Someone sent me unsolicited advice on Facebook, in which they called me Narsastic and said I need to get over the issues I have been posting about online. This advice suggested that I move, a very ablenormative suggestion. As if I could just move to an area that would be better accessible to me. It’s not that simple. But this is not the point of this entry.

In the comments of the post, someone told me that I was making the issues bigger than they are. That there were often times that I could and should simply take more risks.

It is not up to someone else to decide what risks I should take to access the world I live in. Ultimately I should not have to take any risks at all. And if I feel a risk is to great I will not be shamed for not taking it.

The consequences of the same decision for me can be widely different to the consequences of someone else making the same decision, even if it may not appear so. This doesn’t matter if the person is disabled or not. Only they know there own risks.

I have to be careful that I do not risk a fall. The mere possiblity of a fall early in the week increased my pain for two days. A fall could cause serious pain and damage. Maybe I could take the risk, maybe I would be fine, but that’s my decision to make and not anyone else’s. I am the one that has to deal with the consequences of a risk going wrong.

Yes I’m scared of falling because if I fall I’m the one that gets hurt. I’m the one that has to deal with the consequences. Not some random commenter on Facebook that doesn’t understand my situation.

Risks are not objective. One persons safe passage is not anothers. It’s up to individual people to access there risks.

You do not always understand the risk that someone is taking. And you certainly don’t understand the risk that I am taking navigating the world. Your advice isn’t asked for or wanted. Until you’re taking the risk yourself you don’t get a say.