Friday's Open Thread

[hollzilla]

You're free to comment about anything, whether it relates to the interests of the community or not.

No nudity, please.
If you post pictures, please don't make them so big that people have to side scroll. (If you're unsure about a picture, just link us to it instead.)
No personal attacks.

Comments

[kaowolfie]

I am... so irritated right now. I mentioned elsewhere that I have painful nerve damage in my face, as a side note to a comment about my damn hair, and so I had some "well meaning" person ask if I wanted to know how they "cured" a similar ailment. And, well, no, I don't want to hear it, because people like that always suggest Reiki or homeopathy or some other kind of bullshit that doesn't do anything. My doc and I have spent years finding the right drugs for me in the right dosages, through a lot of trial and error, and no random person is going to know more than we do about my rare disorder.

The worst part is I caught myself being ~nice~ in telling them this, being the good cripple, instead of explaining how upsetting and patronizing that behavior is. After two weeks of being in a very bad pain flare (I was screaming yesterday, when my normal response is to shutdown and go non-verbal), confronting the fact that I will always be in pain = ruined my day completely.

so I'm glad for the rant space. x.x

[luminousmotion]

Isn't this community supposed to be a place be can discuss things without being criticized?

[luminousmotion]

I disagree. I didn't say it worked for me, which means it will work for you. And I didn't say the person's comment was wrong. As well saying harshly its bullshit/placebo could also be read as criticism too in the same vein of what you're saying?

PS-Yes, fuck autism speaks!

[paulnolan]

Eh, I think it's right to be harsh on "alternative" therapies that don't actually do anything - relying on them instead of proven treatment has killed people.

http://whatstheharm.net

[kaowolfie]

No, you just felt you had to come up to me when I'm talking about people constantly recommending or espousing the virtues of "alternative medicine", as soon as they figure out I'm disabled, and felt the need to announce that you think it worked for you. With the unspoken subtext, unless you are so very different from the bulk of people who buy into alt medicine, that it would work for me if I'd just try it. Do you really need another explanation of why doing that is so offensive and frankly ableist, aside from the one in my original complaint? Fine, then

[dawnduskdancer]

And that means it will somehow cure my INCURABLE DISORDER, and I must really want to stay sick if I don't immediately beg to know more about this miracle treatment so I can stop taking those nasty pills. Then they throw in a dose of shaming about how I obviously want to be a drug addict, sniff because I got offended when they "just wanted to help", and write me off as another angry cripple
Arrgh! I had a friend lecture me like this when i told her my mother was on chemo. Because chemo is *bad for you* or something. To this day I wish I'd had the nerve to reply "You know what's worse for you than chemo? TERMINAL FUCKING BREAST CANCER!"
(I also had a drunken argument with a friend of a friend over whether I have a right to take medication for my various mental health issues. Because anxiety, depression, and ADD are all in my head and I should just "learn to live with them" or some such bullshit)
/rant.

[thatwordgrrl]

Oh, ghods...I either get those (generally somewhat drunk) who either want to tell me about this fabulous treatment that worked for their cousin's second wife's sister's roommate, or that they will "pray for me." Which...EWWWW!!! If you and I are friends, I'm OK with that. But random strangers? Just...no.

Alternatively, I get the people who will just randomly run up to me and the first words out of their mouth are "OMFG WHAT'S THAT THING YOU'VE GOT THERE???" Seriously, I had a woman at the *dog park* do this to me. Because in a park full of happy dogs running around and playing, I'm the most interesting thing there??