardwired into their brains’ (with reference to Journal reporters)? How would she know about the ‘degeneracy’?
Looks like an extremist rant to me.
@Brendan O’Brien: & let’s face it …’ extremist rants’ are brennys forte, lol
@Marjory: Lol! Left/right dummies… You literally don’t HAVE to read anything :’ )
@Des Daly: ” twisting and deflection” is brennys stock- in- trade in fairness
@Buster Lawless: What does ‘in fairness’ even mean in this context?
I really don’t understand why people throw this useless phrase into their sentences. To me, it denotes an inability to think coherently.
Enjoy the sun everyone, and f u € k the begrudgers!!!
@Marjory:
The article: “Hey just be careful today cause there’s probably gonna be a thunderstorm even though the weather is nice! Be on the lookout because danger is possible, and you should be aware of it and make decisions with that in mind!”
You for some reason: “those goddamn leftists are taking my sunny days away”
@Marjory: ain’t here to give vocabulary lessons ol’ stock …. Google is your friend. Anyhow, you’re right bout’ this glorious weather —– ENJOY!!
@Des Daly: The only one who misconstrued anything is the OP. Talk about a rant ! The headline says THE FORECAST ” Hot weather in store again today, but there’s also ,annoyingly , a thunderstorm warning.” The very fact the word ‘ annoyingly ‘ was used contextualises that the hot weather is being enjoyed but may be disrupted. It’s incredulous the amount of trolls who get triggered by a weather forecast.. even when it’s bemoaning the possibility of disruption to good weather.
@Marjory: If weather forecasts upset you so much don’t read them.
Checked my own forecast, quite excited to hear there’s gonna be rain later in the day. I just really like hot days and then the rain comes falling down, it’s such a lovely feeling atmospherically (Also maybe I’ll be able to actually fall asleep.)
A little jealous of the thunderstorms, not super jealous of the risk of flooding.
@Fishlord “Fishlord_Username” Username: What’s with the able to sleep bit? In the winter people heat their bedrooms close to 20celsius (we don’t, we like warm feet and cold nose tips) so they can sleep. Yet the same temperature in summer prevents them from sleeping. That doesn’t make s ns. Or are your sleeping quarters overheating as your well insulated attic is “keeping the heat in”?
@Athena: the temperatures have hit nearly 30 degrees, that’s gonna cause sleeping issues for alot of people because we’re not used to that kind of heat, simples
@Athena: It’s humidity in summer rather than heat. Also in winter, people don’t leave their heating on all night, so it gets a lot cooler. And the temperature in our house yesterday evening was 26 degrees. We never heat our house close to that temperature in winter
@Tom O’ Donnell: But that’s what I mean. The house shouldn’t be 26 Celsius indoors. Modern house design (i.e. big window for a light and airy feeling), insulated attics, airtight rooms etc will sooner or later mandate air-conditioning, another demand led branch of industry, pushing more geared air out into an already heated environment.
Why aren’t houses build with roof overhangs, or roller shutters to produce shadow and keep heat out?
While our upstairs rooms (Midland location, 29.7 yesterday) were a “toasty” 18 Celsius, we enjoyed a good night’s sleep in a cool 14 Celsius downstairs room. No air conditioning, just an old house with thick walls and small windows, surrounded by shrubs, bushes, trees, built 130 years ago by people who understood the lay of the land and the environment.
Nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah…………
@Andrew Kenny: You’re quoting Cozy Powell?
@Brendan O’Brien: Wow Brendan, Cozy Powell, What a memory that is,Great Drummer
If people would only have listened to the green party we wouldn’t be in this boat. The extra taxes would have offset the weather patterns. People need to learn the war in Ukraine and gaza emissions there have little effect on the earth even highly populated countries like India and China. Its mary in the micra going to dunnes for the shopping when she could have walked around the emissions played a part. If she was taxed more she wouldn’t have used the car and less emissions hence less weather sinarios. Roderic and eamon are highly educated in such practices especially Roderic who invited the world in to INCREASE emissions, well done.
@Paddy C: people wouldn’t use cars as much if ireland had more reliable, cheap and well placed public transport. Taxation is great, especially to fund this cheap public transport, but I think the focus should really be on our infrastructure and how that influences human behaviour. And it has the benefit of better infrastructure.
I was in malta the last 10 days. Its actually as warm here.
@Brian Dunne: I hope you had a great time Brian,one of my fave places for holidays. Been 5 times,lovely friendly country
@Larry Betts: fantastic time Larry! Didnt get to that restaurant after, ran out if time. Did go by it on a choo choo train though and thought of you! Its a lovely place, our 3rd time there.
@Larry Betts: absolutely gorgeous……& Reasonable too……we went just before Christmas……. A beautiful Island/ great people
I love CO2 and its apparent results in these beautiful sunny days we are having.
Connaght?? Look at what the heat does.
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