Tips to Enhance the Accessibility of Mental Health Support

 May is Mental Health Awareness Month. As someone who has ongoing mental health challenges, I’ve encountered several barriers regarding getting the support I need, including proper medication. Unfortunately, I encountered a barrier last week. It’s not a new one, but it’s one that no one seems to mention.   Mental

An Evening in the Maritimes: The Biggest and Fanciest Kitchen Party in Support of ABLE2

 More than 50 percent of Canadians have a relative who is living with a disability. In Ottawa, 260,300 people live with a disability, and three-quarters have multiple disabilities. People with disabilities (PWD) require more support, which can sometimes be challenging to get, especially for lower-income families and single-income persons with

Cultivating Inner Peace with Art, Meditation, and my Surrounding

 Last week was chaotic for me. My new sleeping pills stopped working, so I had very little sleep for three days. Thankfully, I could communicate with my doctor, which seems to be helping. That’s just one issue I had last week. The important thing is I’m still here, and, more

If a PWD is Stranded in the City – Will Anyone Hear Us?

 Last Monday, Ottawa Transit Riders and ParaParity members held a Para Transpo awareness meeting at City Hall. I admit I only saw about 38 minutes of the meeting. Based on what I saw, the discussion mainly consisted of a two-person presentation and some questions from the audience. Several Para Transpo

It’s Better to Bust a Gut Than to Bust a Wheel

 For the fourth week in a row, the LRT is still down. Riders continue to complain about the service interruptions, while both OC Transpo and the City of Ottawa, along with our Mayor and some City councillors, continue to point fingers at each other and ignore people, especially people with

Letting The Good Times Roll—Unlike Our LRT!

 Before I roll deeply into this week's article, I want to point out that I’m aware of what’s going on with the LRT being down again and how it continues to affect people with disabilities and Para Transpo users. Those who follow me on social media probably know I’ve posted

Bluesfest Continues to Give People With Disabilities the Blues

 Last week, I talked about the good aspects of RBC Bluesfest, such as the sense of community, and festival-goers being respectful towards people with disabilities, As promised, this week, I’ll be talking about the less-than-positive aspects of Bluesfest and issues that Bluesfest continues to ignore. Before I begin, I understand

Voting should not be this difficult for PWD

 Last Friday, I was able to vote in the municipal election, and I was thrilled to be able to. The other good thing was that I didn’t need to use Para Transpo. In my last article, I discussed some challenges that Para Transpo users face regarding getting to the polling

Frankly, when it comes to PWDs, wheelchair companies and the city don’t give a damn

 Some of you may remember that last week I talked about a friend that became stranded due to his chair breaking down. In the same article, I also mentioned that Para Transpo safely drove him home. I have an update on the story. Last Thursday, Francis Menard, was again heading

A broken chair in a broken system can leave you in a dangerous spot

 I have a quick update regarding last week’s article. Last week, I wrote about a friend being stranded at the hospital because Para Transpo initially refused to pick her up, and Westway Taxi never showed up. A person from OC Transpo reached out to them to apologize and mentioned that the

We need a voting system that is accessible to everyone

 This week, I’ll update you about my experience with voting in the provincial election. If you missed last week’s article, here’s a quick recap. Just over a week ago, I had planned to vote early. To my surprise, none of the locations in Ottawa Centre were remotely close to me.

How you can help people with disabilities in Ukraine

 ABOVE: A team from Poland helps evacuate disabled Ukrainian children. (IMAGE: Bloombergh Quicktake) Last week, I briefly discussed what’s going on in Ukraine, particularly how it affects PWD and the lack of information about them. Shortly after my article came out, a number of you reached out to me with articles, links,

Continuing my discussion on ODSP. Their rules need to be changed.

 In my last article, I discussed Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) and gave a brief example of how ODSP falls way short of providing enough money to meet people’s needs. Shortly after the article came out, I received messages from people sharing their stories, along with suggestions of other topics

Canadians with disabilities are living in poverty

 By Krista Carr Twenty-two per cent of people in Canada over the age of 15 have a disability. They are your friends, neighbours, family members and coworkers — and almost a quarter of them are living in poverty. People you know and love can’t afford to pay their rent, put

Why this is an important time for all Canadians, and how you can play a positive role

 This is an important week for both Canada and the Province of Ontario. By the time this article comes out, it’ll be Federal Election Day. For those who missed it, last week, I talked about this election and its relation to people with disabilities. I encourage you all to please

Roll the vote: A PWD’s guide to voting

 As you’re probably aware, Election Day is fast approaching whether we like it or not. To be honest, I’m not one to openly discuss my political opinions. In my experience, it has started many arguments and even had friendships end. With that in mind, though, I did watch the English

It’s ok to help us but please don’t baby us.

 As I type this, it’s another beautiful day here in Ottawa. It finally feels like Spring or Summer if any of you were outside last week. I managed to enjoy the sun a few times last week after training two more caregivers. My favourite time of year is Spring and

Persons with disabilities need accommodations and supports, not medically assisted death

 By Robin Acton As the mother of a young woman with an intellectual disability and the wife of someone with a significant physical disability, I know full well the value and meaning of their lives. Their lives, like my own, are defined by who they are, who they love, their

The R-word takes away people’s humanity. We all need to stop using it.

 By Al Etmanski Some of you may have heard it on the playground. Others might have used it in jest. I'm not going to write it. I'm just going to call it the R-word because it's that disgusting. It's a slur against people with intellectual disabilities that you will see

Advice on looking after your mental health during the winter in the age of Covid

 As we move closer to Winter, many people may feel depressed and isolated. This is particularly true this year due to Covid-19. For people with disabilities, the Winter months can affect us in a multitude of ways. During the Winter season, many PWD stay home. This is due to cold

Shining a positive light on Personal Support Workers

 As I sit here and write this, it’s Thanksgiving Weekend in Canada. I figured that it would be the perfect time for me to discuss one of the things that I’m very thankful for. This week, I’ll be talking about Personal Support Workers. The short form, and the term that

Perceptions & misconceptions: We may be different, but we’re just like you

 What’s your first thought when you come across a person using a wheelchair or another mobility device? Do you think of us as just another person, or do you view us as less or more of a person only because we appear and do things differently? In part one of

It’s time to unify the disability movement

 By Al Etmanski and Kathleen O’Grady There needs to be a political price for neglecting persons with disabilities The one-time $600 federal payment to cover the extraordinary COVID-19 expenses incurred by Canadians with disabilities finally received Royal Assent – but it’s too little, too late and reaches too few. The

Award-winning Employable Me releases season 3

 Photo: Outakes from Employable Me - Episode 6 Employable Me is an honest and emotional six-part documentary series featuring job seekers who are determined to overcome their disabilities and prove that their health conditions shouldn’t make them unemployable. They may have Down Syndrome, be blind, partially sighted or have a neurological condition such

Not all lives are valued equally

 Canada must appeal medical assistance in dying decision If I – a young, healthy, white, non-disabled, mother of two, with a successful career and no criminal record – were to walk into a hospital and say, “I want to die,” I have every reason to believe that people would fight